Recording of the Return to Play Webinar held on Wednesday 29 July:
Recording of the Return to Play Officiating Webinar held on Friday 31 July:
England Lacrosse is pleased to announce that DCMS has approved our Return to Play plan for the resumption of outdoor competitive lacrosse.
England Lacrosse have been working hard over recent days to demonstrate how our sport can operate within a safe sporting environment, and following Government approval, these guidelines can now be published.
As a result, from 1 August 2020, Lacrosse in England can now move to Phase 4 of our Return to Play Roadmap. Phase 4 dictates that we can now play using modified rules for training and competitive play.
Mark Coups, England Lacrosse Chief Executive said: “I would like to thank everyone in lacrosse for their co-operation and patience over the last 18 weeks. We are extremely happy to have reached phase 4 and a return to modified lacrosse play.
”Many thanks to the England Lacrosse Covid-19 medical working group, officer and all EL staff for getting us into a position to enter phase 4. I am delighted we are able to start playing lacrosse again but would like to remind everyone to follow the guidance and stay safe.”
As this is Phase 4 of the Return to Play plan, this is not a return to normal lacrosse activity, and there are a number of necessary modifications in place to mitigate the transmission risk of COVID-19 including:
Maximum of 30 participants to be involved in the game – this include players, officials, coaches and any medical staff
The game will start and restart with one team having possession of the ball – the face-off and draw are viewed as high risk for droplet transmission
There will be no pre-game or in-game equipment checks by officials as no one should handle anyone else’s equipment
Participants should refrain from shouting or spitting during games
All participants will be required to follow the England Lacrosse Code of Behaviour based around game safety.
We would also like to reiterate that this is in effect from 1 August, and all sections of the game should be taking the next week to ensure that they have all the necessary measures in place to facilitate a safe return to play.
We would also highly recommend that all relevant members of the community join our Return to Play Webinar on Wednesday 29 July 7.30-8.15pm which will be important in ensuring everyone is aware of the guidance going forward and will address the further specifics of matchplay.
We will also be holding a webinar specifically for officials on Friday 31 July from 5pm, looking at the adapted rules and the new protocols in place for officiating.
England Lacrosse is delighted, as we’re sure we all will be, with a return to competitive outdoor lacrosse and we hope that everyone joins the collective effort to make sure this Return to Play is a successful one.
The full supporting documents for Phase 4 can be found on the Coronavirus section of the website.