Thats correct every team had a few big athletic kids as would be expected at this age as they all mature at different times. Whst i dont understand is the parents and the trash talk within earshot of the kids. Some of tge LI parents take being a FLID to a whole new level.
I just don't understand the LI parent obsession with the notion of holdbacks. All of the teams had big, athletic kids. The Hawks weren't the biggest team there this weekend. Not even close - that was clearly Laxachusetts who lost a few games. I was particularly appalled by the focus on two of our kids - calling them out by number, telling your kids to target them, etc. Like it, believe it, or not, they are 13 years old. I don't have a problem believing that your 6'5 240 pound goalie is 13. He was lights out in the game and I enjoyed watching him play. PT and LIE had phenomenal players with excellent coaching. The parents, however, were embarrassing. I wish that our parents had ignored them but it was pretty much impossible with what was coming out of the LI parents' mouths. Best of luck to your kids. You never know - some of them could be dorm mates in 5 years.
13 years old now ... but if they turn 14 before December 1, 2018, than they are a holdback as per NY's school calendar year. Yes, I understand that MD and other states use different school calendar years that make their kids "older" per grade, and yes I understand that there are many kids who started kindergarten late due to issues having nothing to do with lacrosse, and yes I understand countless other points relevant to this issue .....
However, all of this nonsense and vitriol can be eliminated if the following were to occur: 1) youth lacrosse separates kids based on date of birth and not grade in school (use Jan 1 - Dec 31, or Sept 1 - Aug 31 - it doesn't matter, just pick one); 2) have birth certificates and official rosters be submitted by the clubs to US Lacrosse each season (certificates need only be submitted once for each player if they are in year 2+ for the club); 3) have an official score sheet for each game, in triplicate, with a roster sticker for each team placed on each copy. The ref and each team's coach signs the sheet after each game, with a copy to each of the teams, one to the tournament, which sends a copy to US lacrosse (each team will have a manager to do this stuff independent of the coaches).
This is exactly what happens in USA hockey, and as a result, ALL parents and coaches trust that everyone is of age and legitimately rostered. Parents can still be jerks to each other concerning penalties and dirty play, but no one bitches and moans about holdbacks, overaged kids, kids driving to 7th grade games, passive aggressive comments meant to be overheard by the other team's parents, etc.
And yes, the next Paul Rabil that is sleeping at each of your houses can play "up" if that is what the parents and the coaches think is best for the kid and the club.
Well said. I’m more concerned with roster transparency. I’ve told the coaches I’d rather see the team have a close loss to a quality team than a blowout win to a team with less experience. My son’s team is in a position where they win games against B and lower tier A teams, but lose to the stronger teams. The problem is one game they’ll lose by a very small margin. A week later, they get destroyed by the same team. I would just like to know if the outcome was due to poor performance or if they lost due to rumors of the other team loading their roster with players that don’t normally play on that team. I welcome good competition. The experience prepares our boys to be competitive when they reach HS and if they are fortunate, college.
