Good read - it touches on the debate here - in some areas. Full disclosure - I don't have a kid on 91 - but read Spallina's comments - I have to say I agree with his view.
Is it fair to say that in some towns the people who run the youth lacrosse league have preyed upon the uneducated consumer?
Is it fair to say that they have misled the community?
Is it fair to say that the people who control the youth league are the same people who have created a divide in the community that they profess to serve?
Is it fair to say that much animosity could have been avoided.
Is it fair to say that power corrupts and that absolute power corrupts absolutely.
Take a look at the situation in your community and think about what you have been told by the people who run your league. Now, compare what is said to what is actually done by the people who run the league. Think logically about the situation in your town. Don't think about "the feel good sounds good" things like staying together or being loyal, think about what is done. Do kids get cut? Are there "A" and "B" Teams at very young grades? Do they mix grades? Is winning more important than development? As the kids approach recruiting age is anyone there to help navigate the process? Are there different rules for different teams/kids? Is there coercion? is there collusion? Have kids been excluded?
Compare what has been said to what has been done in your town.
if you didn't take the time to read the article in the link that the previous poster provided see below.
Here are some exscipts from March 2014 Lacrosse Magazine Article titled "Beware the Recruiting Racket" by Justin Feil.
-“Make sure kids’ lacrosse IQ is being developed,” said Joe Spallina, the Stony Brook women’s coach, Team 91 coach for his sons’ youth teams and coach of the MLL’s New [lacrosse] Lizards. “Club lacrosse is similar to honors classes. I want my kids with the best teachers, the best students. I want the bar as high as possible. I don’t want a low bar and great results.”
-“Look out for manipulative practices,” Trevor Tierney said. “If a club team is hiring a high school coach and the high school coach is saying, ‘If you want to play for this high school, you have to play for this club team’ — if there’s a form of coercion — that’s when there are red flags.”
-Because of that conflict of interest, Shriver (Boys Latin Head Coach) has turned down opportunities to start a club program. “It’s ripe for potential problems,” he said.
-“No one ever said it, but when you go to your first tournament, it’s clearly where the college coaches are going,” Kathy Weeks said. “No one is going to your high school games.”
-With recruiting starting earlier, college coaches are coming to club coaches sooner, and players don’t want to get left behind.
-“The right club turnover happens between eighth and ninth grade,” Stagnitta said. “That’s when it goes from instructional/learning, to what team goes to exposure events, who has access to good tournaments.”
-The number of players in a club and on each team will factor into the attention your child will receive from coaches and colleges. Rosters should be in the low 20s.
-“You want the best kids with the best kids,” Spallina said. “It’s nice to see a kid playing with lesser kids and doing it all by himself or herself, but you want to see them with good players.”
This is what is happening out there in the lacrosse world. What has your town told you?
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