Can somebody educate me on WHY THE SWARM ARE NEVER IN THE SPORTS SECTIONS of the newspapers (I can really only speak for the Strib, now - we used to get the PP but canceled soon after ordering because instead of doorstep delivery the carrier liked to throw our paper in our yard, the neighbors yard and finally managed to land one on our two story roof - dude!)
Even if it's just a little blurb in the "Other Sports" section it would be nice to read a little smidge about the games and what if any the coaches and players comments are- couldn't the Swarm.com submit something? Does this cost a lot of money to do? I honestly don't know. But i was really hoping to see a little write up at least in the back of the paper on Sunday- especially with the TV coverage on 45 and was sad to see nothing at all- not even the scores...sniff

Are you there Corporal? It's me Corona
I'm guessing if anyone would know - it would be you!

You can usually find the score in the scoreboard page where they list the standings and transactions but that's about it. The STrib has had more about the Swarm over the years then the PP which is a big surprise considering the Swarm play in St. Paul and the Tribune is a Minneapolis paper. I think the papers are a little lopsided in their coverage of the sports in other cities.

A week or so ago I was looking at the sports page of the Trib. The Wild had won the night before and the Wolves lost. The Wolves had half of the front page and the Wild had a small article going down the side of the page. The Wild lost their next game and ended up with a huge front page photo. Go figure.

You can probably blame the sportswriters for the lack of Swarm coverage. They just don't take lacrosse seriously. At least not the NLL. Eric Perkins has given the Swarm more coverage than anyone else in the Twin Cities.

This is the Greatest Mystery about the Minnesota Swarm, just ask the Swarm themselves, they are just as mystified.

The team has been a steady and increasing draw throughout its history, has made the playoffs for three straight years and the game itself is what I consider to be the most exciting around.

But it is new to the Metro area and the newspapers don't like new, they don't like change, they don't like things they don't understand. That is why many people think these newspapers overall are in such a sorry shape. The Strib has filed bankruptcy and I believe both have had numerous labor and cost cutbacks.

Any of their reporters probably don't want to appear uninformed about a game they don't understand and since ESPN doesn't promote the game or show highlights, since most reporters and sports talk show hosts take their marching orders from Sportscenter to fill space or airwaves, they will only cover what ESPN deems coverable.

Still, Corona, you, me and many others wonder why they can't send a reporter to at least home games to preview and review games, get quotes and offer opinions. Especially for the Pioneer Press, where a reporter could probably walk to the X without exposing her or himself to the elements. I figure the newspapers will say they don't have the resources to do this or that the interest is not there or that not enough Minnesotans are on the team so they won't cover. Even with it being local, they just refuse to cover the team.

I used to be more concerned about this but considering how badly these papers are running themselves into oblivion, complaining about their coverage of the Swarm may soon be a moot point as the newspapers go the way of the dinosaur.

Still, even after all that Corona, I agree with you and still think their coverage stinks and they could do quite a bit better.

Newspapers are dead. Ignore them and forget them. The buggy-whips of this century, imploding as the result of their own hubris.

I agree. They seem to have poeple reporting on the Lynx though. heck, Startribune.com even has a sports section on them. The Lynx have only managed to average an attendance over 8000 ONCE and that's their first season about ten years ago. the Swarm's LOWEST season avereage was 8,373 in 2006. Even though they play twice as many games the Swarm's total attendace numbers are getting close to being equal.

I think the problem is that it's a "newer" sport. None of the people reporting on sports are all that familiar with it. They grew up hearing about baseball, basketball, football, but not about lacrosse.

I think what we need, is to draft a player who majored in journalism and get him a job at the Strib. Beyond that, I doubt anything will really change much unless some new reporter come along that's actually passionate about lacrosse. Or maybe after 5 years of growing popularity they'll finally catch on. We'll see.

Jim Souhan, sportswriter for the Strib used to play lacrosse for the same team that I did, Twin Cities Lacrosse Club. This is now The Minnesota Lakers Lacrosse Club and Ryan Ward has played for them. If anyone would have an interest in giving The Swarm some press I would think it would be him. Alas, he too seems interested only in the "mainstream" sports meaning football, basketball, and baseball. I believe that it has a lot to do with the salary levels and monies invested in teams that draw these sportswriters interest. They can hobnob with the 'big names', both players and owners, and look down on any sport that doesn't fit that criteria. The other day, as I was listening to a discussion relating to the raising of fees for high school sports, I heard Patrick Reusse say that they should get rid of Lacrosse as a sport and concentrate on football, basketball, and baseball! This is the attitude that we are up against!


OG

They actually were in both of the papers on the Sunday after this last game (the 25th). Both papers had a TINY article around 3 sentences talking about the game. The Strib generally has a decent box score with attendance. The Pioneer Press generally just has standings and a line score.

But I agree... the lack of coverage is really crappy.

MAN! I looked and looked and couldn't find anything at all- But please ya'll- this isn't a rant or complaint- merely a proactive question because lacrosse is really starting to be the big deal plus the Strib had a SUPER article about the Swarm players last April - at the END OF THE SEASON - better late than never...

Perhaps its just me, but I would like the players to have actual gainful employment and not get laid off because they had the bad fortune of being employed by people that watched the world go by.

Then i would like to introduce my goaltending son to Mr Reusse. We signed him up for basketball when he was ages 4-6 and realized this is a kid that is not so graceful or coordinated to dribble and run, we signed him for football beginning in 3rd grade and watched him be his own special team because he skirted the players to avoid being hit ( luckily he had a wonderful coach his final year who made him a TE) and he suffers having a sister that can throw a baseball farther than most boys.
So we signed him on for lacrosse- he played goalie for the older boys in our neighborhood because they all play league and used him for target practice - and bought him a "money" stick for his birthday. I'd like to ask Mr Reusse what it's worth to a kid to have a dad go up to him with his son in tow and say, "boy you better pay your goalie 20 bucks for saving your game!", or sitting next to the parents from the opposing teams we play ( i sit "wrong side" so i can watch him better) and hearing their complements. But the best gift of all- watching a kid find his MOJO and finally feeling successful and confident in himself- that's priceless! And we can't wait for YBL to start!!!
Lacrosse not being Mainstream??? How can they say that when it's the Mother of All Sports?!?!!

I have a similar story with my son, Nick. He hadn't gone out for any organized sports when transitioning into middle school. He wanted to go out for one, but the traditional sports were out of range because if you haven't been doing them since age 4, you're screwed. He took up lacrosse, worked very hard, and has excelled to the point that he made high school jr varsity as an 8th grader.

Lacrosse can also be considered a "gateway sport". Nick goes out for HS cross country in the fall to get in shape for lacrosse. Other kids have done similarly, some cross country, some soccer.

Too true- my daughter has always been in track- but opted for lacrosse this year -now that we have it in Farmtown- YAY!! I think the switch is going to benefit her 100 times over - and will help her on the basketball court in the fall.

The Trib has covered the high school lacrosse championships last Spring.

Let's hope they keep up the coverage for this season!

Lol, the sportswrites don't understand the sport...
That just makes me laugh.

Took my 6, 8 and 10 year old kids to their first ever Lacrosse game a couple of weeks ago and they had the rules figured out before the half. At least enough to understand why calls were made and why someone was going to the box.

I think it goes back to the resisting change...

All I can say is I think I've convinced 20 people since the Buffalo game to give a Swarm game a try... we just need a critical mass of fans so it becomes economical to cover the sport.

Why don't the Swarm get any love in the papers here - we have no Tom Borelli, God rest his soul. Until we get one (sportswriter, not just lax writer) like him, the Swarm won't get the love they deserve, except by us!

HRLF

TOO TRUE!!! Any one who has an inkling of what the rules are for soccer, hockey or,basketball can get a pretty basic grasp of what the rules are for lacrosse- that's why i stand by calling it the "MotherSport"!