The Iroquois are the originators of the modern day game of Lacrosse. Shrouded in time, Lacrosse was played among the Confederacy long before the coming of the Europeans to the shores of North America. It can be said that when the Europeans first came to America, Lacrosse was one of the most popular and widespread games played across the continent and with many variations. The long stick game played internationally today belongs to the Iroquois.
The Iroquois, also known as the Six Nations, represent the indigenous people that originally occupied extensive lands in what is now New York State, southern Quebec and Ontario, Canada. Stretching from the Hudson River and Mohawk Valley through to the northern and central Great Lakes region, a confederacy was formed and it brought together the Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Mohawk and Seneca tribes into the first League of Nations in North America. The Tuscarora joined the Confederacy in the mid-1700s to become the sixth member nation.
The Iroquois name for themselves is 'Haudenosaunee' which means "People of the Longhouse". The longhouse symbolizes a way of life where the Six Nations Confederacy live under one common law, think with one mind and speak with one voice. That law is called "Gien na sah nah gonah" the Great Law of Peace. The alliance of the Haudenosaunee created the first United Nations in this land, thus we maintain the oldest, continuously operating form of government in North America. We have lived in northeastern North America for thousands of years. The people of the Six Nations currently residing in New York and Canada remain sovereign and independent. The Iroquois people identify themselves as citizens of their respective nation and travel internationally under their own passports.
Historical evidence indicates that the Iroquois had a significant role in the development of democratic principles in North America and the ideas and concepts of the Iroquois form of government influenced the thinking of Benjamin Franklin, who was instrumental in the development of the American Constitution. All the nations of the confederacy speak dialects of the Iroquois language. The people of the Confederacy belong to any one of the nine family clans (Turtle, Bear, Wolf, Deer, Beaver, Hawk, Heron, Snipe or Eel) of the Haudenosaunee and share many common beliefs and traditions under the Great Law. In 1987, the Congress of the United States unanimously passes Concurrent Resolution S.76, recognizing the contribution of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) to the democratic principles of the Constitution of the United States.
Today, approximately 70,000 plus Iroquois people reside in eighteen communities in the states of New York, Wisconsin and Oklahoma, and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
# |
Name |
Position |
Hand |
Nation |
1 |
Brown, Frank |
Mid/att |
Right |
Seneca |
2 |
Delisle, Hank |
Att |
Left |
Mohawk |
3 |
Edwards, Orris |
Att |
Left |
Onondaga |
4 |
Oakes, Seth |
Att |
Right |
Mohawk |
5 |
Tarbell, Ky |
Att |
Right |
Mohawk |
6 |
Patterson, Anthony |
D mid |
Right |
Tuscarora |
7 |
Powless, Johnny |
Mid f/o |
Left |
Mohawk |
8 |
Powless, Quinn |
Mid |
Right |
Mohawk |
9 |
Staats, Randall |
Mid |
Right |
Mohawk |
10 |
Bomberry, Brendan |
Mid |
Right |
Mohawk |
11 |
Bomberry, Jake |
Mid |
Right |
Mohawk |
12 |
Green, Wenster |
D Mid |
Left |
Mohawk |
13 |
Miller, Zach |
Mid F/O |
Left |
Seneca |
14 |
Thompson, Lyle |
Mid F/O |
Right |
Onondaga |
15 |
Harris, Vaugh |
Mid F/O |
Left |
Cayuga |
16 |
George, Chris |
Def |
Left |
Mohawk |
17 |
Isaacs, Kyle |
LSM |
Left |
Cayuga |
18 |
Jimerson, Jesse |
LSM |
Left |
Cayuga |
19 |
Lafonte, Tyler |
Def |
Left |
Hiawatha |
20 |
Sunday, Korin |
Def |
Right |
Mohawk |
21 |
Thomas, Oakley |
Def |
Left |
Mohawk |
22 |
Adams, Trey |
Goalie |
Right |
Mohawk |
23 |
Hill, Warren |
Goalie |
Left |
Mohawk |
24 |
Day, Dalston |
Attack |
Left |
Mohawk |
25 |
Williams, Zach |
Mid |
Left |
Seneca |
26 |
Bomberry, Tyson |
Def |
Left |
Oneida |
27 |
Johnson, Kobi |
Goalie |
Right |
Mohawk |
2007-2008 Benefactors |
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Louise Macaulay
Graphic Design
With over 25 years experience, Louise will solve all your creative requirements.
Louise, designed our Brochures and more, thank you
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For the Iroquois, competing internationally is not solely restricted to the lacrosse field. Trips to the World Games can mean that we have to get our team or teams virtually anywhere in the world.
In 1998 Iroquois Nationals Program took three teams to the World Games, the Masters, Juniors, and Men's Premier Team. The delegation, including staff, totaled over 90 people traveling to the International venue in Baltimore, Maryland. Less than one year later, 1999, we sent a team to the ILF Under-19 World Games in Adelaide, Australia. Both of these trips were huge financial undertakings, below is an idea of our budget requirements for both national and international travel:
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After 26 years of grass roots effort the Iroquois Nationals have had a positive and dramatic impact on our youth, the international community, and the game of lacrosse. Individually, youth from each of the 18 Iroquois communities in New York, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Ontario, and Quebec have participated in team tryouts with increasing numbers and enthusiasm.
Our constant and consistent friends of the Iroquois Nationals, who have supported our efforts through the years, get our special thanks for their generous support of our program. They have helped the Iroquois Nationals to build generations of youth with the values and ethics of our forefathers, and make it possible for our program to field international teams.
We thank BRINE Lacrosse for outfitting our teams consistently since we rejoined the International competition in 1983. In 1998, we gained the support of NIKE Inc., a relationship that was recently expanded to include uniforms, apparel and footwear. The quality products of both companies have enhanced our image off the field as well as on. We wear these brand names with pride and we honor a reciprocal loyalty that is unique in lacrosse. We are still looking to obtain a corporate sponsor to support our long-range development and athletic, cultural, and educational programs at the community level.
We believe the quality of our players will allow us to reach the medal round of this year's tournament. It is refreshing that young men from all of the nations of the Haudenosaunee are committing to the rigorous try-out process. Our coaches have the daunting task of selecting twenty-three players to the premier travel team. Our young people are excited and supportive of our lacrosse program. The Iroquois Nationals organizations benefits immeasurably from parental and community commitment to minor and junior feeder programs across all of our six nation territories.
The Iroquois Nationals seek your financial support. It is our hope that we can count on you to help us continue to progress on the world stage. We have always had our sights set on the Gold Medal; this year's games once again afford the Iroquois the opportunity to meet the challenges of international competition.
