NETANYA, ISRAEL — Israel Lacrosse has announced their 23-man roster for the Men’s National Team which will compete at the 2017 ELF European Box Lacrosse Championships, hosted by Finland at Gatorade Center and Marli Arena in Turku from July 8-15.
The event marks the first-ever edition of the European Box Championships, which will now be held quadrennially. The blue-and-white join 13 other countries and have not been shy in stating their aim of securing the Israeli program’s first Gold Medal. The blue-and-white fell one goal shy of the objective at the 2016 European Field Championships, as England defeated Israel 7-6 in Budapest last summer. In the box, the Israelis are the team to beat in Europe, finishing fourth at the 2015 FIL World Indoor Lacrosse Championships in Syracuse.
Israel’s roster was selected following a set of tryout camps in Syracuse in the Fall and Prague, Czech Republic in April.
While field lacrosse is the more popular version of the sport in Israel, mostly due to a lack of proper box lacrosse facilities, Barak Netanya Lacrosse Club has been holding clinics and practices regularly at Poleg Sportek, and has been fundraising to renovate the Poleg Box with inspiration from LCC Radotín’s box lacrosse facilities on the outskirts of Prague, Czech Republic.
Sat, Jul 8 at 8:30 PM – Israel vs. #10 Turkey (Marli Arena)
Sun, Jul 9 at 2:00 PM – Israel vs. #12 Serbia (Gatorade Center)
Sun, Jul 10 at 5:00 PM – Israel vs. #6 Ireland (Gatorade Center)
**Playoffs begin on July 12th
In conjunction with the Israel Lacrosse Tzedakah Program, each player on Israel’s roster will be competing in honor of a charity of their choosing. The mens national indoor team has chosen to devote their entire fundraising effort towards the “Rock the Box” campaign, which seeks to transform Poleg Sportek’s roller-hockey rink into a modern box lacrosse facility inspired by LCC Radotín.
Head Coach: Brad MacArthur
Assistant Coaches: Jason Crosbie, David Dennenberg
Director of Player Personnel: Chaka Bainbridge
Physiotherapist: Denyse Beaumont
Equipment Manager: Dave Murray
Team Assistant: Mookie Alderman