Frequently Asked Questions
Madison Jr. Boys Lacrosse operates nearly year round - with a break in the Summer. Each year we offer a Fall Clinic run by the HS coaches and players, Winter Training and access to indoor leagues, a Winter Clinic, and of course the Spring Season. We are open to all boys from Madison and Harding Township in grades K-8.
The Spring Season runs from March 1 (or as soon as the snow melts) to the first weekend in June, ending with the Platypus festival for grades 3-7. We have individual teams for grades 2-8 and run a clinic for Kindergarten and 1st Grade. We play in the North Jersey Youth Lacrosse League and the Great 8. We plan to have both A and B team games for grades 6-8. Madison Jr. Lacrosse has been one of the most active and popular youth teams in town for over 30 years. We have had hundreds of players go on to play in HS and college and we have a few at the pro level as well. Madison is one of the first towns to create a rec lacrosse program and has been the model for success across the state.
Q. Who are the coaches? K-1 we have the Madison HS coaches, players, and other volunteers run the clinic. In grades 2-3 we look for parents with prior coaching and lacrosse experience to lead practices and games. Starting in 4th grade we prefer to have non-parent coaches. We have been lucky enough to have several former Madison players return after college to come back and lead our older teams. We try to be consistent from year to year of who coaches your son. This way the coaches know who is on the team, who to work with on certain things, and we are not starting from scratch each spring.
Q. What equipment is needed? K-1 you will receive your choice of a stick or gloves. In grades 2-8 all equipment is needed, helmet, gloves, arm pads, shoulder pads, stick.
Q. If I buy a helmet does the color matter? Yes! Get a maroon one.
Q. My son plays Baseball, Soccer, and Lacrosse, is that OK? Yes! Totally fine. We encourage multi sport athletes. If your son misses a lot of practice it gets hard to know what you are doing in games and may result in less playing time. Players have made it work for years, and most end up preferring Lacrosse anyway..
Q: My son has never played lacrosse before but is in the 5th grade, is it too late? No! We have had several players join us as late as 8th grade and have an impact on the team. All it takes is practice and willingness to try something new.
Q. How is Madison Lacrosse different from other sports in town? Lacrosse is one of the only sports where everyone from your grade is on 1 team (like football). We have kids from KRS, TJS, Central, SVMS, Harding elementary, Delbarton, Peck, Pingry and other schools all on one team. For many, lacrosse is the start of great friendships and each year everyone looks forward to getting back in the field. Its not like soccer, baseball, or basketball where they are broken apart and pitted against each other. We are all one team.
Q My son is now in middle school and goes to private school and they want him to play for the school, can he still play for Madison? Yes! for years we have had several players at private schools that also have a program. That is totally fine and at the older grades we schedule our practices a little later so everyone can do their after school activies and get their homework done before our practice (7:30-9 pm for grades 7/8). We know what school you are talking about and they want you to play for Madison as well (we are friends with the coach).
Q. What is the deal with the MJS school team? We havent really been involved in the past, but prefer your #1 team to be MJL , but if you can make it work with our schedule, go for it.
Q. Where are the games? Our home games are played at the MRC, Madison HS, and Bayley Ellard (2nd grade). We typically have a lot more home games than away games.
Q. Who are the other towns you play against? Summit, Chatham, Mountain Lakes, Morristown, Ridgewood, Livingston, Basking Ridge, Somerset Hills, Maplewood, Milburn, Chester / Mendham, Westfield, New Providence, and others.
Q. What is the typical schedule like? Most teams have 2 practices a week and a home game on Saturday and away games on Sundays. Later in the Spring we play local teams during the week. Teams in 5-8 play in the G8 tournament and grades 3-7 play in the platypus festival in Madison.
Q. Do you have a gear exchange for new players starting out? Yes! We try to equip the newer players with our players old equipment that moved on to high school. We tend to do this each January and February.
Q. What does our registration fee cover? A portion of the fee goes to operation expenses (balls, refs, user fees, tournaments fees, ect) and each player will also receive a pair of game shorts and practice jersey. We also give out lots of shirts, stickers, magnets and other cool things throughout the season.
Q. Do you offer financial aid if needed? Yes! Contact us and we can help.
Q: Any last words? Lacrosse has been the fastest growing sport for years while participation in others has rapidly declined. Morris County is the hotbed of NJ lacrosse and we have access to amazing facilities and play against the top teams in the state. Everyone involved with MJL puts their heart into teaching the sport and passing on a life long love of the game. Madison has a long history of developing amazing players and is looking forward to working with all players at every skill level.
