BOTC - US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums NEW JERSEY LACROSSE NEW JERSEY FORUM Top Boy's Club Teams in New Jersey

Not from NJ but I agree. It all depends on the quality which varies per grad year. For HS level players, if the team is going to top 'Recruiting Events' then paying in between that rate is Fair. Here on LI though, there are a couple teams that charge 4k which is insane. Do you due diligence to see what events and like the previous poster wrote, also check the quantity of practices in the Fall, Winter & Spring/Summer however, from what I have seen changed over the past 4 years, more teams are not really offering Fall practices and are primarily charging for the Winter-Summer with an option to pay for the Fall.

Not sure if NJ teams are doing the same but would be curious to know.

Some sell it as a complete package, others offer it a la carte for the off-season. Having to buy into the whole year seems contrary to the concept of wanting to encourage multi-sport athletes. As stated earlier, the biggest push has been with respect to competitive box, the number of clubs participating is growing fast. NJ has a lot of talent, but not the participation numbers like LI - competition is more fierce for spots on top LI clubs, so the top LI clubs have more leverage to push a costly all-in year round package.

Excellent perspective however, LI is saturated with teams so with a plethora of alternatives, I can't comprehend why people pay some programs like fl$ & Igloo 4k when there are teams significantly cheaper and better

People tend to get sucked in by the big name instead of what may be the best situation for their kid. 91 recently made a push into NJ, I'm curious to see how that plays out. The 91 model has not had close to the same success in markets outside of LI, but people hear the name and think that their kid will be the next Bandits all-star.

Anyone know anything about Thunder Lacrosse? My 2024 is looking for a team and his friends suggested Thunder.

What part of NJ are you in, and what level does your son play at. If your son is an A or AA level player, I do not think that Thunder is a club that you should be looking at, otherwise, peer recommendations are always a great start.

Have you seen Igloo's uniforms? Fire!!!! That's where the money goes. But seriously, their unis are straight fire.

Probably a fair estimate, maybe higher in a few instances, but the real issue is value for the money. While every team does their standard 4 summer tournaments, the question is what are you getting for that money off-season. Fall tournaments are few and far between, so more a means to keep the lacrosse skills sharp. Winter is the big factor because you have some clubs that are very active playing competitive box, while other clubs simply run practices in a indoor facility. Spring is really the same as the fall unless your club is getting involved in a competitive spring league like NXT MId-Atlantic. [/quote]

Not from NJ but I agree. It all depends on the quality which varies per grad year. For HS level players, if the team is going to top 'Recruiting Events' then paying in between that rate is Fair. Here on LI though, there are a couple teams that charge 4k which is insane. Do you due diligence to see what events and like the previous poster wrote, also check the quantity of practices in the Fall, Winter & Spring/Summer however, from what I have seen changed over the past 4 years, more teams are not really offering Fall practices and are primarily charging for the Winter-Summer with an option to pay for the Fall.

Not sure if NJ teams are doing the same but would be curious to know. [/quote]

Some sell it as a complete package, others offer it a la carte for the off-season. Having to buy into the whole year seems contrary to the concept of wanting to encourage multi-sport athletes. As stated earlier, the biggest push has been with respect to competitive box, the number of clubs participating is growing fast. NJ has a lot of talent, but not the participation numbers like LI - competition is more fierce for spots on top LI clubs, so the top LI clubs have more leverage to push a costly all-in year round package. [/quote]

Excellent perspective however, LI is saturated with teams so with a plethora of alternatives, I can't comprehend why people pay some programs like fl$ & Igloo 4k when there are teams significantly cheaper and better
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Have you seen Igloo's uniforms? Fire!!!! That's where the money goes. But seriously, their unis are straight fire.[/quote]

The uniforms cost $50 at best...now you just need to account for the remaining $3,950..but glad to have your in-depth persepctive

NJ is a mess, too many teams and not enough good coaches. two and half good '21 teams, one '22, 2 if you include Mountain Lakes and one '23 team. younger teams are even a bigger mess.

I would be curious to know what '21, '22 and '23 teams you are talking about, and not sure where ML as a town program enters the discussion, but yes, the market is saturated right now and there are a lot of bad, or simply inexperienced, coaches out there, but the top teams at there respective age groups are very good

ML beats every '22 team but LE Elite.. that is how they enter the discussion.

What are the options in Northern Bergen?

Interesting, didn't know that ML plays club programs...who are the '2l and '23 teams

ML is a great town team that beats sub-par club teams in lower level tournaments. No way does it beat LE Elite, BBL Black, Tri-State or South Jersey Black Storm. Laker Future even got beat by Red and Black (new Team 91 West team).

ML is a good, not great, town team...and I have seen a few teams handle them pretty easily in the town tournaments...definitely no match for LE, BBL, Tri-State or SJBS

What other top NJ club team have they played

Not a good showing for Leading Edge this weekend. If you remove their '19 & '20 teams they only had one win all weekend. Not good for the "Best Club in NJ"

LE2023 was blown up and they had to scrape together a team this year. Lots of first year players. They probably won't win a game this summer. LE2024 is solid and they can build up each year going forward. The truth is that LE doesn't really focus on winning until high school and there is no better program in the state of NJ at that level. They play the best competition so wins/losses isn't the best metric.

Their 21 team lost to two pretty good teams in Mesa and 91
They always field competitive teams and they don’t play a soft schedule

It's foolish to simply state that one club is better than the other as a general rule. We all know who the top clubs are in NJ and each seems to have their own dominant teams at certain age groups. In all fairness (and not a LE parent), while I do not think that the LE2023 team is the top 2023 team in the State, keep in mind who they were playing this weekend, not really a soft schedule.

Are you staying to are giving up on the '23?

I wouldn't say give up. LE always pulls it together and has great teams eventually. Just a down year.

I have no skin in the game. I'm with a different club but heard the LE 23's had a rough go of it, even against the less competitive teams. With their NLF schedule, it's going to be tough to compete this summer. They always seem to figure it out though, once they get to high school. I wouldn't count them out.

What happened to the 2023 team, did kids leave for another program,,,coaching change

Heard they left for other clubs. Only the 2023’s. Not sure why.

I'm sure a core group decided that the grass was green someplace else, and then other kids started jumping ship...or maybe they were not interested in the 91 affiliation and playing the NLF tournaments.

Moved to Blue Star. Not sure if they would move back. Blue Star is a good program just too many players. They have an amazing '23 goalie, that only plays half the game. Watched FCA come back and beat them while he was on the sideline.

Are you staying to are giving up on the '23? [/quote]

I have no skin in the game. I'm with a different club but heard the LE 23's had a rough go of it, even against the less competitive teams. With their NLF schedule, it's going to be tough to compete this summer. They always seem to figure it out though, once they get to high school. I wouldn't count them out.[/quote]

What happened to the 2023 team, did kids leave for another program,,,coaching change[/quote]

Heard they left for other clubs. Only the 2023’s. Not sure why. [/quote]

I'm sure a core group decided that the grass was green someplace else, and then other kids started jumping ship...or maybe they were not interested in the 91 affiliation and playing the NLF tournaments.[/quote]

Moved to Blue Star. Not sure if they would move back. Blue Star is a good program just too many players. They have an amazing '23 goalie, that only plays half the game. Watched FCA come back and beat them while he was on the sideline.[/quote]

BS must have a pretty solid team, they got a quality win over Brotherly Love last weekend...definitely one of the top 2 or 3 2023 teams out of NJ.

BS must have a pretty solid team, they got a quality win over Brotherly Love last weekend...definitely one of the top 2 or 3 2023 teams out of NJ.[/quote]

Not to take anything away from BS but Brotherly Love was a different team on Sunday. Freedom & Brotherly Love were the best two teams and at another level.

Mad Dog looked good until their top pole broke his arm in the FCA game. Hard for 13-year-olds to play after watching a teammates forearm snap.

Tri-State Shore & BBL are the top teams. You can put the rest in one big group after that.

I saw the NJ Riot North 2019 team play this weekend at the Big 12 North American Club Lacrosse Championship and they have a darn good squad with a deep rotation of middies who can dodge and shoot the ball in the 90s and are very well coached team. Anyone else see them play and have any thoughts on them?

Not to take anything away from BS but Brotherly Love was a different team on Sunday. Freedom & Brotherly Love were the best two teams and at another level.

Mad Dog looked good until their top pole broke his arm in the FCA game. Hard for 13-year-olds to play after watching a teammates forearm snap.

Tri-State Shore & BBL are the top teams. You can put the rest in one big group after that.[/quote]

The single A bracket is a challenging format for the A teams, BL and Freedom are typically in AA brackets. Perhaps BL brought in some reinforcements for Sunday

Look out for O2 Lacrosse..bunch of studs on those teams and a first year program...2022's ran the table at the NXT Meltdown this past weekend taking home the Cup! Keep your eyes out for them as getting to the top sooner rather then later.

Mad Dog beat Blue Star in the '22 A bracket. They do win best post of the week, a Great Fortnite reference by their coach.

I respect the enthusiasm, but they are playing B brackets, the game is a lot different in the A and AA brackets...

Not to take anything away from BS but Brotherly Love was a different team on Sunday. Freedom & Brotherly Love were the best two teams and at another level.

Mad Dog looked good until their top pole broke his arm in the FCA game. Hard for 13-year-olds to play after watching a teammates forearm snap.

Tri-State Shore & BBL are the top teams. You can put the rest in one big group after that.[/quote]


Not to take anything away from BS but Brotherly Love was a different team on Sunday. Freedom & Brotherly Love were the best two teams and at another level.

Mad Dog looked good until their top pole broke his arm in the FCA game. Hard for 13-year-olds to play after watching a teammates forearm snap.

Tri-State Shore & BBL are the top teams. You can put the rest in one big group after that.[/quote]

Seems pretty accurate. Where are Tri-State Shore kids from? Went to one of their tryouts and it was abismal. Do the current team members not tryout? They certainly have good results so not sure what was up.

Not to take anything away from BS but Brotherly Love was a different team on Sunday. Freedom & Brotherly Love were the best two teams and at another level.

Mad Dog looked good until their top pole broke his arm in the FCA game. Hard for 13-year-olds to play after watching a teammates forearm snap.

Tri-State Shore & BBL are the top teams. You can put the rest in one big group after that.[/quote]

Seems pretty accurate. Where are Tri-State Shore kids from? Went to one of their tryouts and it was abismal. Do the current team members not tryout? They certainly have good results so not sure what was up.
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It seem that BroLove was a different team from Saturday to Sunday... TriState shore are out of North Jersey area. There is also a TriState Central team based out of Rutgers area.

Not to take anything away from BS but Brotherly Love was a different team on Sunday. Freedom & Brotherly Love were the best two teams and at another level.

Mad Dog looked good until their top pole broke his arm in the FCA game. Hard for 13-year-olds to play after watching a teammates forearm snap.

Tri-State Shore & BBL are the top teams. You can put the rest in one big group after that.[/quote]

Seems pretty accurate. Where are Tri-State Shore kids from? Went to one of their tryouts and it was abismal. Do the current team members not tryout? They certainly have good results so not sure what was up.
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RFH kids that have been together for years. The '23 team is controlled by a group of Dads, old Shore Stars. They shopped the team and Tri-State took them. They started a Tri-State Shore '24 & '25. The '24s all jumped ship last year and the '25 have a couple of players. The top '25s will end up at Mad Dog, they have the best '25 team.
Not sure how long Tri-State Shore will last, would not be surprised if you don't see a few of the '23 move to LE next year based on what LE offers at the 8th-grade level and the other players start playing with Tri-State north.

Seems pretty accurate. Where are Tri-State Shore kids from? Went to one of their tryouts and it was abismal. Do the current team members not tryout? They certainly have good results so not sure what was up.
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RFH kids that have been together for years. The '23 team is controlled by a group of Dads, old Shore Stars. They shopped the team and Tri-State took them. They started a Tri-State Shore '24 & '25. The '24s all jumped ship last year and the '25 have a couple of players. The top '25s will end up at Mad Dog, they have the best '25 team.
Not sure how long Tri-State Shore will last, would not be surprised if you don't see a few of the '23 move to LE next year based on what LE offers at the 8th-grade level and the other players start playing with Tri-State north.
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Monmouth County team....heavy with RFH kids, but a few other local kids mixed in...dads are not part of coaching mix anymore...as for LE, not sure why a kid would leave for an inferior 2023 team

BBL was listed at the top NJ 2023 team. read the prior post. Come on Mom, you can't post if you're not willing to take a little

Take a look at the team without the re-classed kids. Tri-State beat them in the qualifiers. I spoke to one of the players and he was complaining that they had to pull up younger players to fill the void.

Tri-State '23 have kids that can't play for their WSYL team this year. Their best WSYL player last year was a LE kid. WSYL shouldn't anyone measuring stick.