English officials selected for 2024 World Lacrosse Women's U20 Championship

Two English officials have been selected as on-field officials for the 2024 World Lacrosse Women’s U20 Championship, World Lacrosse has announced.

Paul Bibby and David Morris are part of a 38-strong team of officials travelling to Hong Kong, China for the competition that’s set to take place from 15-24 August.

Both Bibby and Morris are highly experienced officials having taken charge of matches at various international competition around the world as well as some of the most high level domestic games in England.

The 38 officials represent 12 nations and three Continental Federations with World Lacrosse’s Officiating Committee helping to select the group of officials in consultation with National Governing Bodies and Continental Federations based on the officials’ quality and past performance in internationally sanctioned events.

The group of officials will be supported through the championship by a team of educators who will mentor, evaluate and assess their performance.

Leading up to the event, the individuals will continue to officiate in their home countries, attend online workshops, undergo fitness testing and take rules exams ensuring that they are best prepared for the championship.

Each official selected for the championship has a World Lacrosse 1 or higher certification, in line with World Lacrosse’s recent efforts to develop an officials’ certification program to ensure a consistent standard across world championships.

England Lacrosse launch Coaching & Officiating Survey

England Lacrosse is pleased to launch its 2024 Coaching & Officiating Survey as it seeks feedback from those involved in the game to give it a full picture of the current landscape in England.

Feedback is welcome from any and all coaches and officials involved in lacrosse in England from all age groups and abilities.

The survey responses will allow England Lacrosse to better understand the experiences of coaches and officials within the sport, particularly after the turbulent past few years.

England Lacrosse will then be able to provide support in the right areas and help make a positive difference to coaches and officials within England.

Please note, the survey closes at 5pm on Monday 15 April.

Officiating Advisory Group releases 2024 reading list

England Lacrosse can confirm our Officiating Advisory Group (OAG) has released its annual reading list for 2024.

The list aims to allow all officials in the English game to continue their professional development off the field with a view to overall continued improvement on it.

With different media types, insights into different sports, and a range of different approaches, the texts in the list gives officials the opportunity to become more rounded in the role and offer other insight inanition to the rules manual.

To view the 2024 reading list, click the button below and click HERE to access the 2022 version.

England Lacrosse announces winter officiating course schedule

England Lacrosse has announced its officiating course schedule for winter 2024 with six dates aimed at Level 1 and 2 officials who want to continue their umpiring or refereeing journey.

Taking place between Tuesday 23 January and Tuesday 20 February, there are four Level 2 umpire, one Level 2 referee, and one Level 3 referee courses.

The umpire courses are split across two webinars while the Level 2 referee course consists of a single webinar to be delivered online between 7:30pm and 9pm on the designated dates; the Level 3 referee course requires participants to attend an online webinar followed by a single training day.

Dates for the training days are still yet to be confirmed but there will be one in Manchester and another in the Greater London area in April 2024.

Umpire courses
All webinars take place from 7:30pm-9pm

Tuesday 23 January 2024 | Webinar 1
Thursday 1 February 2024 | Webinar 2
Thursday 15 February 2024 | Webinar 1
Tuesday 20 February 2024 | Webinar 2

Referee courses

Thursday 25 January 2024 | Level 2
Tuesday 20 February 2024 | Level 3

For more information about the courses and to book your spot, click the relevant button below.

Be an official at 2023 BUCS Lacrosse Sixes

England Lacrosse is searching for individuals to officiate at the annual British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Lacrosse Sixes at Nottingham Trent University on Sunday 15 October 2023.

Taking place at Nottingham Trent’s Clifton Campus, the BUCS Lacrosse Sixes competition features university teams from all over the country, playing the new six-a-side version of lacrosse.

It is a fantastic opportunity for officials early in their journey to begin officiating Sixes Lacrosse, with experienced Sixes officials attending to help develop emerging talent; officiating coaches will also be in attendance to provide further coaching and development.

Officials who take part will receive a £75 match fee and up to £50 in travel for the day of attending with officials needing to be on-site no later than 9:30am and the final games finishing at around 6pm.

Any officials wishing to attend the event should click the button below and complete the form.

Please note, applications will close at 9am on Tuesday 3 October.

New set of level 2 umpire courses announced

England Lacrosse is delighted to announce a new series of level 2 umpiring courses for spring and summer 2023.

The level 2 umpire award is perfect for those officials with an existing and valid level 1 certificate who want to make that next step up in the world of officiating.

To attain a the level 2 award, participants must complete two online webinars with work to be completed between sessions.

Following the completion of the online webinars, participants will be emailed with assessment opportunities at regional events and tournaments around the country.

There are 15 online courses altogether, seven for webinar 1 and eight for webinar 2; participants must attend one of each of the webinars in order to complete the course and attain the level 2 umpire award.

Please note, officials must have a valid level 1 certification and England Lacrosse Membership to undertake the level 2 course.

A list of dates for the webinars can be found below with each taking place 7:30pm-9pm and you can book onto the level 2 umpire course by clicking the button at the bottom of this article.

For more information about officiating courses, please contact England Lacrosse Officiating Co-ordinator, Ryan Griffiths, on [email protected].

Course Dates

Webinar 1

Wednesday 22 March
Thursday 6 April
Monday 17 April
Tuesday 9 May
Wednesday 24 May
Thursday 8 June
Monday 19 June

Webinar 2

Tuesday 28 February
Wednesday 29 March
Thursday 13 April
Monday 24 April
Tuesday 16 May
Wednesday 31 May
Thursday 15 June
Monday 26 June

England Lacrosse statement

The whole lacrosse family is sad to hear of the Queen’s passing on Thursday 8 September.

We send our condolences to the Royal Family at this difficult time. We also join the international lacrosse family and people all over the world in mourning her loss and in thanking Her Majesty for over 70 years of dedication and service to this country and its people.

She will be greatly missed by us all.

Lacrosse Guidance

We request that our affiliated organisations and members are respectful in playing sport during this period of national mourning.

With this in mind, an official National Mourning Guidance document has been published by Sport England HERE.

The guidance states that there is no formal obligation for organisations or NGBs to postpone or cancel sporting fixtures or events, between now and the state funeral.

Lacrosse activity, including training, matches and events can continue if organisers choose to do so.

If you are taking part in lacrosse activity during this period, it is highly recommended that organisers consider an appropriate mark of respect, such as holding a period of silence and/or wearing black armbands or ribbons.

If activity is planned for the day of the state funeral, organisers need to consider postponement or cancellation as a mark of respect; England Lacrosse will be cancelling all centralised activity on this day.

Mourning is very personal, and it is anticipated that individuals, families, and communities may want to mark Her Majesty’s passing in their own ways, and we should respect the personal decisions made by others.

If you would like to send a message of condolence to the Royal Family at this time, you can do HERE.

England Lacrosse to use 2021/22 World Lacrosse women's rules for 2022/23 season

The England Lacrosse National Lacrosse Committee (NLC) has decided to continue to use the 2021/22 World Lacrosse women’s rules for the 2022/23 season after their meeting last month.

This means the most recent World Lacrosse rule changes dated January 2022 will not be adopted by England Lacrosse for the upcoming 2022/23 season. 

NLC has made this decision because of timescales related to World Lacrosse’s publishing of their latest rule book including the new rules.

Instead, these latest January 2022 rules will be implemented for the 2023/24 season.

To view the latest England Lacrosse-approved women’s rules, click HERE.

ELF search for Referee and Deputy Referee in Chief for the European Box Lacrosse Championship 2022

The European Lacrosse Federation (ELF) are on the look out for a Tournament Referee in Chief and Tournament Deputy Referee in Chief to attend the European Box Lacrosse Championship 2022.

The tournament, taking place in Hanover, Germany between 30 July - 6 August, is the second edition of the competition after the inaugural Championship in Turku, Finland in 2017 and was originally scheduled for July 2021.

Unfortunately, due to the coronavirus pandemic continuing to stop widespread overseas travel during 2021, the tournament was postponed until 2022.

ELF are asking that applicants for the two roles are qualified as Level 3 box lacrosse officials or equivalent and have previous championship tournament experience.

They should be well-versed in World Lacrosse box lacrosse rules, three-official mechanics, and be able to perform in high-stress environments.

The Referee in Chief will be responsible for guiding ELF referees in all officiating matters regarding performance, both before and throughout the Championship.

This requires extensive understanding and demonstrated application of World Lacrosse box lacrosse rules and interpretations, as well as strong practical officiating and theoretical rules and mechanics knowledge to evaluate and advise the tournament referees in real time.

The Deputy Referee in Chief will work with the tournament Referee in Chief to coordinate and deliver pre-championship officiating clinics (both off- and on-floor), gather feedback on mentoring process from all involved parties, and support the Referee in Chief in all other matters, as needed.

Please note, applications close at 23:59pm on 23 January 2022.

If you’re interested in applying for either role or just want some more information, please click HERE.

Umpire at the 2022 National Schools Lacrosse Championships

England Lacrosse is looking for umpires to officiate at the 2022 National Schools Lacrosse Championships, taking place at Aldershot Garrison Sports Centre, Aldershot from 19-22 March next year.

Umpires will be needed for all four days of the Championships, including for England Lacrosse during the under-19 divisions’ games on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 March.

As the biggest schools’ lacrosse event in the UK, the National Schools Lacrosse Championships is the perfect opportunity to officiate a high level of lacrosse, with umpires attending from all over Europe.

Umpires officiating on the first two days of the tournament will be paid a fee of £100 per day, plus up to £50 per day in travel expenses, dependent on your location.

On Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 March, officials are not appointed centrally by England Lacrosse and schools are required to find officials themselves.

However, to assist schools, any umpires who are available on the Monday and Tuesday and wanting to be involved can register their interest below.

Officials will then be put in touch with schools who require assistance closer to the start of the Championships.

Anyone officiating on behalf of the schools will be paid directly by the schools.

Please note, any accommodation and food costs will be the responsibility of the umpire.

To officiate at the National Schools Lacrosse Championships, umpires must:

• Hold a minimum Level 1 umpiring qualification.

• Complete the England Lacrosse annual rules test*

• Hold a valid England Lacrosse membership*

*Officials coming from other countries are not required to hold a valid England Lacrosse membership or complete the annual rules test. They must, however, have the required membership for their own country and be in good standing with their own national governing body.

Applications are open until Monday 13 December and applicants will be contacted during that week to confirm their place to umpire at the event.

If you wish to attend the event, complete the form below and if you have any questions, please contact England Lacrosse Officiating Coordinator, Ryan Griffiths, via email at [email protected].

England Lacrosse statement on personal equipment

England Lacrosse would like to remind players and officials of rules regarding the wearing of personal equipment.

At a recent Officiating Advisory Group meeting, it was raised that the group had been made aware of instances of safety rules for the sport not being adhered to.

England Lacrosse takes player safety as a priority and safety rules must be followed to ensure that all players and officials can undertake a safe game.

The Officiating Advisory Group require the following to be highlighted to all players, officials, coaches and administrators.

All players, whether playing men’s, women’s, mixed, or indoor lacrosse, are required to wear mouth guards to participate. 

·      As per World Lacrosse rules and local regulation in England, players must wear a World Lacrosse approved mouth guard at all times during a game. Failure to do so will result in the appropriate sanction by officials, which will include refusing to let a player participate. Details of the World Lacrosse mouth guard specifications can be found in the WL rule books

All players, whether playing men’s, women’s, mixed, or indoor lacrosse, are required to remove all jewellery.  

·      As per the World Lacrosse Rules and local regulation in England, players must remove all jewellery. Failure to do so will result in the appropriate sanction by officials, which will include refusing to let a player participate.

There are certain exceptions regarding religious and medical alert jewellery, the precise wording of which can be found in the rulebooks linked below.

England Lacrosse’s main priority is to keep participants safe. We believe that following all equipment and safety regulations is an integral part in doing so.

If any player is unsure of any regulations or requires clarification, links to both sets of rules can be found in the links below, or on the World Lacrosse website.