1. SAY GOODBYE TO
THE WOODEN
LACROSSE STICK
by SCOTT HOUGHTON

2. BREAKING NEWS
A report from BBC News this past weekend has
conveyed the sad news that Hattersleys in the U.K.
will be closing shop, ending 102 of creating some of
the world’s finest wooden lacrosse sticks.
!
Hattersleys makes sticks for several sports and has
been making cricket bats for over 130 years.

3. Tom Becket
Master stick-maker Tom Becket will be leaving his
post after about fifty years of crafting sticks from
American hickory wood. He says his last stick
might be the world’s last as well.

4. But why?
Hattersleys director Matthew Rigby cites the
lower production cost and lightness of plastic stick
as the overwhelming reasons for doing away with
the wooden sticks.

5. Because…
It is extremely wearing on a lacrosse player to carry,
cradle, and block with a wooden stick—metal alloy
and plastic sticks are much lighter with the same if
not much greater structural integrity. In addition,
Becket says most of their sticks are shipped to the
United States anyway, adding to production costs
and giving a sizable advantage to American stick
makers.

6. History of Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a ballgame that comes from the
indigenous cultures of North America. Traditionally,
it was played as a ritualized game that was believed
to be connected to supernatural powers or spirits. For
either curative purposes or to settle tribal disputes. As
many early European settlers such as missionaries
found it to be a violent and unseemly game, there are
not many primary sources that talk about the
strategy or technique.

7. Lacrosse in America
Brian Larney, history.og
The earliest accounts date to the early 17th Century
from French missionaries living amongst the Huron
tribes of the Great Lakes area. However, lacrosse
was widely played among the Eastern Native
Americans, with evidence appearing in the Great
Lakes, Southeast and St. Lawrence valley.

8. Lacrosse Migrate
It is interesting to
measure the diffusion of
lacrosse westward across
the Mississippi River to
areas like Oklahoma
that occurs concurrently
with the forceful removal
of Native Americans
from the Southeast.

9. Future of Lacrosse
Lacrosse is now the fastest growing sport in
the United States, with some 500,000
athletes participating each year.

10. Thanks for Viewing!
To learn more about Scott Houghton, please visit his
website at http://scotthoughton.net/