Positions and Field Set-ups

One of the first things that you should be familiar with when you begin learning about lacrosse is the field you will be playing on and the possible positions.

Fields

The men and women's fields are very similar, with a few differences in length and width. Below you will see a picture of the men's field.

The men's playing field has defined boundaries at 110x60 yards, in which the players may use and spread out in. The field is divided into thirds, with two attack/defense areas and one central area considered the wing area. The lines that separate each of these sections is called a restraining line and will be used to help referees determine whether a team is offsides. To avoid the offsides foul, there must aways be at least three offensive players within their team's attack zone (near the opponents goal) and at least four defensive players in their team's defense zone (near their own goal). Within the wing area is the midline, where face-offs begin play at the beginning of a half or after a goal has been awarded to one of the teams. On each ends of the field, there is a circle that surrounds the goal. This is called the crease and acts as a protective area for the goalkeeper to keep him from being checked or pushed while within the sphere. Defensive players may go inside to crease to pick up a loose ball and so may an opponent on the offense as long as he does not interfere with the goalie.

The women's lacrosse field is slightly larger than the men's, with the maximum dimensions being 120x70 yards. The field is divided with restraining lines, end lines, and side lines the same as the men's field, however there are a few added lines. There are two fans that are extended from the goal line, one eight meters out and one 12 meters out. The eight meter fan has five dashes withing the fan and two floating dashes that are used to position players for penalty shots. The crease in the women's game also has a different function. The lines of the crease do not simply apply to the feet of a field player, there is an imaginary plane that cannot be broken by another players crosse, feet, or any parts of their body. The crosse cannot contain more than one person, which most of the time is the goalie. This means neither an offensive player nor a defensive player may enter to play a loose ball like in the men's game. Another difference you may see when comparing the two fields is a circle drawn around the center of the field. Since a woman's draw to start a new half or after a point is different from the men's faceoff, other players on both teams must stay on the outside of the circle until the ball comes into play.

Positions

The different types of positions for lacrosse are best paralleled with those of soccer: offensive, midfield, defense, and goalie. However, one fundamental difference between the positions in the two sports is how they are placed on the field. In lacrosse, there are players from each team located throughout the entire field. The offensive players (or attack) will mark up with defensive players from the other team, midfielders (or middies) will match up with other middles, and defensive with attack. Below shows the women's positions and where they begin on the field.

GK= Goalkeeper, the last line of defense whose main goal is to stop shots. Must have very quick relexes, good throwing abilities and courage to stop the ball at any cost.

Defense

P= Point, in charge of guarding first home position. Must be good at stick checking and intercepting passes.

CP= Cover Point, in charge of guarding second home position. Must be able to receive clears from the goalie and have good footwork.

3M= Third Man, in charge of guarding third home position. Must be good at clearing, good footwork and be fast.

Midfield

LA/RA= Left/Right Attack Wing, in charge of transitions from defense to offense. Must have speed and endurance, always looking to run or pass the ball up the field to the offensive players.

LD/RD= Left/Right Defensive Wing, in charge of guarding attack wings. Must have speed and endurance to avoid the beginning of fast breaks.

C= Center, in charge of taking the draws at the beginning of halves or after a point is scored by either team. Must play both offense and defense and needs speed and endurance.

Offense

3H= Third Home, also in charge of transitions from defense to offense. Must be able to feed the ball to open players for shots on goal and fill in for wings.

2H= Second Home, considered the playmaker. Must be able to shoot well from every angle and distance from the goal.

1H= First Home, in charge of most of the scoring since located in front of the goal. Must be able to cut to the goal for a feed or cut away from the goal to make room for another player.