Today there are many disciplines of the game of lacrosse that provide opportunities to compete and improve a player’s game. The primary disciplines are Field, Box, and now Sixes. Sixes will hopefully be voted in as an Olympic Medal sport for the LA28 Olympics by the Olympic Committee before October 17th, 2023.
But, I want to discuss Box Lacrosse. The 5v5 (6v6 counting the Goalie) indoor game that relies on athleticism, physicality, and high level stickwork.
Box lacrosse is good for field lacrosse development because it helps players develop a number of important skills, including:
Stick skills: Box lacrosse players need to have excellent stick skills to handle the ball in tight spaces and make quick decisions. This translates well to field lacrosse, where players also need to be able to handle the ball under pressure and make quick decisions.
Shooting: Box players need to be able to shoot accurately, from close and long range. The goals are smaller in box lacrosse than in field lacrosse. This skill also transfers well to field lacrosse, where players need to be able to score goals from all over the field.
Transition game: Box lacrosse is a fast-paced game, with constant transition from offense to defense and vice versa. This helps players develop their transition game, which is essential for success in field lacrosse.
Conditioning: Box lacrosse is a physically demanding game, and players need to be in top condition in order to compete. This conditioning translates to field lacrosse, where players need to be able to play at a high level for an entire game.
In addition to these specific skills, box lacrosse also helps players develop a number of other important qualities, such as:
Agility: Box lacrosse players need to be agile in order to dodge defenders and move around the floor. This agility translates well to field lacrosse, where players need to be able to move quickly and change direction to beat defenders.
Decision-making: Box lacrosse players need to be able to make quick decisions on the fly. This decision-making ability transfers well to field lacrosse, where players need to be able to read the field and make decisions quickly to create scoring opportunities or stop scoring opportunities.
Mental toughness: Box lacrosse is a physical and demanding game, and players need to have mental toughness in order to compete. This mental toughness transfers well to field lacrosse, where players need to be able to stay focused and composed under pressure.
Box lacrosse and field lacrosse are closely related but the primary areas of improvement that the box game can give a field lacrosse player are Athleticism, Stick Skills, and Decision-Making.
At the end of the day, the only freedom anyone has are the decisions they make. Box lacrosse gives players 2-3 times the amount of opportunities to make decisions, maybe even more than that. The more decisions a player makes, the more mistakes that player will make. The more mistakes a player makes, the more a player will learn.
Play box lacrosse.
Make decisions.
Learn from the mistakes.
Get better.