It’s one stellar goal after another. From a behind-the-back shot to a quick release, Czechia men’s box lacrosse knew how to score goals. They’ve found a way to make it look simple, when in reality, the national team created its playing style from the ground up.
Czechia men’s lacrosse developed its own version of box lacrosse with its own schemes and plays. For many years, the style has allowed Czechia to finish in the top 10 in various box lacrosse tournaments.
From creating their own communication system to mind melding on highlight reel goals, Czechia wants to continue playing its brand of box lacrosse.
It was on full display in Czechia’s 23-4 win over Jamaica, giving the European nation confidence for the next nine days.
“It’s a good game for a start,” Czechia’s Stepan Friedl said. “We have a lot of material to learn from, improve our mistakes and be better for the next game, but it was good.”
Without necessarily following the influence of top countries like the United States or Canada, Czechia has the advantage of playing the game exactly how it chooses to. The basic elements of the game are still similar, especially with technique, but it’s otherwise a unique challenge to prepare for.
“It’s tough to read and to understand exactly how to defend,” Czechia’s assistant general manager Pavel Semerak said.
Semerak said for a lot of opponents, understanding Czechia’s signals is the hardest code to learn. Just like their playing style, it’s entirely unique.
“We have some basics, but we create our own version,” Semerak said. “There’s 1A, 2A, 3A and so on. So that’s how we try to play.”
Just like how opponents have to specifically plan for Czechia, the team also makes changes every game. Head coach Petr Poupe and his staff implement a different strategy to adapt to each individual opponent.
When Czechia played Jamaica, the team expected toughness and athleticism, which meant Czechia wanted to avoid contact as much as possible.
“Sometimes we need to be more adaptable, but it works,” Friedl said.
To combat the physicality and also give his team as much confidence as possible, Poupe emphasized having as many attackers as possible to score goals. The hope was to give Czechia the chance to showcase who they are, but also provide the entire team a chance to generate offense.
Czechia had nine players score against Jamaica, including two players scoring at least four goals. Friedl led the game with five goals and two assists to lead his team.
“I think it’s a bit of a highlight to Czech lacrosse,” Friedl said. “We like to be more creative, maybe because we don’t have too many big guys, but creativity is our weapon.”
Czechia plays Chinese Taipei in its second game of pool play, and yet again, it’ll make a brand new plan for its next opponent. Chinese Taipei will do the same, now having to face the unique style the Czechs present on the turf.
