2 minute read
Relax... Play LAX
This year my New Year’s resolution was to challenge myself and try things out of my comfort zone. So I decided to try lacrosse - a sport which I have never done before, only seen on Wild Child (if you haven’t watched that movie would highly recommend it). Not knowing what to expect I went to the lacrosse training sessions with friends who were already apart of the team. It was a new challenge I wanted to try.
Researching lacrosse, I discovered that lacrosse was a sport created by Iroquois - a Native American Tribe - originally calling the sport ‘Stickball’, as it was played with a stick and a ball. The first historical European record of Stickball was made in 1637 by a French Jesuit missionary. The original name for the sport was Stickball however the name was changed as the French word for stick is La Crosse. It is believed by native people that lacrosse was a gift to them by the Creator therefore they play in honour of him. This traditional belief still continues in native tribes such as Iroquois as they still refer to Lacrosse as the Creator’s Game.
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Developing from the original roots of the sport to honour and be played as a tribute the Creator, it has become a recreational activity. In contrast to today’s game, in the original version of the sport there were a large number of people involved in a single game. In an interview with the Kids Press Corps, Alfred Jacques stated “[There were] up to 100 to 120 players on the field at the same time”. (This quote was taken from Alfred Jacques whose family has
been making and selling lacrosse sticks for 48 years at the Onondaga Nation.) Jacques went on to further state: “Before we play the [traditional] game, we have a religious ceremony before the game and a religious ceremony after the game. It is part of who we are as a people. It defines part of who we are.”
In Europe, lacrosse has increased in popularity among people outside of the Native American community since the first encounter of the game in Europe. Lacrosse became a scholastic and professional sport particularly popular in America and Canada. When the sport was first discovered, only men could play and tribesmen did not use equipment. With the change and development of society, women can now participate in the sport and additional equipment is used. In today’s game, equipment such as gloves, helmets and padding are used by participants as a source of protection. Men’s lacrosse games are full contact matches thus they use protective gear which has been introduced as the game has developed. In contrast to the men’s game, the women’s version is not full contact, therefore they do not use the same protection.
This is the first year Middlesex has had a lacrosse team, but only have a men’s team at this moment in time. The women’s team is slowly building in numbers but is still in need of people to create a team.
From my first training session I was nervous thinking everyone else will be professionals and I am just going to be awful, knowing my terrible hand eye coordination. But there was no need for me to be nervous. Everyone is in the same boat. The bulk of the lacrosse team have never played lacrosse, only starting in September when they decided to have a go at a new sport and socialise. My nerves were also shattered through the welcoming and friendly atmosphere created by the members of the team. When I struggled with catching, there were people there to help me - they would just have a chat and show me how to do it and just ease me into the process. There was no one judging, only helping!
Since playing Lacrosse it has built my confidence and allowed for me to socialise and become friends with people who I would not have become friends with if I hadn’t have tried it. Outside of lacrosse training, the team holds social events to allow for the team to relax and get to know each other at a better level whilst just having fun.
