TEL AVIV, ISRAEL — Tel Aviv LC announced midfielders Matthew Flapan and Sacha Stout, as well as defenseman Jonathan Rathauser will be franchise players for the opening season of the Israel Premier Lacrosse League.
“I’m very proud to have three core players who I had the opportunity to coach in Denver anchoring our roster,” said Tel Aviv LC head coach Eric Wolf. “We expect the nucleus of our team will be made up of Tel Aviv-based athletes, so we should have a strong familiarity from the start of the summer.”
Flapan, who resides year-round in Tel Aviv, spent several years serving in the Israel Defense Forces and working on a farm on the outskirts of Ramla before joining Israel Lacrosse full-time. The 25-year-old right-hander scored two goals for Israel at the 2014 World Championships in Denver.
Rathauser, who graduated from McGill University in Montreal, has been a key member of the Israel men’s national team since 2012, when he competed in the European Championships as a developmental player. At least year’s World Championship, Rathauser was selected for the blue-and-white’s men’s Championship team, starting eight games on defense in Denver.
Stout, a medical student who hails from Manchester, England, is spending the summer on a placement at Tel Aviv Medical Center. The scrappy midfielder has been a member of the Israel men’s national team since 2012, competing at both the European Championships and last summer’s World Games as a developmental player.
Tel Aviv opens their 2015 schedule on Wednesday, July 8th, when they host Barak Netanya LC at Nave Golan Sports Center in Yafo.