The Fly to Take Place this Weekend!

England Lacrosse’s national sixes event, The Fly, will have its first day of fixtures this Saturday (17 July), featuring four men’s and four women’s teams (Hustle, Rise, Forge, Swift).

The Fly, taking place at Lilleshall National Sports Centre, will be one of the first events in the world to adopt the brand new, and proposed Olympic, version of lacrosse and comes just a few weeks after World Lacrosse unveiled their World Sixes identity. 

Each of the eight teams in The Fly is jam-packed full of international stars from all over the UK and they will compete in a round robin on Saturday to determine their places in a knockout weekend in August. 

Unfortunately, due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s competition will be played behind closed doors with a view to being open to fans next year.

However, fear not as both weekends of The Fly will be streamed live on YouTube (more details to follow).

On Saturday (17 July), there will be two pitches with every game on pitch one being streamed, meaning every team will be featured at least once across the day.

Then, on the second weekend (7 & 8 August), every single game will be streamed live for lacrosse lovers all over the world; there really is no excuse for missing one of the first forays into this exciting new format of the game!

If, for some reason, you can’t watch the live stream, you’ll also be able to keep up to date with all things The Fly over on their social media channels (Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter).

The playing squads, Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches, officials, and playing schedule have been announced ahead of Saturday and can be found on The Fly’s very own dedicated website HERE. 

The Fly is sure to be a fantastic event, highlighting some of the best talent in the UK, playing one of the newest and most exciting formats of the game!

"It will be so great to see the campers again and get back out coaching them": Triple Arrow Head Coach, Conor Dockery

In just under a month, the Summer 2021 Triple Arrow Camps schedule will be in full swing after a two-year absence due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Although some amended summer camps were able to take place last year, this year’s camps will mark a return to (nearly) normal and, for the first time since 2019, residential spaces are available for our campers!

Our Triple Arrow Camps Head Coach of three years and the newly announced Head Coach of Team Forge at The Fly, Conor Dockery, is excited to welcome the campers back after what has been a really difficult 18 months.

“It will be so great to see the campers again and get back out coaching them; they get to experience lacrosse in a fun, safe environment with coaches who are highly qualified and have been involved with Triple Arrow Camps for several years.”

And it’s these highly experienced, enthusiastic coaches that Conor, who’s a PE teacher at Queen Anne’s School, Caversham, thinks gives Triple Arrow Camps the edge.

“Some of the coaches have even been campers when they were younger and have now transitioned into a coach on camp.

'“They have had first-hand experience of how a camper may be feeling when they have ‘first day nerves’ and are experienced in helping to make campers feel comfortable and confident.

“Coaches also offer advice on stick stringing, strength and conditioning as well as recruitment to play at University.”

A prolific lacrosse player in his own right having played for Brighton University, East Grinstead, and now Cheltenham Lacrosse Club across the field discipline and Dublin Riggers, Emerald Islanders, London Knights, and the Ireland national team in the indoor format of the game, Conor believes Triple Arrow Camps are one of the best ways for young lacrosse players to improve their game and make new friends.

“I think first and foremost, having the social interaction with players they may not have known before is a real benefit; meeting new people and making new friends who have a similar passion for lacrosse.

“Players also get the opportunity to build up their confidence and self esteem by participating in a variety of fun team-building activities.”

Conor, as England Lacrosse, is also acutely aware that the situation regarding COVID-19 won’t have disappeared come the Triple Arrow Camps and he wants to reassure campers and their parents that all the coaches will be doing everything they can to keep everyone as safe as possible.

“Obviously, we must wait to hear what restrictions will still be in place in a month’s time, but from previous camps, player arrival is staggered and temperatures are checked every morning away from the pitches and all equipment is sanitised regularly.

“We emphasise that players shouldn’t pick up cones or balls with their hands and all these procedures help reduce any risk.”

Summer 2021 Triple Arrow Camps will run in different areas around the country from 27 July - 20 August.

• Caterham School, Surrey (27 - 30 July)

• Oxton Lacrosse Club, Merseyside (27 & 28 July)

• Charterhouse School, Godalming (3 - 6 August)

• St Swithun’s School, Winchester (9 - 12 August)

• Queen Anne’s School, Caversham (17 - 20 August)

England Lacrosse to Celebrate Thank You Day!

England Lacrosse is excited to be celebrating the UK’s first ever national Thank You Day on Sunday 4 July 2021.

The idea of Thank You Day came from a grassroots campaign to hold the country’s biggest ever thank you party in local communities as a way of thanking each other and of building on the community spirit that so many felt during lockdown. 

From the idea being launched just a few months ago, the campaign has won huge support from hundreds of organisations ranging from the NHS to the Scouts and from high profile individuals including Gary Lineker, Michael Sheen, Dame Judi Dench, Raheem Sterling and many more.

The day is expected to be the biggest mass participation event since the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012 and we’re urging the lacrosse community to get involved!

Members of the public are being encouraged to mark the day in numerous different ways from picnics to BBQs, outdoor parties to drinks , while of course sticking to Covid guidelines. 

 Organisations are also putting on events through-out the day including:

• 9:00: Join in an hour's exercise across our country’s parks and green spaces.

• 11:00: Power Hour - Keep Britain Tidy, the RSPB and Rotary are organising an hour’s tidy up of parks and green spaces

• 13:00: The Big Lunch are organising small street parties and picnics to get neighbours together.

• 17:00: Cheers for volunteers, led by Ross Kemp and the Royal Voluntary Service is encouraging people to raise a glass or a cuppa with their neighbours, the initiative is backed by thousands of pubs across the country.

• 19:00: The country’s biggest ever BBQ with neighbours, led by Levi Roots, the Scouts and the National Citizens Service.

In addition, at 3pm –  led by Together with Music – individuals, choirs, bands and music groups, are invited to get together and sing or play Christine McVie’s (Fleetwood Mac) classic “Don’t Stop”.

Hundreds of community choirs and schools plan to sing together outside care homes and hospitals to thank residents, patients and staff for everything they have given over the past year.

For more information about the day, head over to the Thank You Day website HERE.

England Lacrosse Announce New Inclusion Advisory Group

England Lacrosse have announced the next phase of their commitment to enhancing and improving equality, diversity, and inclusion in lacrosse with the formation of a new Inclusion Advisory Group (IAG).

The IAG, which will eventually become an integrated part of the England Lacrosse governance structure, will have four main objectives:

• To promote equality, diversity & inclusion throughout all lacrosse activity in England.

• To set clear standards and provide a mechanism to ensure that these standards are met.

• To provide support to the development of improved policy, procedures, and standards at all levels of the game.

• To recommend actions and improvements for adoption by the sport.

More specifically, the IAG will advise England Lacrosse (and its governance structures) on policy, education, and campaigns for equality, diversity, and inclusion and will help with deliberation on cases relating to discrimination and breaches of standards relating to diversity, equality, and inclusion coordinating with the England Lacrosse disciplinary procedures as and when required. 

England Lacrosse CEO, Mark Coups, says the new Group will help propel the organisation forward and ensure it’s always striving to improve in the equity, diversity, and inclusion space.

“The development of the Inclusion Advisory Group is an important step on England Lacrosse’s journey for increased inclusion and diversity throughout the organisation and sport.

“We are committed to positive change in this area.”

As part of the Group, England Lacrosse are seeking to appoint a Chair to help promote equality, diversity & inclusion within the organisation and with a volunteer network that has varying responsibilities, liabilities, and capacity.

The role will also include identifying key issues and trends that may help to promote the game through relevant interventions and supporting the development of any promotion and education of equality, diversity & inclusion.

The ideal candidate for the role will have a working knowledge of the key legislation relating to equality, diversity & inclusion as well as a passion to promote equality, diversity & inclusion as part of a group.

It will be important to have the ability to relate to the lacrosse community at all levels in the game and it would be beneficial to have had experience of working on discrimination cases and advising bodies on good practice, support, and disciplinary action.

The position of Chair of the IAG is a voluntary role but agreed expenses will be reimbursed.

England Lacrosse is seeking an individual who is excited at the prospect of leading this key area for a growing sport. EL has a public facing commitment to board diversity through our Diversity in Leadership Policy and therefore we are seeking applications from ethnically diverse communities, the LGBTQ+ community, and the disabled community.

For more information about the role, read the recruitment pack below:

To apply for the position of Chair of the IAG, please send an updated CV and cover letter, along with a completed Equalities Monitoring Form (found in the recruitment pack) to [email protected].

Please note, alternative styles of cover letter, such as a video cover letter, will be accepted and considered as part of an application.

Complete the England Lacrosse University Lacrosse Players' Survey

As we continue to look at ways to support university lacrosse in 2021/22, we are reaching out to any students who play lacrosse in England and Wales to aid our decision making.

The survey will look specifically at competition and participation options and support for workforce within the university sector.

The answers to the survey will help us in planning for the next university lacrosse season and will allow us to be in the best position possible to help the university sector going forward.

Host an England Lacrosse Youth Officials' Course!

Last week, Berkhamsted School hosted England Lacrosse’s first Youth Officials’ Course in over 18 months which saw 16 young people spend time working towards an EL officiating qualification.

The Youth Officials’ Course is part of England Lacrosse’s aim to get more young people aged 14-18 involved in the officiating side of lacrosse, learning more about rules, hand signals, and on-field discipline amongst other things.

As well as the formal course, delivered by experienced tutors, the attendees also benefit from extra on-field training to enhance their experience and assist their progress as officials.

At the end of the course, the attendees will receive a Level 1 umpire qualification which they can use to officiate lacrosse matches and will allow them to progress to level 2 and beyond if they so wish.

If your school or club would like to host one of England Lacrosse’s Youth Officials’ Course like the one hosted by Berkhamsted School last week, simply send an email of interest to England Lacrosse Officiating & Competitions Co-ordinator, Ryan Griffiths, on [email protected].

If you are aged 16 and above, our online officiating courses are also available and can be purchased HERE.

An open letter to government to seek clarity on the future of Primary PE Funding

England Lacrosse, along with a number of governing bodies and sports organisations in the sport sector led by the Youth Sport Trust, have added their name to the below letter to the Secretary of State for Education to seek clarity on the future funding of the Primary PE and Sport Premium.

Dear Secretary of State,

We are writing today to seek urgent clarity on the continuation of the investment made through the Primary PE and Sport Premium.

As you will know, this funding has been made available to primary schools to support their PE and school sport offer since 2013.

The past year has taken an incredible toll on young people’s health and wellbeing. We are sure you will agree that getting young people active again in school has a hugely important role to play in their recovery. As a sector we have been working together to support and encourage schools to offer daily physical activity and weekly PE as core building blocks of the recovery curriculum.

However, with just a few weeks left of the summer term, schools have not yet received confirmation that the PE and Sport Premium will continue into September.

We are becoming increasingly alarmed at the impact this uncertainty is having, at a critical time for schools who are planning their provision for the next academic year. This comes at a time of huge demand from schools, families and young people.

In recent weeks, the lack of confirmed funding has led to a scaling back of initiatives and of jobs among the organisations and individuals who support schools to maximise the impact of their PE and Sport Premium. The delay is leading to a reduction in planned provision and hampering efforts to leverage funding from the private sector to strengthen PE and school sport. We are aware of at least one local authority advising schools to budget on the assumption that this funding will not continue.

We appreciate the huge number of challenges government is tackling at the moment as we emerge from the pandemic. However, with young people’s recovery of such paramount importance, it would be devastating if the national effort to support the recovery of young people’s health and wellbeing was hampered by an avoidable delay in confirming funding for next year.

This national effort to support young people’s recovery would be significantly strengthened by an immediate confirmation from your department that this funding will continue into the 2021/22 academic year.

Thank you for your support.

Loughborough and Nottingham Universities Win 2021 BUCS Lacrosse 6s Championships

Loughborough University and the University of Nottingham won the respective men’s and women’s 2021 BUCS Lacrosse 6s Championships at Coombe Dingle Sports Centre, Bristol, on Saturday.

On what was a day of blue skies and glorious sunshine, Loughborough University defeated the University of the West of England 5-4 in the men’s final while the University of Nottingham worked hard to complete an unbeaten day by coming back from two goals down to beat the University of Exeter 4-3 in the women’s final.

Saturday's competition, the first to take place since 2019, saw the BUCS Lacrosse 8s Championships change format slightly from eight a-side to six a-side to reflect the proposed Olympic version of the game which will potentially included in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

In fact, this was only the third competition in the world to use the brand new 6s rules after tournaments in the USA and Australia in late May.

The day began with a round robin containing the 10 teams in the women’s competition and the nine teams in the men’s tournament.

These 19 teams were then whittled down to eight in each competition for the quarter finals before two semi-finals and a final each, eventually seeing the University of Nottingham and Loughborough University take home the gold medals. The full table of results will be available to be viewed online shortly.

The full women’s final and the second half of the men’s final can viewed below.

And if you’re loving the 6s content then why not follow our brand new 6s event, The Fly, across social media?

England Lacrosse Celebrates Annual Volunteers' Week

Last week saw England Lacrosse celebrate Volunteers’ Week, shining a spotlight on our wonderful volunteers and highlighting what a brilliant job they’ve done, and continue to do, keeping clubs and teams going throughout the most difficult of years.

The official theme for this year’s Volunteers’ Week was “a time to say thanks” aimed at recognising the contribution of communities during the coronavirus pandemic, and we aimed to highlight just a handful of our hundreds of volunteers throughout the week.

We invited the lacrosse community to nominate volunteers who have been especially exceptional over the past year since the start of the coronavirus pandemic and you didn’t let us down!

Featured Volunteers

Sarah Thomas - Vice-Chair at Cheltenham Lacrosse Club

Sarah has been an absolute rock at Cheltenham Lacrosse Club over the past year, taking on a lot of activities and workload that many people do not usually see or appreciate fully.

As a committee member, Sarah has ensured Cheltenham’s teams have the relevant PPE they need to keep safe while playing lacrosse.

She has also played her part on the field by stepping into goal when needed and is someone everyone in the club feels comfortable to talk to.

As a fantastic committee member, a great player and an even better friend everyone at Cheltenham, Sarah absolutely deserves this little bit of recognition.

Chris White - Founder at Nuneaton Lacrosse Club

Chris has been involved in lacrosse in the Midlands for a number of years now but his work founding, and subsequently running, Nuneaton Lacrosse Club three years ago is probably what he is best known for.

Starting a club is no mean feat but Chris managed it by starting small, initially getting a few people together for a throw around, before then expanding to include the two men’s and one women’s teams that there are today.

Excitingly, Nuneaton recently found their own ground too and the work Chris does to (as people in the Midlands say) “get the game on” make him absolutely worthwhile of some recognition this Volunteers’ Week.

Alison Dunn - Coach/Manager/Everything at Oxton Lacrosse Club

With the coronavirus pandemic halting the playing of lacrosse for large parts of 2020/early 2021, it might not necessarily have been the busiest year for Alison in terms of lacrosse.

However, Oxton Lacrosse Club felt that during this year’s Volunteers’ Week was the right time to recognise and acknowledge Alison’s work after more than three decades in the sport.

As well as being a coach, a manager, and whatever other roles she can get her hands on at Oxton Lacrosse Club, Alison has also coached for the North of England at both junior and senior level and has sat on a number of regional and national committees over the years.

Oxton Lacrosse Club and, more generally, lacrosse in the north simply would not be the same without Alison’s work, effort, dedication, and passion over the last 30 years!

Vicky Fathers - Chair at W4 Lacrosse Club

It is an unfortunate fact that without Vicky and her hard-work and dedication for the cause, it is unlikely W4 Lacrosse Club would have continued throughout the last year.

A new venue, more coaches, more athletes, and huge heaps of enthusiasm were all required to keep the club afloat during the coronavirus pandemic and Vicky stepped up to become one of these people who makes things happen to keep kids in sport.

Vicky plays a vital role in the local community and it is only fitting during Volunteers’ Week that wee recognise her work and thank her for everything she does!

Thank-you to every single volunteer working hard and dedicating their free time to supporting lacrosse in England; this is for all of you!

BUCS 6s - Preview

England Lacrosse will be hosting the annual BUCS 6s (previously BUCS 8s) tournament on Saturday 5th June at Bristol Coombe Dingle. This will be the 5th year of the established university event.

We are thrilled to be welcoming back BUCS lacrosse this weekend. The annual tournament takes on a new persona this year as we emerge from covid restrictions. There will be no BUCS points up for grabs, so we expect the day to be a more relaxed competition, inviting teams to simple enjoy being back out on the field with their teammates.

England Lacrosse head of competitions Helen Amos said, “I'm really excited to be able to be out running events and competitions again for the first time since March 2020. It's great to have 19 university teams attending on Saturday after what has been such a difficult period for students. With no BUCS points to play for, the students can really just relax and enjoy their time back out on the pitch in a friendly, but I'm sure competitive environment.”

As you may have noticed by the change in name to BUCS 6s we are also going to be playing rules based on the newly introduced World Lacrosse Sixes game. This means 6 players on each team, 12 on a pitch, 30 second shot clock and no face off / draw after goals.

“Firstly it’s great to have competitive BUCS lacrosse back, we’re really looking forward to just getting out and playing some other University sides. Secondly, the fact that it’s the new 6’s format is exciting - especially in anticipation of The Fly this summer!”

— Head of Lacrosse Nottingham Uni, Mike Armstrong

Event: BUCS 6s
Venue: Bristol Coombe Dingle
Time: 10am - 5pm

Teams Announced for 2021 BUCS Lacrosse 6s Championships

England Lacrosse are excited to announce the 11 women’s and nine men’s teams taking part in this year’s BUCS Lacrosse 6s Championships.

The slightly amended tournament, which will using the new proposed six a-side Olympic version of lacrosse as opposed to the traditional eight a-side game, is the first to take place since 2019.

In that edition of the competition, the winners were Durham University (Men) and University of Oxford (Women) in the Championship Division and Swansea University (Men) and Cardiff University (Women) in the Trophy Division.

This year’s BUCS 6s will take place on Saturday 5 June at Coombe Dingle Sports Complex, Bristol, as it has been each year since 2017, and you’ll be able to follow the action with England Lacrosse on social media!

The teams are as follows with the full schedule due to be released next week.

Women

University of Birmingham 1
University of Edinburgh 1
University of Essex 1
University of Exeter 1
University of Exeter 2
University of Gloucestershire 1
Leeds Beckett University 1
University of Nottingham 1
University of Oxford 1
University of Oxford 2
University of Surrey 1

Men

University of Essex 1
University of Exeter 1
University of Exeter 2
University of Gloucestershire 1
Leeds Beckett University 1
Plymouth Marjon University 1
University of Oxford 1
University of Surrey 1
University of the West of England 1

British Triathlon's Will Evans Appointed New Chair of the National Lacrosse Committee

England Lacrosse are delighted to announce the Head of Clubs and Regions at British Triathlon, Will Evans, as the new Chair of the National Lacrosse Committee (NLC).

Will, who has also worked with England Golf, England Netball, and Rounders England over the past few years, takes over from outgoing NLC Chair, Sallie Barker, who recently became Finance & Governance Director on the World Lacrosse Board of Directors.

Will hopes he can help to continue the good work of the NLC during his tenure as Chair.

“I am quickly learning about many of the things that have already been achieved by the NLC since its inception only a few years ago.

“We have some fantastic people around the virtual NLC table already and my role as Chair is to make sure that we are making the best use of the time we have together and supporting England Lacrosse to grow the game in the right way.

“If we can do that, I know we will be able to step back in a few years and take pride in the part we have played in making that happen.”

A lacrosse novice who is keen to get a stick in his hand very soon and learn to play, Will believes that lacrosse in England is at a really exciting point in its growth and development.

“The opportunity to play a part in this period of lacrosse in England was a really exciting opportunity.

“20 plus years working in sport has given be an appreciation of the role of grassroots sport and of sport in education and this role with the NLC hopefully gives me the chance to help lacrosse in some small way with that development.”

Aside from his day job with British Triathlon and his new role on the NLC, Will’s spare time is almost entirely taken up by his two young daughters and helping them find their way into sport and dancing. But that doesn't mean his own sporting days are completely over just yet!

“My rugby playing days are now behind me and running has taken over as my main form of exercise with marathons and half-marathons in the agenda to give me motivation!”

Will takes over from Sallie as Chair of the NLC with immediate effect and England Lacrosse wish him all the best in the role!

All Sun and Games as Summer Lax Gets Underway!

Last week marked the first set of fixtures in our new Summer Lax programme, taking place across six dedicated hubs based all over the country in Nottingham, Manchester, Bristol, Chiswick, and London (x2).

Summer Lax is our brand new summer lacrosse leagues open to everyone, including those who have never played lacrosse before as well as those who don’t own any equipment.

It is designed to be a space where people from a variety of different backgrounds can get together and play lacrosse in a more casual and relaxed setting than it otherwise might be playing for a club or university team.

During a week when it seemingly rained non-stop, the sun even came out and paid our hubs a visit, much to the delight of the England Lacrosse photographer who managed to get some lovely shots (see below)!

And if these pictures whet your appetite and you’d like to get involved in Summer Lax then you can still sign up and take part in the next set of fixtures.

All you need to do is click the button below and follow the instructions. Simple!

Nominate a Volunteer as Part of Volunteers' Week!

As part of this year’s annual Volunteers’ Week (1-7 June), England Lacrosse is inviting you to nominate a volunteer from the lacrosse community who has been especially exceptional over the past year since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Throughout the week, we will be shining the spotlight on our wonderful volunteers and highlighting what a brilliant job they’ve done, and continue to do, keeping clubs and teams going throughout the most difficult of years.

The official theme for this year’s Volunteers’ Week will be “a time to say thanks” aimed at recognising the contribution of communities during the coronavirus pandemic.

During an exceptionally difficult year, people from all walks of life around the UK have taken the time to volunteer and made a huge difference to people and their communities – just as they do every year.

The Volunteers’ Week website says:

“We’d like to encourage you to take the time to recognise volunteers that helped during the last 12 months and to thank those who usually volunteer but have not been able to because of the pandemic.

“Volunteers are always active at the heart of every UK community and the coronavirus pandemic has rightly raised the profile of volunteering and more people than ever are aware of the immense contribution being made every single day by the UK’s volunteers.

“That is why, on this 37th annual #VolunteersWeek, it’s time to say: thank you volunteers!”

At England Lacrosse, we are well aware that the game we all love is only able to run and be played by so many people all over the country because of the hard-work, dedication, and devotion of the volunteers and, with your help, we want to show our appreciation during this year’s Volunteers’ Week!

You can nominate an exceptional volunteer by completing the form below:

Return to Play guidance update - 17 May

England Lacrosse are pleased to announce the latest Return to Lacrosse Roadmap as restrictions continue to ease across the country.

As part of the Return to Play Roadmap, as of Monday 17 May, outdoor and indoor lacrosse are permitted under new England Lacrosse Phase 5 Return to Play guidelines. There are also some restrictions within the guidelines which we can now remove.

• Spectators are permitted - Please follow the social gathering guidelines - Sport England FAQs

• Changing rooms can open - Please follow social distancing guidelines

• The Draw and Face–off can be re-introduced

• Car sharing and the use of minibuses is permitted

With the reintroduction of the draw and face-off procedure, new officiating guidance has been issued in relation to handling the ball. This can be found in the Officiating Infographic and under Game Ball Protocol in the Phase 5 Guidance document.

Phase 5 Return to Play does not mean a return to lacrosse ‘as normal’, and as highlighted in the summary infographic below, there are still a number of protocols in place to ensure a safe return to lacrosse. The guidelines will be reviewed at regular intervals in line with the national Government roadmap.

The full Phase 5 Return to Play guidance document is attached below and all organisations intending to Return to Play should make sure they have read the document and are fully prepared before undertaking any organised lacrosse activity.

England Lacrosse will also be holding a whole game Return to Play webinar on Wednesday 19 May at 6pm. Please complete the webinar sign up form below.

If you have any questions regarding Return to Play that you would like to be addressed on the webinar, please include with your submission, or alternatively, email [email protected]

It's time to let fly! The Fly launches

Show up Speed up Step up - Can you keep up? Welcome to the Fly

We are extremely excited to announce the launch of The Fly as the identity for our new National 6 a-side event showcasing lacrosse at the highest level.

The Fly, utilising the new fast and innovative 6s format, will be a pioneering elite level competition featuring the new Olympic-proposed version of the sport.

The Fly emphasises the speed of our sport, putting its unique qualities at the heart of the identity and in particular, epitomising the non-stop, high tempo nature of the 6s game.

Not only does the The Fly represent the fast-paced feel of lacrosse, the name and bold symbol represents its aspirational nature in looking forward to the future, looking ahead to Olympic aspirations for the sport, and looking at what can be possible when the sport is able to let Fly.

The striking orange colour of The Fly takes inspiration from the colour of our lacrosse goals; symbolising the feeling of our players and coaches all focused towards one common goal in achieving success.

The Fly will have the needs and ambitions of its players at its core, allowing our elite athletes to pursue the sport at the highest level while also offering a vision for our youngest players to fulfil their dreams.

GB Lacrosse will take to the field for the first time in a World 6s Championship at the 2022 World Games and The Fly will provide the platform and profile for our top talent to express themselves playing the proposed Olympic format.

The Fly features side-by-side men’s and women’s competitions, giving our athletes absolute equality in profile and performance, bringing together the best players and coaches from across the sport.

The Fly has already engaged with the UK’s top players and coaches through an extensive application and recruitment process, and we can’t wait to share with you all the talent on show this summer.

The best way to keep up with The Fly is across The Fly’s social media channels for first look updates.

England Lacrosse’s Playground to Podium strategy had previously set out plans for a national event to give our athletes a high-profile, high-performance environment, while creating a unique, identifiable flagship brand for the sport to engage with a growing lacrosse market.

Following consultation with key stakeholders and the formation of an event working group with representation from across the sections of the game, The Fly has been developed to meet the objectives of the strategy and signals a significant step forward in helping the sport move to the next level and meet our aspirational goals.

Former England Player & Team Manager, Don Bennett, Dies aged 90

Don (front row, third from the left) with the 1986 England men’s training squad which travelled to the World Championships in Toronto, Canada.

England Lacrosse are deeply saddened to hear of the death of former England men’s player and Team Manager as well as long-time supporter of lacrosse, Don Bennett, at the age of 90.

Affectionately known as ‘Dandy’ Don on account of him always being very smartly dressed, Don first played for England in the 1950s and 1960s and eventually became Team Manager in the aftermath of the 1982 World Lacrosse Championships in Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

During his tenure, Don managed the England men’s squad that took part in the international lacrosse tournament which ran alongside the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 1984 as well as the squads that competed in the 1986 and 1990 World Championships in Toronto, Canada, and Perth, Australia, respectively.

Away from lacrosse, Don was a successful businessman, becoming Managing Director and owner of Hills Biscuits that, perhaps unsurprisingly, made biscuits, and, during his stint as England men’s Team Manager, allowed the English Lacrosse Union as it once was (which looked after men's lacrosse in England) to use office and equipment storage space at the factory premises of the biscuit company in Ashton-under-Lyne, Manchester.

In 2011, and after 30 years at the helm, Don stepped down as Chairman of Hills Biscuits and the company remained in the Bennett family, under the watchful eyes of Don’s sons, Rob and Paul, until 2017.

Don’s local club was Poynton Lacrosse Club where both his sons played; Rob was an accomplished player who was forced to retire early from the game due to injury, while Paul played for many years as a defender.

Current National Team Director of the England Women’s National Squad and Great Britain 6-a-side Head Coach, Phil Collier, was fortunate enough to play for England while Don was Team Manager and eventually became Assistant Coach during his tenure in 1990, working under Mike Roberts as Head Coach, and he can’t speak highly enough of Don.

“I’m really sorry to hear the news of Don Bennett’s death; he was a good guy and the best England Manager I had the pleasure of playing under.

“He had a lovely calm manner of dealing with people and situations, always staying positive and trying to see the best way forwards.

“My memories of playing for and working with Don are very special and ones that I will always treasure and I am very grateful to him for his wise council, support and advice during those years.”

The thoughts of England Lacrosse are with Don’s family at this sad time.

Article image includes: (Back row) Martin Clark, Danny Roden, Shawn Moran, Pete Collins, Shawn Ring, Geoff Monkley, Marcus Sandy, John Baron, Peter Condron, Phil Collier. (Middle row) Brian Costello (Coach), Rick Summers, Jack Simpson, Malcom Gosney, Greg Story, Paul Skarratt, Andy Hiller, Keith Gosney, Simon Tarpey, John Bardsley (Head Coach). (Front row) Joe Gold, Pat Moore, Don Bennett (Team Manager), Paul Everard, James Lord, Mark Coups, Terry Underwood, Dave Elwood, Graham Lester (Referee)