Lacrosse boom putting squeeze on city arenas
An “explosion” of interest in lacrosse since the Saskatchewan Rush came to town last year highlights the need for dedicated lacrosse space in the city, says the man who co-ordinates “try lacrosse” clinics for the Saskatchewan Lacrosse Association.
“We’re at the point where, after this, we need more facility space. Even this year we’ll put pressure on the facilities that we’re utilizing to be able to accommodate the demand,” said Neil Hruska.
Hruska was at the Shaw Centre Saturday morning, where dozens of kids aged seven to 12 were taking part in free lacrosse clinics.
He said this age group is the fastest growing demographic of lacrosse players in the province and a big contributor to the 30-per-cent bump in the number of people who played organized lacrosse in Saskatchewan last season.
In Saskatoon and surrounding areas, there were enough new players to form roughly 20 new teams, including five in Warman and Martensville.
“It’s been significant growth,” Hruska said.
Pat Roy, one of the parents who’d brought his kids to the Saturday clinic, said his son and daughter wanted to try the sport because of how much fun they’ve had watching Rush games since the team started playing in Saskatoon last January.
“The hype is out there for sure and it’s growing big time so we’re interested,” he said. Both his kids, aged four and 11, already play hockey and are fascinated by the physicality of lacrosse — even if they don’t totally understand the rules yet.
They also love the “pounding tunes” that ring out over SaskTel Centre while the game is on.
“We call it the big frat party in Saskatoon,” Roy said.
Branden Weir, who works at Al Anderson Source for Sports, said demand for lacrosse equipment has been on the rise over the last year, not only from individuals buying sticks, gloves and balls, but also schools purchasing what they need for their students to try the game.
“Even driving to Martensville every once in a while, you watch kids going to school and a lot of them are carrying lacrosse sticks now,” he said.
The minor lacrosse season, which runs from April to July, is played on indoor arenas once the hockey season is over.
“The biggest drawback for us is rinks keeping ice in for long periods where we can’t access city facilities,” Hruska said, adding he’d love to see Saskatoon build a dedicated lacrosse arena that doesn’t have to be flooded for more than half the year.
“Between lacrosse as a user group as well as probably other community groups, there would be a huge demand for a facility like that.”