Team USA took the round robin battle with Team Canada at the U20 World Lacrosse Championships by a score of 7-6 on Saturday. The victory extends Team USA’s winning streak at the event, which now stretches back to 2012.
It was an incredible first day at the event, which included a dramatic 15-14 overtime victory for Team Australia over the Haudenosaunee Nationals. Check out the full recaps of all the games here.
If you missed our previous coverage of the tournament, check it out here.
But here at LCD, we try to look beyond the box score and get into what really happened between the lines. With that in mind, lets get into seven takeaways from the first matchup of the two lacrosse heavyweights.
1. There Are No Takeaways
The first takeaway is that there really are no takeaways. It’s so obvious that both teams are holding their cards close to the chest in the round robin game. Both teams used pretty much the same set throughout the game, with little to no special wrinkles thrown in. That’s to be expected this early.
The challenge now is for both staffs to manage their gameplan throughout the tournament. There is a balance between needing to practice new things but not wanting to put anything on film for the other team to study before the finals. That dance begins now, but expect the finals to look much different.
2. International Rules are Awful
Nobody wants to see a clear take a minute and a half. Moving along.
3. Both Teams were Sloppy
This game was characterized by incredibly sloppy stickwork from both sides, with several balls being chucked into the stands with little to no interference from the defence. I attribute this mostly to nerves and to teenagers traveling across the world to a foreign country. I expect this to improve immediately, but both staffs will be unhappy with their execution.
4. Who Can Stretch the Defence for Team USA?
If there is one thing we can expect to see, it’s that Team Canada will continue to pack it in tight on defence. It became pretty clear that Canada might struggle to contain Owen Duffy on the perimeter, among others. The first few goals for Team USA came on Duffy isolation plays or on attackmen getting switched onto short sticks and scoring unassisted.
Team Canada also threw in some zone, which further emphasized the pack-it-in mentality. The Canadians also showed shades of the Buffalo Bandits, demonstrating a willingness to get in shooting lanes with sticks if not bodies.
Team USA fell for the trap too many times, trying to force passes into the crease. This is basically the exact thing Canada is trying to avoid.
The one thing they didn’t do is hit shots from the outside. Last year’s version of Team USA featured Graham Bundy, who solves the pack-it-in by himself. Who can be the field stretcher for this year’s Team USA?
They need someone to score from outside, or it’s going to be a long road against this Canadian defence.
5. The Officiating is Incredibly Tight
Look, I didn’t like the officiating either. There were a number of borderline calls and ones that weren’t so borderline. Some of this will improve as the tournament continues, refs are people too.
But I also know that intimidation is a big part of these early tournament games and the teams will have to manage it the rest of the way. The officials set an extremely tight line for any extra contact, and whether or not you agree with it doesn’t change the fact that you can’t spend the whole game in the penalty box.
Both teams got their licks in, now they have to manage the refs.
6. Canada Needs to Find Something in 6v6
The Canadians had a very well executed game plan that relied on keeping possession for long stretches. This is the way you have to play in the international game.
But Canada couldn’t find much in the 6v6 sets, with their goals coming on transition plays, power plays, and broken loose balls off settled sets.
When the risk level goes down, so too does the speed, both of the feet and the ball. Canada fell into this trap at times, and needs to dodge harder to get to the net. There were several times I thought they could have tried to bend their dodges towards the net, but instead pulled it out. This is probably the right decision most of the time, but you have to find goals somewhere. The worst part of the international rules is that it disincentives players to try and make big plays.
David Peterkin looked good for Canada and was likely the best initiator. Justin Tavares looked comfortable for Canada as well and had a good look to tie near the end of the game. Gryyson Thompson and Luke Robinson also had nice dodges from up top. They will rely on these guys to continue to draw slides and get to the goal. Something has to give in the half-field.
7. Canada’s Specialists Will Keep Them In It
The absolute best news for Canadian fans was the play of FOGO Jack Oldman and goaltender Grayson Manning. The faceoff battle was won by the USA by a tally of 8-7, but considering the pedigree of the American guys it’s a huge win for Oldman and the rest of the faceoff unit.
In the goal, Manning finished with 9 saves but they were massive. He made a few doorstop saves in transition that kept the Canadians in it. None of the American goals were weak in my opinion, Manning made them earn everything.
Team USA’s netminders were great too, with Pat Jamieson making two huge fourth quarter saves to preserve the victory.
But Manning and Oldman stood out for me. They give Canada a real chance of pulling the upset down the line.
Stay tuned for more coverage all week long, thanks for reading!