Originally Posted by Anonymous
Can someone explain the recent shift to all these “national” teams? I have heard of certain kids making these teams when they barely hang on to their spot for the local club team. Seems like everybody and their brother is running a national team. I feel like that takes away from the point entirely. Lots of bad competition showing up …

Initially, I think that the National team concept gained traction as the sport grew across the county. It was basically a means for a kid from outside the typical lacrosse hotbed areas to play in competitive east coast tournaments like Naptown, NAL, etc. While these players may have had access to local clubs, those clubs were typically not traveling, or being invited, to larger tournaments. Therefore, if a player was talented enough, they had the opportunity to compete at a higher level with teams like Mad Dog Nation, True. West Coast Stars, Sweetlax, etc.