Winnipeg Free Press Sat May 14 2005
By Allan Besson
And the goals? They were usually a tree or rock, kilometres apart from each other.
After a quick history briefing, Luc Sanders, 12, who plays crease for Winnipeg's Bantam Falcons, says he much prefers the game's current configurations.
"I think playing in a hockey rink is a lot easier than two miles," he said laughing.
Lacrosse is reputed to be the oldest sport in North America, dating back to the 1400s. It did not come to light in the western world until Jean de Brebeuf, a Jesuit missionary in the 1600s, witnessed the Hurons playing it. He seemed to be intrigued by the stick they used and likened it to the "crosier" carried at religious ceremonies by a bishop.
Nowadays, the game is either played in a hockey rink (box lacrosse) by teams of five per side, or on a football or soccer field (field lacrosse) played by teams of 10 per side.
The one constant is that it's a tough contact sport.Sanders can attest to that. Recently he broke a bone in his hand after being two-handed during a game. However, the injury hasn't kept him out of action.
"I have played the last two games and I played a game before that, so I'll just keep on playing," he said. "I love lacrosse because it is a contact sport with lots of scoring and lots of action."
The game will be on display this weekend as Manitoba Lacrosse marks National Lacrosse Week with two days of games and skills competitions.
Activities, which include both Provincial and Winnipeg Minor Lacrosse, will take place at Tyndall Park Community Centre, Maples C.C. and Billy Mosienko Arena beginning at 9 a.m. today through tomorrow with the last games beginning at 3:30 p.m. The age groups of the teams involved include: Tyke, eight and under; Novice, 9-10; Peewee, 11-12; Bantam, 13-14; and Midget, 15-16. High school field lacrosse games are scheduled for the field behind Tyndall Park.
Currently there are eight indoor facilities in Winnipeg that go from Monday to Thursday featuring 12-15 games a night at each site until the end of the Winnipeg Minor schedule at the end of June. There are 67 teams in minor lacrosse.
"Since about 2003 there has been a gradual increase," said Laralie Higginson, Manitoba Lacrosse's executive director. "Since last year minor is up two more teams. We are seeing a bantam team this year from Beausejour and Sagkeeng has three teams. Triple S which is St. Andrews, Selkirk and St. Clement has two peewee teams and a bantam team playing in Winnipeg Minor."Ned Sanders is Luc's father, coach and No. 1 cheerleader. He also played the game some 30-35 years ago at Boyd Park in the North End.
"I played hockey with a bunch of guys and they were all real grassroots mainstream lacrosse players," he said. "So I just sort of went along one day and I fell in love with it. Now my son is 12 and he has been playing for five years with the sons of those guys I played with.
"I think one thing the sport is doing now is attracting the best athletes. I think there is a bit of a migration in that some of our best summer hockey players have now picked up the game of lacrosse, and with one or two seasons under their belt they are already elite lacrosse players."
This weekend, Higginson hopes to attract even more converts.
allan.besson@freepress.mb.ca