JUST, RESPECTFULLY, GIVE US THE FACTS; ALL THE FACTS
by Pierre Filion pierrefilion@bell.net
Lacrosse Canada’s April rah-rah rosy newsletter sent out to different members illustrates the type of relationship that Lacrosse Canada engages in with its members. It exemplifies the type of information that will circulate within the membership and mostly the relevant and useful information that will not circulate.
Make no mistake; this is not a ‘’oops moment’’; this is a planned execution to keep the members happy, joyfully twirling sticks but without the factful and credible information that would help them evaluate their leaders and their decisions.
Let’s have a look at two elements of the rah-rah April newsletter.
2026 NDTP (National team development program) WAS A HUGE SUCCESS
‘’The 2026 NDTP western Identification camp in Regina brought together top athletes from across western Canada for and exciting and competitive weekend development’’.
Lacrosse Canada is in the process of identifying field lacrosse athletes who could eventually play on the National Teams (men and women) in future world championships or in credible international competitions. The latest ID camp was held in Regina and, we are told, was a HUGE SUCCESS.
This is all great until one asks a simple question; how many athletes participated in the ID camp and which provinces did they emerge from? This information was not part of the rah-rah rosy newsletter and somehow is a relevant piece of information that the members would need to receive if they are invited to believe that the camp was a huge success.
So, THINK LACROSSE searched and found the information as nowhere was it to be found in the rah-rah rosy newsletter nor on Lacrosse Canada’s website. Surprise, surprise!
There were 103 participants within the ID camp who each paid 200$ to register to the western camp; 20,600$ revenue for the weekend for Lacrosse Canada. 64 participants were males and 39 females. 8 were from BC, 20 from Alberta, 16 from Manitoba and 59 from Saskatchewan (67%). BC and Alberta, somehow recognized as lacrosse powerhouses, together sent 28 players (27.1%) to the ID camp.
The 64 males were from different age categories; 24 were U15, 30 were U17 and 10 were U19; as for the 39 females 9 were from U15, 18 from U17 and 12 from U19.
Armed with this information the members can now ask the legitimate question; is this a huge success or is this a two-province success as Saskatchewan and Manitoba sent 75 of the 103 participants (72.8%).
They can also ask why this clear and objective information was not relayed as fact within the rah-rah rosy newsletter or on Lacrosse Canada’s website. Asking the question is somehow answering the said question.
They can also ask if all this energy with U15 and U17 boys and girls is really what Lacrosse Canada should be doing at this time. Imagine the U15 boys and girls involved in the NDTP will not play for the U20 National Team before five or six years. We have all heard of planning ahead but this might be a little bit out of touch in order to win a gold medal in a marginal game.
Lacrosse Canada does not deal in facts; it deals in creating emotions and pride and in insuring that the members believe that the National Teams’ program is a huge success. Lacrosse Canada omits the facts that might not gallantly serve its pathway to High Performance. We all remember how Lacrosse Canada totally ignored the 2025 international box clinic fiasco in Oshawa; nowhere was a report to be found as it would not have served Lacrosse Canada’s reputation and its pathway towards High Performance.
Just give us the facts and we’ll determine if it was a huge success or a good two province clinic well organized in Regina. Give us the facts and we’ll ask ourselves if this is all worth it.
THE CAROL PATTERSON CUP AS A STANDALONE BOX LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP FOR U22 WOMEN
Hey, great piece of information!
A national box lacrosse championship for U22 women.
Let’s just note the irony in this.
Carol Patterson, everyone knows, was and is totally committed to women’s field lacrosse both in Canada and in the United States. She was an outstanding player, then a coach, promotor and administrator of the field game and has built a network of positive field lacrosse contacts ‘’all over the place’’. To associate her name to box lacrosse is quite ironic and, simply said, sad!
The championship, Lacrosse Canada tells us, will bring together 6 provincial teams (Ontario, BC, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and First Nations). Five provinces will not be there (PEI, NFLD, NB, Saskatchewan and Québec). Yet ten provinces participated in the latest Canada Games with provincial women’s box lacrosse teams within the range of the 2026 U22 competition. What has happened to the provincial investments related to the Canada Games for women’s box lacrosse? What has happened to the follow-up to the Canada Games?
What we know is that there will be about 120 women in Whitby for the standalone championship this summer?
What we don’t know, and rah-rah to you if you know, is the number of females who play box lacrosse in Canada. Your guess is as good as mine!
Lacrosse Canada only reports, once and very discretely, the number of register players who play box lacrosse but issues not publicly the number of males or females who play the game.
120 women will show up in Whitby; that we know. What we don’t know is the number of women who play the game and who make this competition a legitimate competition in view of the total number of registered players. Hopefully there are thousands of women who play box lacrosse and who thus make the Carol Patterson Cup a legitimate competition.
But we don’t know that and Lacrosse Canada is not telling us that. And we wonder why.
Lacrosse Canada does not deal in facts! It deals in a rah-rah approach to information issuing what serves its reputation and image. And it quietly does not refer to factual elements which could help the members appreciate the larger picture and have a better understanding of what is really going on!
The dates of Board meetings have disappeared from the website! This is not a ‘’my bad moment’’, it’s a voluntary decision not to inform the members. It’s a strategy to decrease their ability to evaluate their leaders. It clearly is not an indication of transparency, trust or respect!
The minutes of Board meetings do appear on the website but there is never a notice of their appearances. One has to navigate daily to, all of a sudden, find them. This is a voluntary decision not to make it easy on the members.
The schedule of Lacrosse Canada’s committee meetings does not appear on the website. They are: the governance and ethics committee; the hiring committee; the revenue generating committee; the LA 2028 advisory group; the finance and audit committee; the members’ council; and on and on and on. As if those committees did not even exist; as if the members did not even need to know they exist, or when they meet and what they discuss and vote on!
Just give us the facts; all the relevant facts. Stop toying with the members. Treat them as adults. Keep them in the loop because, at the end of the day, Lacrosse Canada is their Association.
LC Created their NDTP to "compete" with CLL and as a "deterrent" telling players if they play CLL they will be "disqualified" from their NDTP. However, there is nothing official. Put I have emails forwarded to me from parent directly from Terry Rayner. Of course he did not direct parents/players to any policy (there is none) just simple empty threats telling players/parents (their "Member") what they can and can't do in their spare time. Also, lets not ignore the fact they already know who will be on the U19/20 National Team roster well before hand - top Canadians playing NCAA DI. Happy to provide receipts.
ReplyDeleteHow many NSOs post dates of regular board meetings? What would change if you knew the dates of regular board meetings?
ReplyDeleteThey don’t. Dates change when Board Members’ schedules change, and this Board just went through an overhaul. They’re likely trying to schedule them amongst the new Board and that still doesn’t necessitate posting the dates. Pierre is starting to reach with these articles.
DeleteOf course. Starting to reach seems like an understatement. All of his articles have numerous glaring errors or complete misrepresentations of how any organization functions.
DeleteSounds like he hit a never. No limit on characters in the comments. Why didin't you point out "numerous glaring errors or complete misrepresentations of how any organization functions."?
DeleteSome of us don't have endless time to comb through these rambling posts and pick out the errors and misrepresentations. For starters, can you find another NSO that publishes the BOD meeting schedule (which are closed meetings, not open to random observers).
DeleteThanks for the comments. Thanks also for reading our posts. I take pride in getting my facts correct but if ever there are significant mistakes don't hesitate to point them out and I will correct them.
DeleteThe main point of the post was about the need to communicate clear and whole facts. Lacrosse Canada pledges ''to earn trust through transparency, honesty, clarity and consistent communication''. In years past it posted a calendar of activities, deadlines, payments and meetings. This calendar does not appear any more on the website so the members don't know if and when the Board of Directors (or other committees) meet. However they have access to the minutes of Board meetings and can evaluate, from the minutes, the work that the Board is doing and the directions they are giving to the game.
Still haven't addressed the question of why you care if a meeting that you aren't eligible to attend is on a public calendar. How does that contribute to trust and transparency? And you don't show much interest in the actual truth, just your version of it...
DeleteThanks for your comment my anonymous friend.
DeleteLacrosse Canada pledges to be transparent and open; I expect to see a calendar of events, similar to the one that was published in years past. It indicated notices of meetings of every LC committee, important dates for the members to know and to abide by and also the dates of national and international championships. This information was useful as it helped the members know what was happening, who was meeting and when. Members appreciate knowing more than knowing less. The schedule of meetings also helps the provinces who would want an item discussed at a Board meeting to know when that meeting was coming up. But the main element of my initial post was that the members should receive as much information as possible. The date of upcoming meetings is just an element in the quest for transparency at Lacrosse Canada.
Frankly, those aren't good reasons to post meeting dates on a calendar, and likely why you won't find the information on any PSO or NSO calendar of events. The PTSOs would know when a board meeting is scheduled and would have a process in place to bring items forward. They shouldn't be relying on a calendar on a public website to get their information. And your point about notifying people about board meeting minutes, I can't imagine cluttering the website, email, newsfeed with that type of notification. The 3 people that want the BOD minutes can hunt for them.
DeleteAnd if we are talking about other oddities. You don't seem to mention in your rant the fact that the Carol Patterson Cup was a name decided on in 2013 (assuming the info below is correct). Sounds like a fact that should've been shared by you in the article, instead of making it seem like current leadership was making poor choices. You are trying to say share all the facts, but aren't really living up to that yourself...
Thank you Pierre for your comments. Carol Patterson is a wonderful person and I respect her greatly but she was not involved with the development of girls' or women's box lacrosse in Canada. I am in the process of finishing a book about the history of girl's and women's box lacrosse in Canada between 1970-1977 and there are a dozen or more female box lacrosse players who are worthy of having a national box tournament named in their honour. There are several women who have been inducted into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame who were all excellent box lacrosse players.....any one of them would have been an excellent choice. However, Carol Patterson originally had this U22 box tournament named after her starting in 2013 and 2014. The tournament didn't start up again until 2023 -2025. Since someone already made the decision in 2013 to name the national box tournament in honour of Carol, I assume that the current tournament organizers didn't want to rename the U22 tournament after someone different. Besides, it would have been disrespectful to Carol.
ReplyDelete