Lacrosse; Canada's pastime a great tradition

Box lacrosse is a modern version of the game that was invented in Canada during the 1920s and 1930s. The roots of indoor lacrosse are obscure, but its invention has been attributed to one Paddy Brennan, a field lacrosse player and referee from Montreal, who, being annoyed by the constant slowing of play from balls going out of bounds in the field game, experimented with indoor games at the Mount Royal Arena during the early 1920s.

The form was also adopted as the primary version of the game played on Native American reservations in the US and Canada by Iroquois and other Native peoples. It is the only sport in which the American indigenous people are sanctioned to compete internationally, participating as the Iroquois Nationals.

Like all sports, the players have gotten bigger, and faster over the years, but unlike the other sports the game hasn't veered much from it's original roots. 

Through the years, unlike the other sports, the National Lacrosse League (NLL), and the Major Indoor Lacrosse League (MILL) previously, have been able to boast having the greatest players on the face of the earth.  Players like John Grant Sr. and Jr., Gary and Paul Gait, Jim Wasson, John Tavaras, Shawn Evans, Tom Schreiber, and many, many more.  Fans always got the absolute best value for their dollar.

As the game grows, the league grows, and it transitions from part time (with players holding other jobs) to full time, it looks to be bright sunny days ahead for the league, players, and fans. 

With the correct people at the helm marketing, getting advertising dollars, plus multimedia and television deals, the sky is the limit to how big this game can grow. 

The only thing that concerns me is with growth, will it forget it's roots?  Will it pay homage to all who came before that paved the way for such growth?

Time will tell, but if history is any indication, the game is in good hands with people who genuinely care about the past, as much as the future. 

We all will be the benefactors of the fastest and greatest game on two feet for years to come.