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Use this thread to discuss things about the Duke's lacrosse club

No one cares about Duke's anymore. They no longer have a Monopoly and are no longer getting all the best kids.

Duke's is growing everywhere so how can you say they no longer have a Monopoly? They recently aligned themselves with the Twist and are in like 5 different regions now on top of their elite nat'l team.

Dukes Nationals is elite at the 22 age group only. The 2; is not bad and the 24 is horrible!!!! Gonzo is a lying sack of poop , who does not live by his system. Buyer beware.

How is he going to justify moving his kid, that was average at best on the 23 team, to that 22 team? I would love to see where he is on the depth chart....

The Dukes 22 team isn t even a legit 22 team. They have a bunch of 21's from MD playing down on that team.

Are you serious? Twist Lacrosse? Come on man, Dukes North,Dukes Main Line, Dukes VA, and now Dukes Twist are mediocre to below average clubs talent wise. And the National team is a complete joke and scam to take advantage of overzealous parents living vicariously through their kids.

I just know of their high school teams and personally watched their 2021's play up at the Best of the Best and did real well considering playing up and their 2018's went 5-0. And I also know of guys who played their 2019 Team (not sure which one) and that team was solid too so maybe they do well at the high school level with their ability to get into top events and their track record of college placement as evident on their website over the past decade. Who would you say are the top 5-10 programs in PA? NXT is B at best, Rough Riders are decent, Big 4 is solid of course but curious to hear people's thoughts...

Dukes is doing a great job top to bottom. Yes I am a Dukes parent. I am around all the age groups at their camps and events and they are all doing well. The kids that want to follow in the foot steps of other great Dukes kids will find there way to the younger teams. There are professional coaches with kids on the teams now. Must be doing something right.

It seems Dukes is looking to provide opportunities for kids of all talent levels to play for their club, which I think is commendable. Dukes Elite HS and Dukes Young Guns are very well run and it looks like Dukes Main Line is well run. If the current guys running Twist lacrosse stay and continue to run the program under the Duke's banner than that club will be fine also.

The only issue I have with Dukes is that they tried this before with Dukes north and Dukes Blue Mountain and those ventures were horrible failures. But I guess the common denominator for those 2 programs was one guy, who now runs DN. Give it time, he will expose himself over there too.

I am just curious why there was a board started specifically about Dukes? I hope the person who initiated the board didnt expect there to be no bashing.

B/C in Philly they are the top dog and doing a bang up job with their players and teams. Thats why everyone talks about them. If you care enough to bash em, its only bc they are better and have something you don't. That is the nature of this board.

Awesome!!! Dukes has their own channel on here. Dukes is out trying to make it better and the Philly lax community wants to shut em down... Ha. LI has 91 and & LIE. Baltimore has Crabs and FCA. Now Philly has earned its place at the table with Dukes. Well done. Well done.

Are you insane or is your name Gonzo, Your comparing Duke's to 91? Ball hogging , Daddy Ball, Run by a degenerate who doesn't pay his coaches, Too busy chasing women around to pay his bills, list is never ending

Where have you been the last 20 years? Dukes has always been a top notch HS program nationally. The only reason there is all this hating on Dukes now is because of their stupid Dukes National team and their entrance into youth lacrosse. Now all the crazed parents who are so invested in little Johnny's lacrosse 7th grade team get so angry when DN beats them. Newsflash: no one cares about youth lacrosse. The DN team is hurting the Dukes brand no question about it.

EB should get rid of gonzo and find someone professional to run Duke's Nationals.

Come on Gonzo

probably the only thing everyone on this board can agree on is they have the same thoughts on Gonzo and TD.

Not me. My son has played for both. Gonzo does a great job with the kids. He is doing something different for youth lacrosse and we like it. if you don't make it, you won't like it. there will be more people that don't make it and therefore don't like it. Around here, we only have a couple kids that are tough and true lacrosse players, most of our kids are just kids that play lacrosse. Gonzo and DN look for lacrosse players.

Dude, your so drunk on his kool aid. He messes with people, moves them around on the depth chart. Regardless of attendance and production. He can't pay his bills, Can't keep his pants on, he is a disgusting role model who doesn't live by his own system and only takes care of the people that line his pockets

Your problem is he has not burned you yet. He must be currently paid up on his bills or Ebe is handling his books so it does not happen. He has left a trail of unpaid rental fees and kids without a team because he did not pay his bills. Ask all those Dukes North, Blue Mountain, and Skyhawks families of the promises that were never filled. Remember the mantra when he merged with Dukes, No player left behind, we have a spot for anyone who wants to play club lacrosse. Total money grab. Yeah Gonzo more than happily took all those families money, gave them nothing and left them high and dry.

"Around here we only have a couple kids that are tough and true lacrosse players, most of our kids are just kids that play lacrosse. Gonzo and DN look for lacrosse players"

The problem with youth lacrosse summed up in one idiotic thought. I

There are teams for everybody. DN just happens to be for the best kids from the region. DN is not like every other plain vanilla club team (glorified town team). It is for really really good and motivated young lacrosse players. Kids that want to play lacrosse can go play for club teams and town teams. Lacrosse players need a home too. They have found the DN program.

If you are not a fan don't participate. I am guessing that the U Penn camp will be top notch and well attended. I am guessing that the teams will continue to meet ONCE A MONTH and compete to win in tournaments. DN is not for all kids and families so some will not make it, not make the depth chart and not meet once a month. I am sorry your club experience did not work out for you and your son but for the group of us that are at DN now, its great.

My son has been on the DN 2022 team since it's inception. It has been a great experience and he is very, very proud to play for Gonzo and the #1 team in the world. Billy Conners is fantastic, Coach Jeremy and Dez - ditto. No politics, just great, fun lacrosse at a very high level. Watch closely at minicamp, the drill instruction, the individual feedback and kid's attitudes says it all.

My son has built a nice lax IQ from his Dukes Nationals experience. Although they only meet monthly, the DN program has significantly contributed to his skill development, work ethic and love of the game. It drives him to pick up his stick away from practice and in the off season. He likes his coaches and teammates - a lot. There is a personal accountability when this team steps on the field that drives every player to work harder and play as a team (most of the time).

Sure, there are growing pains but what Gonzo is doing hasn't been done before. He works hard, is thoughtful and has invested a lot into the DN program and it shows in every kid that shows up to a minicamp. The results speak volumes. Truly.

I'm not drinking the Kool-Aid and don't have to. It's just a great program to be a part of whether college lax is your son's goal or not.

#1 team in the world and you are not drinking the Kool-Aid

Dude you are an absolute moron to the point that I suspect that this is Gonzo writing this in the third person.

First, never been done before? The original Dukes has been around over a decade and churned out some of the most elite talent in the game today. Gonzo had nothing to to with that Dukes. That was Ebe Helm. Gonzo bought into the Original Duke two years ago. Two years ago so stop making it like he started something innovative and revolutionary.

Second. That DN 2022 has several kids dropping down to play on that team that are 2021. Any way that want to portray this doesn't hide the fact that is CHEATING. This is not gray ....this is black and white.

You may have a great experience once a month that is your business. But you need to get the facts straight and understand that fundamentally you are cheating

Actually you are the moron. Those kids are not dropping down. They have played up since they were little. Still do and still are. DN oldest team is the 22. EB runs HS, Gonzo runs youth. Yes what gonzo is doing hasn't been done, at these ages, with this type of success before. He's a good guy, a good leader and doing it despite you guys thinking he's a jerk and the one posting. This post, like others, are by the parents that support him, EB and their programs.

Not Gonzo at all. Give me your email address and I'll be happy to contact you. This model is something I haven't seen before at this early age group, it's not Philly based. Cheating? Nope, everyone is 2022. Some may have played at 2021 but were simply playing up, above their grad year.

As for the comment before that last post, what team do you think is better than the Dukes Nationals 2022? Like I said, best in the world. No need for Kool-Aid.

Gonzo the innovator. Knute Rockne of Lacrosse....step aside Wooden....Phil Jackson nothing...Belicheck overrated....Aurigemma, Yawn...Gonzo is the future of our game. Yikes.

My recommendation is to be very careful of the team your son plays for. My experience is those teams who provide the sole or primary source of income for the owner/director dont end well. Good coach, usually BUT terrible businessmen.

To me it is pretty simple- if Gonzo was good at his job, he wouldn't have bounced around like he has.

my son plays on dukes 2022 from time to time great experience made a bunch of friends ,gonzo very good to us

us too

Gonzo, your keyboard is smoking typing these threads with yourself back and forth

Serious question for all you DN parents, what is the model for this program once the kids get to HS?

Good question. Its not just a concern during high school lacrosse season, but what happens to the multi sport athletes who cant attend in fall and/or winter due to other sports commitments?

Great point. This is why I think there is a lot of backlash for the DN program. When the DN parents come on here with their sanctimonious "DN is only looking for true lacrosse players" BS. There are a ton of kids that could be at the top of the DN depth chart at their position but choose to concentrate on football, soccer, wrestling, etc...

My son plays multiple sports and can't make every camp. He stays on the the depth chart bc he's good enough. He doesn't care if he is #1 or #6... he just loves playing with Dukes. What is so difficult to understand? If you like playing lacrosse and you are good at it, dukes is fun.

Ask EB. He will take the best kids for each age group he can find. At 22 & 23, Gonzo has given him a great head start as he has pulled together some great kids. Pretty simple.