Lacrosse has become a well-known sport in the US after years of hiding. Tommy Burch investigates what makes Lacrosse the best sport on Earth and why.
What Makes Lacrosse The Best Sport On Earth?
Lacrosse has been slowly cementing its place in the professional sports world, making a stand in the United States. As the PLL takes a stand, the youth community has begun to sneak its way into the game of Lacrosse.
The Lacrosse population constantly grows every day and the general public is starting to take notice. With the traction being gained and the spotlight on the sport, what makes Lacrosse the best sport on Earth?
The Best of Every Sport
What makes Lacrosse the best is the amalgamation of the best pieces from every sport on earth which makes it fluid. The defense is similar to basketball, where you rotate and make shifts depending on the opponent’s actions. There is always a slide man to protect you, and they can be in either a man or zone coverage.
The way the game is played is almost like hockey, but on grass and the sticks have nets. The way faceoffs are done, the way the field transitions from offense to defense, and the substitutions are seamless and done while the clock is running. Not only this, but the physicality is also similar to that of hockey, with contact being all too familiar.
Lacrosse is considered the fastest sport on two feet, and that is completely justified. The constant sprinting, the quick turnovers, and the transitions are unmatched in any sport and proves its athletic superiority.
Incredible Origins
One of the best pulls about the sport is how it was created. What started off as Stickball in the Algonquian Tribe of St. Lawrence Valley spread to eastern United States territory. There were goals set up incredible distances apart, and it was almost like a warzone to score a goal. According to reports, each game housed almost 100 players all the way to over 90,000 and would go on for multiple days at a time.
The game spread like wildfire, with European missionaries witnessing the game. It would end up as the Canadian national summer sport, then being played in front of Queen Victoria. Fast forward to today and it has only grown better.
The game began with wooden balls and a very primal Lacrosse stick, then evolved into animal skin balls and more sophisticated stick designs. Today, the balls are rubber and the sticks and the sticks consist of almost any durable material you can think of. With the PLL being the newest addition to modernizing Lacrosse, we may see even more changes from here.
What Makes it the Best?
The sport not only has a riveting story but has grown and developed with the players. Now instead of 100,000 men battling over acres of land, we see a small plot of turg being guarded by 10 players per team. It has gained physicality and style, with highlights being one of the sport’s biggest attractors. The flexibility and unique aspects of the game paired with the origins make it the best sport on earth.
