BOTC - US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums NORTHEAST LACROSSE BOTC MAIN FORUM (LI, CT, WC) Boys 2025-8th Grade Fall 2020/Summer 2021

S2S Hawks added kids to their roster all season long. Up until their second to last tournament. Still didn't win anything

Would def disagree with that comment

There was a coaching change, a high school varsity coach took over.

A varsity coach or college coach should be the club coach. A qualified guy. People are dropping thousands of dollars, they don’t want PAL coaches who coached their sons. We pay about 180 for something like that.

Top 2025 teams are looking for 24 holdbacks at this point. They want to ramp up to see who gets the most college commitments and hopefully force some of their 2025/ to also take the prep route.

Typical LI move

Take the prep rout .... 98% of the people on here can not afford the perp rout and the other factor is that the school may not want you and your kid may not be good enough to play in the New England Prep league. Before
you come on here and assume kids can play in that league do your research those schools lax programs would destroy any public school

Does anyone know anything about the Epic Jokers program?

B/C program. For whatever reason their 2025 parents are a particularly "challenging" group. I don't know much about their coaches, but I'd steer clear just because of the parents.

We are in Nassau county and looking. Does anyone have info on Icon?

Fake news. You have no idea what you are talking about. Tryouts are an open competition just like they've always been. We are historically one of the most college committed programs and not one parent or coach has made any reference to holding back. Stop phishing.

Do you mind me asking where you are looking to move on from? From why I’ve seen with this age group over the last few years as I have a son playing in this age group is that outside of the top tier (A teams for 91, Express, Igloo), you’re left with tons of options all of which have their drawbacks.

One option is a 2nd team with one of the big clubs - every year seems these turn over dramatically. For years, 91 hasn’t been able to sustain a 2nd team. Kids from A get shuttled down to help the team look good. Paying $4k plus for a set of headaches

Another option is the A team for second tier clubs (no disrespect in that statement). Teams like Rebels, Regulators, True Blue, Legacy. All are competitive teams but there have been numerous comments regarding play time or commitment level, etc

Lastly, you can look into the Icon, Hitmen, Recon, Viper type teams. Lower profile clubs. Don’t know a ton about these teams but I would guess they all have good pieces but are thin at depth.

Best advice I can give you, is call each club and ask about roster. How much if it had been together for more than this past season. How much turnover do they expect and in what position groups. Practice/game philosophy, etc.

I guess this is a long winded way of saying every club has its bright spots and warts. Find the one that works best for your son and will allow him to play. Hope that helps you

All these teams are the same. They all have Daddy's kid on the team which is one roster spot that is never rotated.

$100 for a tryout? What club is charging this?

And that kid NEVER comes off the field

From what I've seen the dads are harder on their own kids than anyone else's.

And there are better kids on the bench that never see field because of it! Everyone sees it.

Any info on Igloo 2025 B team?

Steep.

From a competitive standpoint, I’d put them in the lower level of teams in LI. Will not play against tough opponents, Will never be in the most competitive bracket

Personal opinion and welcome anyone to argue against me.
Why would anyone want to play on a top tier club 2nd team at the rate they charge?

When you pay for club lax, you’re paying for the experience along with tournament fees, uniform, etc. When you compare the 2nd team of a big club to its top team, you don’t get the same level of coaching, you don’t get the same attention from the club, you’re not entered in the premium tournaments, often you practice less often…..why would you pay the same amount as A team players when you get less from the club?

For a B lacrosse player, I’d recommend a club where you’re sons team is their focus, not an afterthought

So somewhat true. And in my experience big club B teams have all to do with who the coaches are. Because the level of commitment does vary, but by club and coach, not universal. So not disagreeing with you, but saying check it out and ask the questions.

All of the self proclaimed AA clubs on LI.
To add; 91 is the only club on LI that has won anything this year but then got trounced the following weekend. LI CoachC hasn't won anything meaningful, Igloo hasn't won anything ever. Rebels, Regs and S2S not there yet. Fools will still line up to pay $100 for a tryout and join a roster with 30 players. 15 of those kids will never see the field. Find a good program with a good coach and assistant, manageable roster of no more than 22. Does this exist? Getting harder and harder to find.

What team are we talking about here?

20 kids is ideal
7 midfield
5 defense
5 attack
2 goalies
1 fogo

By summer you will have injuries and conflicts and this is too light.

Add two more midfielders and I am with you.

What clubs are you referring to? TiA

Clubs will often take 23 plus kids per team but only need 21 at most. Every tuition check over about 18 kids goes straight to the bottom line. I used to be involved with a club lax programs finances and this is a ballpark number but probably pretty close. More kids more profit.

I don't understand this "conflicts" thing. We create our schedule AROUND tournaments. When you're paying the kind of money you pay, you figure it out.

I think 20 is good. I'd lose one attack and add either another middie or pole.

23…try 30. They will take every player who is willing to pay.

What clubs are your referring to?

And then when summer tournaments roll around the teams will bring in more players so they end up with 40 kids.

Try to speak to the parents of the kids that have been with the team for more than a year. They will be honest. There is no perfect situation. With B teams, there is always turnover of kids who think they are A players and are every year dissatisfied with something and looking for a golden ticket to an A team.

On B teams a successful team is 20% coaching, 80% commitment and skill of the kids. If the program offers good training, a solid practice schedule and enough tournaments in fall and spring/summer, it is usually a good experience.

I don't understand the need for fall tournaments. My son plays football in the fall. Let the kids have other seasons.

So I am not sure who you are but the 91 second team has had a stable roster for 3 seasons now and has picked up better kids each year. They are not an A team but are one of the better B teams on the island. There has not been one instance this summer where Shock players were brought in to play on that team.

Which team are you referring to?

I second that.

Heard Igloo took like 100 kids for their "A" and "B" teams. Are they hurting that bad for $?

That is definitely not true.

FACT. Everybody that showed up was offered a spot. Maybe not 100 but easily over 50. Parents weren't allowed up on field because of parking (probably not real reason). I got the info from my son who was told on 2nd tryout day which group he was. A, B and something in between. Some speech later about potential for movement and more playing time. Was also told a coach would reach out, never happened. Sounded like an effort to keep everyone and not let one dollar slip away. BTW we declined , not sure they knew or cared since nobody followed up. At those prices no thanks.