England Lacrosse to men's playing rules webinars

England Lacrosse is hosting two webinars later this month to explain and discuss recommended changes to the men’s rules as played in England.

The webinars come after the England Lacrosse Refereeing Advisory Group (RAG) recently recommended that all clubs and universities adopt the latest 2025-2027 World Lacrosse men’s playing rules for the forthcoming season.

There have been a series of changes to the men’s playing rules within this rules book which include:

• 1.1 Field Dimensions

• 5.1 Goal Area Lines

• 6.1 Wing Lines

• 29.2 Administrative Stoppages

• 34.11 Facing at Center

• 37.2 Free Play

• 49.3 Prohibitions Relating to the Goal Crease

• 49.5 Prohibitions Relating to the Goal Crease

• 67 Conduct Foul

The webinars will take place online from 7pm on Wednesday 11 and Thursday 12 June with members of the RAG in attendance to explain the new rules/rules changes in greater depth.

To register for one of the four upcoming women’s rules webinars, click the button below.

Four English officials selected for world competitions this summer

Four English officials have been selected to officiate across two international competitions later this year, World Lacrosse has announced.

Top sixes officials Michael Leahy and Lara Owen will travel to Chengdu, China in August to officiate at the lacrosse competition at The World Games 2025 and experienced field officials James Hawsworth and Emma Jones will head to Jeju, Korea later in the month for the 2025 World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship.

Leahy, Owen, Hawksworth, and Jones represent four of the brightest sparks in English officiating and have a wealth of experience at all levels and formats of the game.

The World Games will see teams play the sixes Olympic version of lacrosse and marks one of the final world sixes events before lacrosse makes its return to the Olympic Games in LA in 2028.

The World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship showcases the best young talent in the world playing the traditional 10-a-side version of the sport.

England Lacrosse would like to congratulate all four officials and wish them luck as they prepare for and officiate at the competitions later this year.

For more information about all officials selected for this summer’s world competitions, click HERE.

Heaton Mersey and Mellor take part in U14 exhibition match before The Fly finals

Heaton Mersey and Mellor Lacrosse Club’s under-14 boys teams took part in a special six-a-side exhibition match prior to the final day of The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League on Sunday.

The fixture was a repeat of the U14s Centurion Cup that was competed for at the 2025 Northern Flags Festival earlier this year.

The exhibition match was all part of The Fly’s community engagement during the 2025 competition that also included special free skills festivals for young people in and around The Fly’s 2025 venues in London and Manchester.

Heaton Mersey won an exciting match 16-13 and it is hoped that more events involving young players can be incorporated into The Fly over the coming years.

With lacrosse making its long-awaited return to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028, the match was the perfect opportunity for young players at both clubs to play the sixes rules, complete with shot-clocks and high-level officials.

And with lacrosse’s inclusion in the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane, Australia very much still on the cards, it is a possibility that some of the players who played in the exhibition match on Sunday morning could be in a Great Britain Olympic lacrosse team in seven years’ time.

For more information about The Fly, click HERE and watch the exhibition match in full on YouTube HERE.

Over 100 young players join The Fly for Manchester skills festival

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League welcomed over 100 young players to Cheadle Hulme Lacrosse Club on Friday as part of a community skills festival ahead of the conclusion of The Fly’s 2025 season.

Boys and girls from the Greater Manchester area who play at U10 to U15 level joined several stars of The Fly 2025, including British Lacrosse and Swift men’s Head Coach Ravi K. Sitlani, England player William Baxter (Swift), and Swift Team Manager Lyndon Stewart, for the skills festival.

Attendees had the opportunity to play the Olympic six-a-side version of lacrosse that is played at The Fly and be coached by some of the best in the UK.

Four skills stations were set-up with attendees rotating through defending/goalkeeping, shooting, ground balls, and transition sessions before playing some matches later in the day.

The Manchester skills festival follows a hugely successful version held at Blackheath Rugby Club before the opening weekend of The Fly 2025 that saw 150 school children from the Bromley and Greenwich areas of London take part in several skills stations throughout the day.

The aim of both festivals was to give children in the local area the opportunity to play lacrosse and be introduced to the sixes Olympic version of the sport that the whole world will be watching at LA28.

This skills festival is all part of The Fly’s commitment to promoting and expanding the knowledge of Sixes Lacrosse within the local community.

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League is the world’s first National Lacrosse League featuring the six-a-side version of the sport and was founded in 2021.

Since its first season four years ago, the competition has gone from strength to strength featuring the best players in the UK and featuring 10 nationalities in 2025.

For more information about The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League, follow them on Instagram HERE or head to their website HERE.

Meredith Ingham Clark named England Women's Box Team Manager

England Lacrosse is delighted to announce Meredith Ingham Clark has been appointed as the England Women’s Box Team Manager.

She’ll be working with newly appointed Head Coach Conor Dockery and the pool of talented English players as they prepare to compete at next year’s first ever women’s box Euros.

A relative late-comer to the sport after first picking up a stick in 2020 at the age of 30, Ingham Clark joins the England team having packed a lot in to her five years in lacrosse.

She’s a founding member of the Camden Capybaras women’s team and has served on their executive committee since 2021 where she is the current Vice Chair.

It was Ingham Clark’s husband and England men’s box team Assistant Coach, Rob Ingham Clark, who first gave her the box lacrosse bug which eventually led her to be part of the original steering group to develop a domestic box offering for women in the UK, alongside fellow pioneers Lizzie Bottrill, Jane Lee, Evie Stephens, and Issy Keane.

Since then, Ingham Clark has gained a lot of box experience, having represented teams at the annual ShE-Box event, the USBOXLA Nationals, the Tasko Cup, and the Southern Box Lacrosse (SBL) Winter Box League.

Having been a part of the very first women’s England box training squad in 2023/24, Ingham Clark currently serves as the South East Women’s Lacrosse Association (SEWLA) and the South England Men’s Lacrosse Association (SEMLA) Women’s Box Development Rep.

Ingham Clark’s has previous experience managing team’s as Team Manager of Rise men at this year’s The Fly, EdinBru at ShE-Box 2025, and the women’s field tournament team Marmaladies who won the Blues Fest Plate in 2024.

Upon her appointment, Ingham Clark said:

"This is the beginning of an incredibly exciting chapter for the England women's box team as we build towards the first ever women's box Euros next year, and I'm so honoured and excited to be on that journey with the team as Team Manager. 

“With Euros, along with key fixtures in the box calendar like ShE-Box and national training sessions, there’s a real sense of momentum. It's going to be a very busy 18 months for women's box — but that’s what makes it so exciting. I’m proud to be helping drive the programme forward."

130 young players to take part in The Fly's skills festival

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League is set to welcome 130 young players to Cheadle Hulme Lacrosse Club tomorrow (Friday 30 May) as part of another community skills festival ahead of the conclusion of The Fly’s 2025 season on Saturday 31 May and Sunday 1 June.

Boys and girls from the Greater Manchester area who play at U10 to U15 level will join several stars of The Fly 2025, including British Lacrosse and Swift men’s Head Coach Ravi K. Sitlani, England player William Baxter (Swift), and Swift Team Manager Lyndon Stewart, for the skills festival.

Attendees will have the opportunity to play the Olympic six-a-side version of lacrosse that is played at The Fly and be coached by some of the best in the UK.

The Manchester skills festival follows a hugely successful version held at Blackheath Rugby Club before the opening weekend of The Fly 2025 that saw 150 school children from the Bromley and Greenwich areas of London take part in several skills stations throughout the day.

The aim of both festivals is to give children in the local area the opportunity to play lacrosse and be introduced to the sixes Olympic version of the sport that the whole world will be watching at LA28.

This skills festival is all part of The Fly’s commitment to promoting and expanding the knowledge of Sixes Lacrosse within the local community.

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League is the world’s first National Lacrosse League featuring the six-a-side version of the sport and was founded in 2021.

Since its first season four years ago, the competition has gone from strength to strength featuring the best players in the UK and featuring 10 nationalities in 2025.

For more information about The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League, follow them on Instagram HERE or head to their website HERE.

Conor Dockery named England Women's Box Team Head Coach

England Lacrosse is excited to announce experienced coach Conor Dockery has been appointed England Women’s Box Team Head Coach.

Dockery has over a decade of coaching experience across multiple levels of the game, including working with some of the brightest young talent in the country on the England Lacrosse Aspire Programme and helping to lead the England Women’s U20 Team to European Championship glory in 2022 as Assistant Coach.

Dockery’s experience nourishing some of the best young lacrosse talent in the country has been further enhanced over the past few years as a teacher and lacrosse coach at both Cheltenham Ladies’ College and Queen Anne’s School.

As well as an extensive coaching CV, Dockery was also a valuable team player in his own right having played for Brighton University, East Grinstead, and Cheltenham Lacrosse Club in the field discipline.

He’s no stranger to box lacrosse, though, having played for Dublin Riggers, Emerald Islanders, and London Knights at club level and represented Ireland at two World and two European Championships notching up 23 appearances during the four tournaments and helping his team to 6th (2015 Worlds), 11th (2019 Worlds), 6th (2017 Euros), and 7th (2022 Euros) placed finishes.

His knowledge of the box lacrosse game has also come in handy in recent years when leading Forge to two league titles at The Fly that showcases the six-a-side Olympic format of the sport.

His initial remit is to prepare an England team to compete at next year’s first ever Women’s European Box Championship as well as to grow and improve the current pool of England women’s box players.

England's Alice Ripper wins NCAA title

England’s Alice Ripper became a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) champion for the first time on Sunday after her University of North Carolina side defeated Northwestern University 12-8 to lift the 2025 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship.

It’s a fourth national title in 12 years for Carolina who gave as good as they got on Sunday afternoon at the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts in front of 14,423 spectators, a record attendance for an NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship match.

The Humphrey sisters, Chloe and Ashley, were the outstanding performers for the Tar Heels on the day with four goals and five assists between them.

This latest title makes Carolina the third most successful side in National Championships’ history with four but they’ll be hard pushed to catch up to 2025 runners-up Northwestern who have eight and Maryland who have a massive 14 titles to date.

Ripper, who plays in midfield for England and already has one European Championship title to her name, has represented UNC eight times since she moved to the United States last year to study for her masters after three years at Exeter University.

After winning the title, Ripper said:

“I feel so incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to be part of the UNC team this year. I have met the most amazing coaches and teammates, who I have learnt so much from both on and off the field, and winning the National Championship together was the cherry on top of a phenomenal experience.”

Ripper has now completed her studies at UNC and will return to England shortly where she’ll be preparing for the 2026 World Lacrosse Women’s Championship in Japan with the rest of the England senior team.

The Fly searching for unwanted lacrosse sticks to help DBA Africa Lacrosse Academy

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League is to hold a lacrosse equipment drive at their Finals Weekend at the Manchester Regional Arena this weekend (Saturday 31 May and Sunday 1 June) to help support the DBA Africa Lacrosse Academy in Uganda.

The DBA Africa Lacrosse Academy relies entirely on donations from the wider world lacrosse community and they’re specifically asking for men’s and women’s sticks of all kinds that current or former players don’t need anymore.

DBA Africa is a social enterprise focused on youth sport academies, coaching development, sports events, and youth sports tours.

Investing in the long term future of sport in Africa is at the heart of everything they do and their grassroots projects do so much more than keep children active – they teach important health lessons, strengthen communities, nurture future leaders, and help the youth aspire to better lives.

A donation point will be open on both Saturday 31 May and Sunday 1 June by the main spectator entrance at the Manchester Regional Arena with donations being flown out to Uganda in July.

If you want to know more about the work of DBA Africa or visit their lacrosse, rugby, or athletics programmes in East Africa, please take a look online: www.dbaafrica.com and contact Storm Trentham via storm@dbaafrica.com.

England Lacrosse to host series of women's playing rules webinars

England Lacrosse is hosting a series of webinars in June to explain and discuss recommended changes to the women’s rules as played in England.

The webinars come after the England Lacrosse Umpiring Advisory Group (UAG) recently recommended that all clubs and schools adopt the latest 2025/2026 World Lacrosse women’s playing rules for the forthcoming season, with the following exceptions/guidelines:

• No shot-clock

• Clubs/schools continue to adapt the field dimensions to suit the size of the ground/field

The webinars will take place online from 7pm on Wednesday 4 June, Thursday 5 June, Monday 9 June, and Tuesday 10 June with members of the UAG in attendance to explain the new rules in greater depth.

Ahead of the webinars, the UAG would like attendees to pay particular attention to the following rules:

1. Return to a 15m arc and 11m marking area (advantage of being able to call shooting space earlier) (Rule 1)
2. New shooting space rule (this has now been played by all schools at National Schools/Senior Regionals) (Rule 20.A.19)
3. No restriction of colour of mouthguard (Rule 6.A.5.a)
4. Defenders may run through any portion of the goal circle (Rule 17.A.14-17)
5. Goalkeepers may NOT be tackled/checked once in possession of the ball when grounded in the goal circle regardless of whether stick is outside the goal circle sphere (Rule 17.A.1-11)
6. Goalkeepers may only hold the ball for 5 secs (count does not start until the ball is in the stick) (Rule 17.A.5)
7. Attacking team may play a ground ball inside the goal circle from outside the goal circle (Rule 17.A.12-13)
8. Alternate possession (no throw) (Rule 16)
9. No body ball (Rule removed – see withholding Rule 19.A.8)
10. No empty stick check on ground balls (Rule 19.A.9

To register for one of the four upcoming women’s rules webinars, click the button below.

Registration for latest England Lacrosse Level 2 Refereeing Course now open

England Lacrosse is delighted to announce that registration is now open for our latest Level 2 Refereeing Course.

The England Lacrosse Level 2 Refereeing Course requires individuals to attend one online webinar and one practical training day alongside a complete game assessment.

Our latest Level 2 Refereeing Course webinar will take place online on Tuesday 3 June from 6:30pm-8:30pm with the practical element to be arranged with each participant individually.

To embark on the Level 2 Refereeing Course, individuals must have a valid Level 1 certification and England Lacrosse membership.

For more information about officiating, click HERE.

England discover World Lacrosse Men's U20 Championship pool play opponents

England’s young lions will take on Jamaica, New Zealand, and hosts Korea in the 2025 World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship pool stage, World Lacrosse has announced.

The team’s opening match against Jamaica on Friday 15 August will be a replay of England’s play-in match from the last iteration of the competition in 2022 which England won 10-2.

Games against New Zealand on Sunday 17 and hosts Korea on Monday 18 August will follow and mark the first time the England Men’s U20 team has played a competitive match against those teams.

This year’s championship will feature 20 teams split into five groups for pool play, followed by playoffs that will include quarter-finals, semi-finals and medal games.

The top four teams from the 2022 edition of the event – United States, Canada, Haudenosaunee and Australia – were placed into Pool A, while the remaining 16 teams were snake seeded into pools based on their finishes at the 2022 edition of the tournament and balanced by Continental Federation.

Taking place at the Gongcheonpo Training Centre on Jeju Island, Korea, six to eight games will be played per day across two pitches; the centre previously hosted the 2022 Asia-Pacific Lacrosse Union Men’s Championship.

The pool stage will take place over five days, with each team playing three games, after which the four Pool A teams will advance directly to the quarter-final, while the top two teams from Pools B, C, D, and E will enter a play-in round on Wednesday 20 August.

The four play-in round winners will advance to the quarter-finals on Thursday 22 August, before the semi-finals and eventual medal round games on Sunday 24 August.

The full schedule is released just days after England announced their 22-player squad heading to Korea to take part in the competition.

For more information about the competition and the schedule, click HERE.

England Pool Stage Schedule

England v Jamaica | Friday 15 August | 12pm

Sunday 17 August | New Zealand v England | 4pm

Monday 18 August | England v Korea | 11am

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League doing its part in the community

The Fly welcomed 150 local school children to Blackheath Rugby Club, London as part of a community skills festival on Friday 16 May ahead of the opening weekend of The Fly’s 2025 season.

Teams from schools in Bromley and Greenwich, featuring a mix of children who have experience of POP lacrosse and some who have never picked up a stick before, attended the session on Friday led by community lacrosse champion Mike Barrett.

Stars of The Fly 2025 such as Ben Page-Laycock, Laura Beaman, Madi Jones, Minty Loxton, and Liv Gomarsall were also in attendance, coaching the kids through seven different skills stations including shooting, catching, and passing.

Following the skills stations, a spot of lunch, and an autograph session with The Fly players, the 150 children took part in some small-sided games where they were able to put their skills into action.

The aim of the festival was to give children in the local area the opportunity to play lacrosse and be introduced to the sixes Olympic version of the sport that the whole world will be watching at LA28.

This skills festival is all part of The Fly’s commitment to promoting and expanding the knowledge of Sixes Lacrosse within the local community and will be followed up with a sister event on Friday 30 May in Manchester before The Fly’s 2025 Finals Weekend at the Manchester Regional Arena.

Young players in the Manchester area can still sign up for the FREE skills festival on 30 May by clicking the button below with the session being held at Cheadle Hulme Lacrosse Club.

For more information about The Fly and how to buy tickets for this year’s competition, click HERE.

England all-time top scorer raising money to help conquer cancer

England men’s box lacrosse team all-time top scorer Lyndon Bunio is about to embark on an extreme cycling challenge to help raise money for Canada’s The Princess Margaret Ride to Conquer Cancer.

Bunio, who grew up in Canada, is unable to take part in the official ride that takes place on 7 and 8 June and has instead challenged himself to cycle 250 metres for every dollar donated towards his campaign between now and 1 August; if he hits his goal of raising $5,000, he will cycle a total of 1,250 kilometres over the next two months.

Any money raised by Bunio, who has scored 71 points for England so far in his international career, will go towards helping to fund life-saving cancer research at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Canada, one of the world’s leading cancer research and treatment centres.

The England superstar has been inspired to take on the challenge by his father who is currently fighting Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer.

Having already raised $412.20 (as of Tuesday 20 May), Bunio is set to cycle 103.05 kilometres around London; as an added incentive to donate, anyone pledging $50 will be able to choose any pub with five kilometres of Tower Bridge in London and he will send a photo to them enjoying a beverage from that pub and anyone donating $100 or more will be able to choose any pub in Greater London.

For more information about The Princess Margaret Ride to Conquer Cancer, click HERE.

To donate, click the button below.

Former England goalie Frank Scigliano wins NLL Goaltender of the Year Award

Former England goalie Frank Scigliano has been named 2024/25 National Lacrosse League (NLL) Goaltender of the Year.

Scigliano, who represented England at the 2019 World Lacrosse Box Championship, won the award after an outstanding season for Saskatchewan Rush and edged out fellow nominees Matt Vinc and Nick Rose, also a former England international goalie.

The 33-year-old, who has also represented Calgary Roughnecks and San Diego Seals in the NLL, earner the honour for the first time in his 13-year-long NLL career after posting a league best 9.40 goals against average and finishing with a .795 save percentage.

His excellent season also included a new high in wins with 11, despite missing two games due to the birth of his daughter.

The Rush have had a finalist for Goaltender of the Year twice before with Aaron Bold being nominated in 2014 and 2015 but they’ve never had a winner until now.

All awards are based on regular-season performances with voting having taken place prior to the start of the 2025 NLL Playoffs; media, coaches, and team personnel ranked their top five selections for each award.

For more information about the awards, follow the NLL on Instagram HERE.

The Next Generation: Protecting and supporting young athletes during Clean Sport Week, 19 – 23 May.

England Lacrosse is committed to clean sport and will be supporting UK Anti-Doping’s (UKAD’s) Clean Sport Week campaign from 19 - 23 May.  

Clean Sport Week is UKAD’s national awareness campaign championing clean sport, education and anti-doping initiatives with sports across the UK. 

This year’s Clean Sport Week theme is “The Next Generation”. To ensure the future of our sport is a bright and clean one, it’s vital that we support and educate young people on anti-doping and inspire them to become proud clean athletes. UKAD has teamed up with; TASS, SportsAid, and DiSE to discuss how the sporting community, family, friends, and those working with young people, can protect and empower young athletes. 

A culture of clean sport is essential for the long-term health and wellbeing of athletes. Whether you’re a proud aspiring [player/athlete of sport] on your clean sport journey, a parent/ carer looking for the right tools to support your child in [the sport], a school or college wanting to teach your pupils about fair play, be sure to follow and get involved in Clean Sport Week. 

We encourage anyone in our sporting community that would like to learn more about anti-doping to sign up to UKAD’s Clean Sport Hub where there are free education courses for athletes, students, coaches and practitioners. 

Follow @ukantidoping on social media to see a range of educational and exciting content throughout the week. To find out more about UKAD’s Clean Sport Week initiative click here. 

150 kids to join The Fly for community skills festival in London

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League is set to welcome 150 local school children to Blackheath Rugby Club tomorrow (Friday 16 May) as part of a community skills festival ahead of the opening weekend of The Fly’s 2025 season.

Teams from schools in Bromley and Greenwich, featuring a mix of children who have experience of POP lacrosse and some who have never picked up a stick before, will be attending the session on Friday.

Several stars of The Fly 2025, including Ben Page-Laycock and Minty Loxton, will be in attendance to lead the session alongside community lacrosse champion Mike Barrett where participants will learn the basics of lacrosse through seven dedicated skills stations.

The aim of the festival is to give children in the local area the opportunity to play lacrosse and be introduced to the sixes Olympic version of the sport that the whole world will be watching at LA28.

This skills festival is all part of The Fly’s commitment to promoting and expanding the knowledge of Sixes Lacrosse within the local community and will be followed up with a sister event on Friday 30 May in Manchester before The Fly’s 2025 Finals Weekend at the Manchester Regional Arena.

Following the festival at Blackheath Rugby Club on Friday, attendees will be invited to come and watch The Fly’s opening matches on Saturday or Sunday.

The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League is the world’s first National Lacrosse League featuring the six-a-side version of the sport and was founded in 2021.

Since its first season four years ago, the competition has gone from strength to strength featuring the best players in the UK and featuring 10 nationalities in 2025.

For more information about The Fly Sixes Lacrosse League, follow them on Instagram HERE or head to their website HERE.

England announce 22-player Men's U20 World Championship squad

England Lacrosse is delighted to announce the 22-player squad selected for the 2025 World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship in Jeju, Korea.

10 of the 22-strong squad represented England at last year’s Men’s U20 European Championship in Wroclaw, Poland where they finished as runners-up after defeat to Ireland in the final.

England head into the tournament, taking place from 15-24 August, as number six in the world after a sixth place finish at the 2022 Men’s U21 World Championship in Limerick, Ireland three years ago.

In addition to the 22 squad players, Head Coach Mike Armstrong and his coaching team have selected four non-travelling reserves who will be on hand should any player in the main squad need to withdraw before the competition.

With an average age of 19, the squad strikes a balance between experienced athletes and younger players with many being right at the beginning of their Men’s U20 Programme journey, meaning they will also be available for selection in two years’ time for the next European Championship.

Head Coach Mike Armstrong said:

“We’re really happy to have the group that we’ve got for the summer and we’re ready to make the most of the competition and the opportunity in August in Korea.

“We looked at last year’s Euros as a stepping stone and to have a number of players who have been to a competition before is a really big value for us because they now know what to expect a little bit.

“The new players have had experience of international lacrosse over a couple of days at the Home International Series in April but to be able to gain experience of doing that over two and a half weeks as a young athlete really sets them up for what comes next in their lacrosse careers.”

Watch our full interview with Mike Armstrong HERE.

For more information about the squad and the World Championship, click HERE.

2025 World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship England Squad

Wil Baker
Ellis Baythorpe
Leo Baythorpe
Will Brown
Alex Cartwright
Archie Carr
Jackson Davies
Jack Dearden
Archie Gold
Will Hodgson
Ben Jackson
Spencer Mason
Oscar McCarthy
James McIlhagger
Jamie Mochan
Joachim Ruby
Owen Shuttleworth
George Smith
Zak Spreckley
James Thompson
Alex Tyldesley-Worster
Drew Wilkinson

Reserves

Luke Bond
Ollie Daniels
Finn Howie
Dan Teal

Staff

Mike Armstrong | Head Coach
Elliott Hurry | Lead Assistant Coach & Bench Manager
Tom Roche | Assistant Coach
Corey Carver | Defence Co-ordinator
Sam Ives | Attack Co-ordinator
Matt Collier | Lead Medical Physiotherapist
Alison Cara | Team Manager

Technology firm Innov8 to become England Lacrosse partner

England Lacrosse is delighted to announce Manchester-based technology solutions firm Innov8 as an official partner and the headline sponsor of the England U20 Men’s Programme in 2025.

As the England U20 Men’s team continue their preparations ahead of the 2025 World Lacrosse U20 Men’s Championship in South Korea in August, Innov8 have injected significant investment to help our young lions with the financial cost of being an international lacrosse player.

Innov8’s goal is simple: they want to help ambitious businesses to Get Further, Faster through smart finance and business management systems and technology-led transformation.

And now they’re bringing that same drive to the lacrosse field.

As we look to continue to build a performance culture from the ground up, driven by planning, focus, and clear goals, Innov8 will be working with us to ensure our players can perform to the best of their ability throughout their preparation period and during the competition.

Innov8’s values perfectly align with those of England Lacrosse; with a data-driven approach and analysis-based operation our new partners are a strong fit for a squad aiming to reach their potential on the world stage.

Throughout 2025, Innov8 will be working alongside our England Men’s U20 Programme as they continue to grow, compete, and inspire.

As part of the new partnership, you’ll see:

• Innov8 branding on England kits, training apparel, and travel apparel.

• Digital story-telling that links business performance and performance sport.

• Co-created content focused on leadership, finance, and resilience under pressure.

• Behind the scenes insights from players and coaches as they push toward international success.

• PLUS, exclusive events and giveaways!

This partnership is a real-world showcase of what Innov8 do best: helping organisations to operate and perform, to stay ahead of the game.

We can’t wait to begin working with Innov8 to demonstrate the power of Further, Faster, Together.

To find out more about Innov8 and their work, visit their website HERE.

England Lacrosse CEO Mark Coups said:

“We’re delighted to have Innov8 on board as an England Lacrosse official partner and, significantly for the short-term, the headline sponsor for our England U20 Men’s squad who are heading to Korea in August for the 2025 World Lacrosse U20 Men’s Championship.

“The support they’ll be able to give the U20 Men’s Programme over the next few months will be invaluable and we’re excited to see the partnership thrive.”

Innov8 Founder and Managing Director, Carl Maher said:

“I’m thrilled that Innov8 is partnering with England Lacrosse - it truly is a symbiotic relationship.

“In our conversations with the England Lacrosse team, it’s clear we share the same passion for what we do. Having the business and sport worlds combine, enabling each other, whilst supporting the next generation of players this summer, is particularly special and unique.

“As we formally launch the partnership, I’m excited to see what the future holds as we work closely side by side.”

England U20 Men’s Head Coach Mike Armstrong said:

“We’re excited to begin working with Innov8 as we look to Get Further, Faster on the road to the 2025 World Lacrosse U20 men’s Championship in Korea in August.

“Innov8 undoubtedly align with our values as a squad and we’re delighted they’ve been able to invest in this group as they begin the exciting but challenging journey to compete against some of the best young players in the world.”

England U20 Men’s Captain Joachim Ruby said:

“Being a young, and ultimately amateur, athlete training and preparing for an international competition like a World Championship can be a massive challenge but the investment of companies like Innov8 are an absolute game-changer!

“Their data-driven approach and overall support will be transformative for myself and the squad over the next three months as we look to compete with the best in the world.”

Former England goalie up for top NLL gong

Former England goalie Frank Scigliano is one of three finalists up for the Goaltender of the Year Award in the 2024/25 National Lacrosse League (NLL) season top honours.

Scigliano, who represented England at the 2019 World Lacrosse Box Championship, has been nominated alongside Nick Rose and Matt Vinc for the top gong after an incredible season for Saskatchewan Rush.

The 33-year-old, who has also represented Calgary Roughnecks and San Diego Seals in the NLL, is up for Goaltender of the Year for the first time in his 13-year-long NLL career after posting a league best 9.40 goals against average and finishing with a .795 save percentage.

His excellent season also included a new high in wins with 11, despite missing two games due to the birth of his daughter.

The Rush have had a finalist for Goaltender of the Year twice before with Aaron Bold being nominated in 2014 and 2015 but they’ve never had a winner.

All awards are based on regular-season performances with voting having taken place prior to the start of the 2025 NLL Playoffs; media, coaches, and team personnel ranked their top five selections for each award.

The National Lacrosse League will announce award winners from 12 to 16 May.

For more information about the awards, follow the NLL on Instagram HERE.