Scheduling Approach
TRW’s approach to scheduling is built off our mission to have fun, develop lacrosse skills, and learning what makes our lacrosse community special. For the kids to have fun, they have to want to be there. Every year less and less players continue playing lacrosse after high school or college as a result of burnout. Playing lacrosse six days a week is too much for kids. TRW believes that players should play other sports in addition to lacrosse. If those sports conflict with lacrosse, the player should play the one they enjoy the most. Ideally lacrosse is the focus in the spring and summer but if a kid would rather play in a basketball tournament in the summer over lacrosse, they should do that. The only impact that will have on their playing time will be equal to the impact it has on their ability to contribute to the team.
Playing both recreational and club lacrosse can be great for kids. Playing with kids from their neighborhood and developing those friendships outside of school is great. However, it can also create the burnout that drives people away from the game if the combination requires too much time. For the kids that want to participate in both, I recommend playing a different position in rec. It is a great way for players to further develop their skills and can be a lot of fun for the kids. The idea that a young player is set to play one position through the future is just silly.
Fall
TRW will hold one practice per week, likely on Sundays to avoid conflicts with sports. We will also participate in tournaments. Tournaments will typically be one day events within driving distance to go there and back the same day. Each fall will usually consist of three tournaments. As players get older, we may do trips further out of the area.
Winter
Our winter sessions will vary based upon what is available in the area. There are a few different indoor leagues that we may participate in. We will host the occasional clinic for other kids to get a run in and we may do the occasional training session. Winter is simply to keep the stick in your hands and be active.
Spring
Spring is when lacrosse really gets moving. In addition to three practices per week, TRW will compete in the HOCO (Howard County MD) league. This is the best youth lacrosse competition available anywhere. Every game is a battle that makes the kids better players and exposes them to having to work hard to succeed.
Summer
Summer is when the fun goes to another level. We will continue to practice three days per week. Similar to the fall we will typically participate in three tournaments. However, the summer tournaments will usually be two-day events that require hotels. We will look to participate in tournaments across the country on occasion to expose the team to new competition and see something other than the same kids at the same fields.
Selecting Tournaments
If you put the team in a hotel with a pool, they will have fun regardless of the reason they are there. We select tournaments based on a few different criteria:
- Reputation of the Tournament – New tournaments tend to have issues the first year that can lead to last minute cancellations. That’s bad.
- Fields – Weather causes lots of problems. Whenever possible we look for tournaments on turf to avoid cancellations.
- Competition – Playing the same team at one tournament after another isn’t fun for anyone. Finding tournaments that provide good competition against new teams is important. Fun comes first and nobody has fun losing game after game and beating teams badly game after game isn’t all that fun either.
- Location – While playing in Hawaii every weekend would have its benefits, it also creates a few challenges. At the same time, playing every tournament within 30 minutes of home is going to lead to playing the same teams over and over again. We look for a nice mix of tournaments in the area as well as some that take us to new places.
