Celebrations in sport have been under the microscope lately with the advancement of social media and accessibility for the masses through outlets such as YouTube, Vine, or Twitter. Kids today have access to a vault of years of lacrosse videos including lacrosse goal celebrations compiled and at their fingertips. Some of these are completely acceptable and used in a positive manner to gain momentum- after all lacrosse is a game of runs. On the other hand, if an entire team participates in a choreographed celebration while maintaining a big lead, it is definitely excessive and should be deemed as unsportsmanlike and repercussions should follow.
This is going to become a hot-button issue in the next couple of years, as the sport continues to grow and gain attention at the national level. More games are being televised each year, which means more youngins are able to watch their favorite team and players. Just as much as young kids love learning from watching them play, in my opinion they enjoy watching and learning their celebrations even more so. And believe me, celebrating a goal or a momentous event can change the game completely for a team. When done properly, the sideline is more engaged in the game and gets fired up in crucial situations, especially true if that team is on the road. This allows for teams to go on runs and catch fire. Lacrosse is a very emotional sport and players should be able to celebrate accordingly. There is a fine line, however because celebrations can be just as demoralizing for an opponent as they can be uplifting for a team.
The question lies within what basis to distinguish when the celebration becomes excessive? Score? Amount of players involved? Using equipment as a part of the celebration? Are we going to resort to the level that the NFL has- where celebrations must be limited to one person involved and no use of props?
Pre-planned celebrations like the canoe, jousting with sticks, bench pressing, the sniper (the list could go on and on) are completely uncalled for in my opinion and should be deemed unsportsmanlike in nature. The problem does not lie within the number of players involved, or the amount of time a celebration takes. Players should celebrate their successes on the field with each other, don’t get me wrong I am not anti-celebrating, because there are certain moments that should be celebrated. When someone who doesn’t typically score nets one, when someone nets their first goal of the season, scoring the go ahead or game winner- definitely merits celebration. But the question comes back to, what is the appropriate amount of celebrating?
Personally, I think that someone scoring and then stoically fist pumping, touching gloves or bumping chests with a teammate is more powerful for gaining momentum than an excessive celebration. But then again, this is coming from a guy who spent the majority of his playing career trying to keep the ball out of the back of the net rather than placing it there. What are your thoughts about the progression of celebrations in lacrosse over the past few years?
In case you haven’t seen the absurdities of some of the lacrosse celebrations taking place today, check them out here:
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