Faced with the demand, RFH board supplies lax program

It may have seemed like a long time coming, but Rumson-Fair Haven High School will field a boys’ lacrosse team next spring.

Once known as "the little brother of war" by Native Americans and first played at the intercollegiate level in the 1870s, lacrosse has enjoyed rapid growth in the two decades since the first national collegiate championship game 1971. But in the vicinity of Rumson-Fair Haven, the lone outpost in the ’70s and ’80s was the program initiated by the late Dave Warner at Rumson Country Day School.

When in the ’80s the numbers of those players moving on to Rumson-Fair Haven Regional grew, the seeds of that early program, stimulated by the growth of the game on the collegiate level, became the Atlantic Lacrosse Club at the high school.

Founded as an informal club and open to all high school age boys in the vicinity, Atlantic Lacrosse flourished, providing an outlet for boys captivated by the game.

At the same time it became frustrating for the boys because their informal status did not allow them to compete at the interscholastic level.

Thus, while they practiced and trained like other athletes, they were compelled to watch the headlines and the college recruiters go to private schools and high schools largely located out of state or in North Jersey.

With three children in the elementary school in Fair Haven, Terry Sharkey, a former college player at Niagara, and his wife Linda, a University of Maryland grad, together with a collection of former college players in the area, kick-started a youth program in 1997 with a couple of weekend clinics for boys in the fourth to eighth grades. The response to that first effort was so remarkable that the following year, the same group, with the assistance of Red Bank Recreation, organized an intramural program for boys in the elementary schools, and after two years the group formed their first select travel teams to compete with teams of the New Jersey Youth Lacrosse Association.

From 30-plus boys at those first clinics, the program has grown to more than 150 boys in travel and intramural programs and 150 girls in a separate, equally active girls’ youth program.

What really was notable about the growth of the youth program was not just the number of players but the quality of play. Where the travel teams struggled in their first forays against competition, they began challenging and beating teams from some of the feeder programs for established and respected high school teams. However, all the success in the youth program added to the frustration of the players when they moved on to the high school.

Fortunately, the Rumson-Fair Haven Board of Education did not present the immovable object to the irresistible force of a committed group of parents and youngsters led by the Sharkeys.

Recognizing the needs of the students as well as the benefits to be derived, including potential college placement, the Board of Education adopted a resolution adding boys’ lacrosse and girls’ volleyball to its interscholastic sports program at the high school for the 2003-2004 seasons.

With a potential for as many as 60 lacrosse players, in keeping with the school’s policy that every eligible player can make a squad, the board also made provision for both junior varsity and varsity teams.

"As elated as we are by the Board’s action, there are still goals to be scored before the first RFH boys’ lacrosse team takes the field," said Sharkey. "One condition of fielding the teams is that funding be provided by sources outside of the school budget. As much as we would like to be treated like any other existing team, we recognize the recent financial realities of school budgets. Our youth program, Rumson-Fair Haven Youth Lacrosse Association Inc. was organized as a nonprofit, and we are ready to do the fund raising necessary to generate the funds needed to start the high school teams."

In a demonstration of the commitment of the broader lacrosse community to cultivating youth lacrosse, the New Jersey Pride of Major League Lacrosse, a professional league of the world’s best lacrosse players, offered to host a youth clinic before its game yesterday at Commerce Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater. Proceeds of this clinic are to be given to the youth lacrosse program and will be channeled to fund the new high school program.

The school board requires at least half of the funding to be in place by Nov. 30 and the balance by Jan. 31, and while it seems like a short time to raise the money, with an energetic and determined group of enthusiasts of the game known as "the fastest on two feet," the players should keep honing their stick skills for the first game next spring.

According to the Sharkeys, plans exist for additional clinics, social events and sales of lacrosse gear and paraphernalia to generate revenue. They advise that donations made to Rumson Fair Haven Youth Lacrosse Association Inc. are tax deductible and persons wanting more information or wishing to help with any aspect of the program can call them at (732) 747-4970.