For most, when the sport of Lacrosse is mentioned in an English context, the first things to spring to mind are often scenes from the 2008 film Wild Child and grass-pitch matches played in the sprawling grounds of all-girls public schools. Yet, in the year 2024, it is possible to say the face of Women’s Lacrosse is changing.
While female participation in lacrosse in the UK is often see to be firmly rooted in the public-school playing pathway, University and Club lacrosse is increasingly becoming a route into the sport for women. Within a university context, Lacrosse is primarily managed and run through the competitive body known as British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS). According to England Lacrosse statistics, since 2009, BUCS registered teams have increased by 130%. This statistic does, of course, not shed light on the participation of state educated women within the sport specifically. We can however draw conclusions that perhaps the wider participation in the sport more generally since 2009 within universities included many state-educated women.
There is a general lack of data specifically about the participation of presently and formerly state-educated women in Lacrosse. England Lacrosse claims that in addition to the sport being ‘very popular in independent girls’ schools in the UK’ it ‘is also played in state schools as part of the school sport offer. It is adaptable, easy to deliver and a very popular addition to the school curriculum for teachers and coaches looking to add something different to their programme.’ Yet, for many state-educated women like me, the appearance of Lacrosse in the PE Curriculum never seemed to materialise.
The possible reasons for this are varied, perhaps it was a lack of desire to introduce what is still seen by many as a Public-School minority sport into the wider sport offer or maybe just a lack of funding more widely within schools for PE resources and equipment. This does not mean, however, there are not state educated Lacrosse players.
At a university level, the sport is often marketed towards beginners making it more accessible to state educated women who may have previously, due to a lack of opportunities at a school level, not had access to the sport. One such student is Daisy Clarkson who, after beginning to play Lacrosse at University, is now president of Royal Holloway Lacrosse Club.
Daisy was drawn to play the sport by its’s beginner friendly nature and found the presence of the club’s dedicated development squad appealing. She said the fact it was an entirely new sport to her was also an appealing factor. I asked how she found running a Lacrosse Club as a state-educated pupil when those with background in the sport commonly come from the privately educated sector. She said that she sometimes feels unqualified in her role as she feels she lacks the background in the sport that others who have had the opportunity to play throughout their lives may have. She did also note, however, that she feels that the fact she started playing at university helps her when recruiting those who may have reservations about having no background in the sport.
She noted as well that playing sport at university has been an integral part of her university experience and wished state schools, including her own, had better resources to implement extra-curricular sport in a similar way to how it is structured for university students at Royal Holloway. She explained how the only sports offered in an extra-curricular capacity for girls at her school were netball and dance which meant those who wished to peruse anything outside of those options were often excluded. She joked as well that, coming from a state school background, her friends at home are often confused by the sport she plays and wonder how she came into a leadership role in the Club.
Daisy said that despite the imposter-syndrome she sometimes feels she is encouraged by the number of state-educated pupils she is surrounded by in the club and by the welcoming attitudes of those who had played before starting their degrees. She discussed that, while she feels sometimes unquailed as a first team player, she feels more confident in her off-pitch committee role as it allows her to utilise skills she has learned in other fields.
While the upwards trajectory of Lacrosse in Universities is undoubtedly positive it does, however, still leave many gaps between how state-educated pupils and their private school counter parts experience it. For example, state-educated pupils who do not attend university will most likely not gain the opportunity to play the sport at all. Furthermore, in the many universities where the sport is not offered, university students may still not have the opportunity to play.
The isolated example of lacrosse perhaps reflects a wider issue surrounding young women and participation in sport. As reported by Women in Sport, 43% of girls who once considered themselves ‘sporty’, disengage from sport following primary school. They reported numerous reasons for this, including the fear of feeling judged by others (68%), lack of confidence (61%), pressures of schoolwork (47%) and not feeling safe outside (43%) to name the few.
With these statistics considered, it is clear that widening the participation of women and specifically state-educated women within sport would be a much needed positive. Furthermore, marketing Lacrosse as an accessible and beginner friendly sport continues to help bridge the gap between men’s and women’s participation in sport.
With this considered, it is clear the progress the sport of Lacrosse has made in the university sector, particularly for those who would not have previously had access to the sport is extremely positive. It does not, however, mean there is not still progress to be made. Yet, with student leaders and governing bodies continuing to widen the sport’s participation, the future of lacrosse for those who are state educated looks bright.