2021 Lacrosse update - Season Structure, News (North Perth Outlaws Lacrosse)

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Mar 24, 2021 | Mel Gibson | 666 views
2021 Lacrosse update - Season Structure
The executive had a meeting on Tuesday and made decisions based on the information available.  We will be moving forward with our season and have set a start date of April 19, 2021.


North Perth Outlaws Lacrosse is in a very unique and challenging situation, as we are the only lacrosse club in the entire huron perth health unit.  We have been in discussions with our health unit, Zone 8 Lacrosse, the OLA, and neighbouring associations, but it is unclear when we could start playing games against teams from other associations, and at this point it isn't even guaranteed that we can play games with clubs outside of our health unit.  Within these discussions with other clubs it had also been decided to split teams evenly within age groups and forgo a more traditional rep style season structure.
 


On a very positive note, our preregistration numbers are very strong, and so strong in fact that we are in a position to run our own league within Huron Perth.  Knowing all of this information the executive has decided to move forward with our own local "Huron Perth" lacrosse league.
 
It is the primary goal of the North Perth Outlaws to offer a fun experience for all players that will encourage individual development through skills sessions, practices, and as much gameplay as possible.  Offering our own league is our best opportunity to achieve these goals.  
 
The season will progress as follows for players in U22 to U9(born 2000 to 2014) :
 
  •  The season will be split into two segments, with the first segment running April-May, and the second June-July
  •  The season will begin April 19 with skill sessions twice a week
  •  Players will be placed into bubbles based on age, of no more than 50 players, as per Ontario public health measures
  •  Bubbles will be divided into two groups for skills sessions, to ensure that the player limit allowed on the floor is not exceeded
  •  Before games begin each bubble will be divided into 4 teams, with each team consisting of 2 lines and a goalie.  
  •  These bubble leagues will run from mid-May through to the end of July, consisting of a weekly schedule that will include 1 shared practice and 1 game per week for each team
  •  No practices or games will occur on weekends
  •  Girls will be grouped in their own bubble, but receive the same amount of floor time twice a week.  Our girls program is still being finalized and will be updated soon
  •  Games can only be played if the health unit is in green, yellow, or orange.  If we move to red then teams may only practice with a decreased limit of participants on the floor.  All activity will cease if we move into grey.
  • The plan is to play games 5 on 5, but 4 on 4 game play may be used if numbers do not allow for 5 on 5.
  • Game play will be modified, as per public health and OLA guidelines, including no contact, and no face offs.  A full set of these modified rules will be posted on our website before game play begins
  • The season will conclude at the end of July before the August first long weekend.

The paperweight program, for players born between 2015 to 2017, will follow a slightly different format with one bubble and consist of a 8 week season with 1 floor time per week. Game play will be limited to the second half of their season and will follow the OLA's 3 on 3 mini game format.  Their season will begin week of May 3rd.
 
 
Bubbles will be determined after registration officially closes, and players may be required to play outside their regular age group.  It will be our goal that all players will improve as much as possible participating in a fun environment with and against their friends new and old.  Coaches will be encouraged to group players by skill level during practices and select their lines based on age, experience and skill and work with other team coaches to ensure game play competition is as even as possible.  We are also looking at the possibility of running extra skill clinics run by experienced instructors, but that will be determined later in the season and depend upon public health measures.  This will all help maximize the development of every player.
 
We will post more information on our website as it becomes available and finalized including our Girls Lacrosse Program, Registration information, our RTA(Return to Activity) plan, modified game play rules. arena protocols, and any other public health measures we must abide by.  Players who reside outside our health unit may participate in the league, but must follow the colour framework of their own health unit. i.e. no games or practices in red or grey.  Due to North Perth following a house league format, residence rules will not apply this season.
 
Two big advantages to using this season format are limited travel and lower costs.  Arenas we will be using are Wingham and Belmore.  We may also use floor time at Howick and Kurtzville, if our primary arenas become unavailable due to scheduling conflicts or alternative uses.(i.e. vaccine clinics)  Our registration page will be updated shortly with fees and registration details with what will all be included in registration.
 
We are currently awaiting some final decisions from the OLA, which will not change our approach to the season, but we are not able to officially open registration until those decisions are made.  All preregistered players will be contacted when that happens.  We will open registration to the public a couple of days later.  Registration will be open for a very short time, and space will be limited.  Please do not delay if you wish to participate in lacrosse this season.
 
The North Perth Outlaws have put much time and effort into this plan.  We understand that it is not going to be a traditional season and know that this may disappoint some players, but want to set ourselves up to ensure a fun summer with as much game play and individual development as possible.  We hope to welcome many new players to the sport, as with less travel and cost, it will be a great opportunity to try the sport for a season.  We feel that this season will put us in a great position for the future, when we can transition back to a full rep program, and potentially continue offering a local league and girls program.
 
With things ever changing, we feel that this plan will help us remain somewhat flexible, and give us the best chance to play a full season of lacrosse.  We know it's a long shot, but if health measures change by the end of July, we hope to conclude our season with a festival style event to celebrate the completion of our season.
 
Again, we appreciate your patience and support, as we navigate the 2021 lacrosse season.  And, as always, please feel free to contact any executive member with questions.  You can find contact information by clicking the Contact link in the top right of our website.  You may also want to click on the manage subscriptions feature on the left hand side of our website to receive text or email notifications anytime we post updates to our website.  You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
 
Thank you
 
North Perth Outlaws Lacrosse