It may be time to take up French! The Sport du Jour in Coral Springs and Parkland is turning out to be lacrosse! Originally a game called Tewaaraton played by native American Indians, the moniker it’s known by today was bestowed on it by French Jesuit missionary who wrote about a game he observed the Iroquois Indians playing. He referred to it as la crosse “the stick,” or perhaps he was referring to the crosier, the staff carried by bishops.
Through more than 900 years, the game has changed to become more timely (not two or three days for each match, as was the tradition) and with a more manageable field of players (now ten for each team instead of hundreds). Since early in the 20th century, the game grew in popularity and become a popular sports staple at the most elite colleges and universities. Clubs in Canada began to make the game more accessible indoor during hockey’s off season by changing the “field” to a “box,” as it is called when the rink’s ice is covered over with turf and the team size and goal is adapted to the smaller scale.
Proud lacrosse parents spend part of their weekends (and many weeknights) on the fields cheering for their athlete as he or she practices and competes with other like-minded friends and teammates. One of the best ways to get to know neighbors and potential best friends, parents and children enjoy the variety of families and personalities they meet while spending time together at games and traveling to and from competitions.
Fairly easy to learn and lots of fun to play, athletes who enjoy almost any sport prior to their introduction can find something familiar about lacrosse. The passing skills of soccer and basketball join with the physical contact of football and hockey. Girls and boys play on separate teams, but don’t think the skirts and lack of pads on the female teams make them any less formidable. These girls mean business…and the operative word might just be “mean.” But at the end of the game, one realizes that it’s all been in great fun… and a bruise is just a trophy to take to school the next day.
And it doesn’t hurt that there aren’t usually slow spots in the game. From a Spectator’s point of view, there’s no time to nod off between plays. Lacrosse, known as “the fastest game on two feet,” moves rapidly from the referee’s opening whistle. Accelerated, action-packed and with a lot of rough checking, lacrosse in Coral Springs and Parkland is a fresh take on a very old game. Although we may converse in mostly English and Spanish here in south Florida, French is the new trend on the fields! Vive lacrosse!
