FIL 2018 World Championship

[laxsummit]

Great last game between two superb teams but not entirely satisfied with WC tourney n FIL from several advantages.. Rules need enhancements as previously mentioned . Fields and officiating were subpar, crowds were small and print coverage was lacking and tv commentary could have been more focused. Sport is expanding and FIL had a platform to market the sport but did a mediocre job imo. .
Info was sparse and difficult to find , it should have widely disseminated .TV coverage by espn was well shot but could have had included lead ups to games with promotions profiling players. Quint and Anish know and talked lax but also bantered a bit too about their doings on trip. The IL blog was a decent read . Israel is wonderful country and was a gracious host but planning schedule around a holy day was shortsighted and Ive seen much better fields at club tourneys.
Hoping other teams close the gap some more as U.SA. and Canada were still far and above everyone when they exerted themselves . Iroquois winning bronze again is a accomplishment given small pool and defensive deficiencies. Some counties made good strides beyond Australia n England. Fun watching Jamaica with McPeak and Lecky, PR, Japan and some others. Austin Staats excelled in most games, ability to score known but his vision/passing impressed just as much. Bit surprise he received All World selection over Lyle Thompson but perhaps passing of the baton. Austin was invisible in 2nd matchup with Canada so maybe, just maybe he decides to make a big mark first in college game ie Nanny before entering NLL.

 

[Purple Haze]

Great last game between two superb teams but not entirely satisfied with WC tourney n FIL from several advantages.. Rules need enhancements as previously mentioned . Fields and officiating were subpar, crowds were small and print coverage was lacking and tv commentary could have been more focused. Sport is expanding and FIL had a platform to market the sport but did a mediocre job imo. .
Info was sparse and difficult to find , it should have widely disseminated .TV coverage by espn was well shot but could have had included lead ups to games with promotions profiling players. Quint and Anish know and talked lax but also bantered a bit too about their doings on trip. The IL blog was a decent read . Israel is wonderful country and was a gracious host but planning schedule around a holy day was shortsighted and Ive seen much better fields at club tourneys.
Hoping other teams close the gap some more as U.SA. and Canada were still far and above everyone when they exerted themselves . Iroquois winning bronze again is a accomplishment given small pool and defensive deficiencies. Some counties made good strides beyond Australia n England. Fun watching Jamaica with McPeak and Lecky, PR, Japan and some others. Austin Staats excelled in most games, ability to score known but his vision/passing impressed just as much. Bit surprise he received All World selection over Lyle Thompson but perhaps passing of the baton. Austin was invisible in 2nd matchup with Canada so maybe, just maybe he decides to make a big mark first in college game ie Nanny before entering NLL.

Agree on all points - would add that I loved what little I got to see of the Uganda team as well. Talk about a bunch of wide eyed kids who just play for the love of the game. Also, the New Zealand war dance (Haka) when they enter the stadium is a thing of beauty:

 

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[SaltineWarrior]

Great last game between two superb teams but not entirely satisfied with WC tourney n FIL from several advantages.. Rules need enhancements as previously mentioned . Fields and officiating were subpar, crowds were small and print coverage was lacking and tv commentary could have been more focused. Sport is expanding and FIL had a platform to market the sport but did a mediocre job imo. .
Info was sparse and difficult to find , it should have widely disseminated .TV coverage by espn was well shot but could have had included lead ups to games with promotions profiling players. Quint and Anish know and talked lax but also bantered a bit too about their doings on trip. The IL blog was a decent read . Israel is wonderful country and was a gracious host but planning schedule around a holy day was shortsighted and Ive seen much better fields at club tourneys.
Hoping other teams close the gap some more as U.SA. and Canada were still far and above everyone when they exerted themselves . Iroquois winning bronze again is a accomplishment given small pool and defensive deficiencies. Some counties made good strides beyond Australia n England. Fun watching Jamaica with McPeak and Lecky, PR, Japan and some others. Austin Staats excelled in most games, ability to score known but his vision/passing impressed just as much. Bit surprise he received All World selection over Lyle Thompson but perhaps passing of the baton. Austin was invisible in 2nd matchup with Canada so maybe, just maybe he decides to make a big mark first in college game ie Nanny before entering NLL.

Spot on in your analysis. In my opinion, the lack of coverage for the sport overall is what is most disappointing. This was a fantastic event, as is the MLL and NCAA product. Make this as accessible as ever to fans. Other than a few random NCAA games, the NCAA tourney and the US games in the FIL, you have to pay for online access. Give away free tickets at the stadium, get it on any medium where the consumers can access for free and this sport will catch fire. Heck the FIL website was God awful if you wanted scores or real news. The Wikipedia page was far easier to see how the tournament played. The breaking news from FIL was filled with "fluff" stories that were often regurgitated generic stories that even the casual fan would have already known.

I have served primarily in the youth levels and my son in now in HS looking to play in college. The base of young people who play this sport is there. There is also an even larger group of kids who played the sport, dropped in as they had to narrow their choices but still like the game and would be fans. Think about how many baseball or football fans there are compared to the number who actually played in HS.

The announcers absolutely nailed it with the integration of the 3 sets of rules. The clearing rule(s) absolutely has to go into effect for international play. Shot clock should be implemented ASAP (or at least a 30 second clock like the NCAAs). Diving towards the crease is an interesting thought to bring back to the NCAA and MLL. The 2 point line is an interesting option that brings some excitement to the MLL.

Given the concerns about football and the diminishing numbers in baseball, as well as the excitement of lacrosse, the powers that be at US Lacrosse, FIL, MLL, NCAA, etc. have to get this right to take this game to the next level.

 

[essorcaltun]

You guys are so on the money it's crazy. There is something, and has been something for decades, lacking in the marketing and promotion of lacrosse. You guys are discussing this on a national/world level, look no further than Syracuse. A premier program for decades, and all things considered, rather dismal crowds at games and minimal coverage and promotion by the media (all forms). SU itself shares in the blame. A gem of a product which has always been treated like a pawn shop ring. Lacrosse is highly marketable, both with respect in getting more people to play it, and getting more people to watch it. It's always been an exciting game and yes, some rules could use some tweaking, but the game is still just superb. Who do we have in the media here that is a lacrosse person? Who gets excited about it and builds some hype? How often do you even hear about lacrosse? There was zero coverage of the World Games at syracuse.com. In Syracuse, there was zero coverage. Think about that for a minute. Lacrosse doesn't get its due in Cuse, and I don't get it.

 

[607FBL]

It's the only huge world event for lacrosse that only takes place every 4 years and the organizing body did a terrible job of getting info out. They talk about wanting to grow the game, well why didn't they report on some of the teams in the lower pools? Get stories on players from each team? Rosters were impossible to find, the only thing I could find was a website that had 30+ players listed for each country and no numbers. How about being a kid growing up in Latvia or the Philippines and being able to read stories on players on the roster in order to connect with them? Learn that even if they were born in the US their ancestors are from different cities and towns in their country. Maybe creating that connection makes more kids willing to pick up a stick and learn the game?

Also, don't for a second believe that this was well-run or organized well. I heard through word-of-mouth from a few participants who said that it was not really a good time, minus the actual playing, and that they didn't enjoy Israel. But of course, Carc and Quint and Anish can't go on ESPN and bash the tournament or the location so they had to say how amazing it was.

Like others, I got all of my info from wikipedia because the FIL website was no help at all. And I completely understand that the tournament was supposed to be in Manchester and was moved late in the process. It would be foolish to think it would run perfectly. But I think that the FIL needs to do better if they really want to grow the game and be a respected organization on a world-wide scale.