From William Beers to current-day SEMLA, lacrosse has come a long way in the South of England.

This article is a brief introduction to a history of lacrosse in the UK that focuses on the South of England and information about how the region is trying to #growthegame

Lacrosse would not be the same without Beers

William Beers that is, the Canadian also known as the ‘father of modern lacrosse’. He was the first to officially codify the rules of the game back in 1860. The original rules have changed since Beers wrote them, originally having 12-a-side and a pitch length of 180m! But the father of modern lacrosse did not just codify the rules, he helped spread the game further than North America.

Dude, do you even tour bro?

I thought I’d been on some epic lacrosse tours, but I take my hat off to William Beers. In 1876 he played at Montreal Lacrosse Club and packed up his lacrosse kit bag and jumped on board a ship (steam boat?) for the eight-day voyage across the Atlantic before touring the UK. The schedule of the tour started in Belfast before playing in “most of the available towns of note” across the UK and even in front of Queen Victoria, who is quoted as saying lacrosse was “Very pretty to watch.” Now, I might have had some good times and won some trophies on tour, but introducing the game of lacrosse to another country, in front of royalty, and 141 years later the game is still going strong. That is an epic tour I can only dream of.

Not just pick-up

Since Beers set foot with a lacrosse stick in Belfast, the UK game (I’ll be focusing just on the men’s game in England) has changed, as did the original rules. I’ve heard a number of times from North Americans, “Oh wow, didn’t know lacrosse was popular in England.” Maybe not as popular as North America, but the following stats show it is not just a pick-up game:

350 Clubs

- 222 University teams

- 20,500 registered senior players

- 160,000 students play in schools

There are two men's senior associations in England:

- South of England Men’s Lacrosse Association (SEMLA)

- North of England Men’s Lacrosse Association (NEMLA)

I have played in both but have spent the last 16 years (has it really been that long?) in SEMLA. This is the region I’ll be discussing in this article as an example of #growthegame.

200% growth

SEMLA has some historic lacrosse clubs that date back to 1882 and has seen the game grow and contract over time. Since I started playing in SEMLA in 2001, the number of teams has grown from 17 to 51. That represents a 200% increase, returns Warren Buffet wouldn’t turn his nose up at. The number of clubs has increased from 15 to 37 and the two men’s leagues have become seven. This is not taking into consideration the number of university teams that have helped drive this growth. The focus of SEMLA is to get lacrosse sticks in the hands of as many people as possible through the army of volunteers who help drive this great sport forwards.

I’m kind of a big deal, for SEMLA

An example of a first class volunteer is Trevor Rogers, who has been president of SEMLA over much of this period. Growth like this does not happen without great administration and passion. Through conference calls, by-laws and focusing on the details, Trevor has this in buckets. He also coached players from junior through to the senior ranks that I currently play with in SEMLA. Not to mention he can be found refereeing most weekends. He is an example of the unsung heroes of lacrosse and there are too many to mention here. Lacrosse gives back to everyone, but often it is the few that make the game great.

Spencer growth

My current club, Spencer, was formed from two clubs (Beckenham and Kenton) back in 2000. From that point the club has grown under the tutelage of Club President Peter Compton to double in size, add a junior team and recently has won the flags final cup competition six times in a row to become a dominant force in SEMLA lacrosse. In 2013, Spencer represented the South of England and won the European Club Championships. That was a great achievement not just for Spencer but for SEMLA. While this is a particular success story, it is important to look at the wider picture.

It’s all about the foundations

Smaller clubs are doing well and provide the platform for the future growth of the sport in SEMLA. Spencer has recently created a fourth team, but that is insignificant compared to new teams that start in a whole new geographical area. Recently, Guildford has started a men’s lacrosse team. Epsom was started by central London players moving out to the suburbs of South London by John Schofield who has years of experience in the game. SEMLA thrives on supporting new clubs and this can be seen in the growth of the game in the South. The leagues have also been redesigned to limit the travel required by splitting up the lower leagues into East and West divisions. There is constant debate around how lacrosse can be made more accessible and facilitate growth.

It’s not all good news

On the other side, some teams are struggling to maintain a first team. Clubs disappearing can hemorrhage lacrosse in a geographical area. There are many factors I’ve seen that have impacted clubs:

-Management: poorly managed clubs that don’t focus on sustained growth.

-Generational: A generation of lacrosse players retire or have families, leaving too big a hole to recruit enough players.

-Culture: Lacrosse should be fun. Sometimes this gets lost and that can impact participation.

-Expanding too quickly: Clubs that expand too quickly and therefore put unneeded pressures on the club and management.

-Access to facilities: Losing a ground/pitch or increase in fees can impact the club greatly.

Different place, same problems

Overall, the aim of this article is to give some background to lacrosse in the UK and understand how we are trying to grow the game. Secondly, it is to highlight the similar problems everywhere. I could drop a pin on the lax-map and I’m sure I’ll hear similar stories to those mentioned in this article.

The key to the success that has been seen in SEMLA is the clear vision to focus on growth and making lacrosse accessible. This has come through the volunteers and individuals/groups that take the bold step to start and grow clubs from nothing. I guess it also helps that lacrosse is seriously fun and let's not forget about the beers. #growthegame