Box lacrosse 1998, the NLL entered into the Canadian market for the first time with the Ontario Raiders. Although 5 of the league's 9 teams are based in American cities, more than two-thirds of the players are Canadian. During play, a team consists of six players: a goaltender and five "runners". A runner is any non-goalkeeper position player, including forwards, transition players, and defenders. Runners usually specialize in one of these roles and substitute off the field when the ball moves from one end to the other. When the sport originated teams played with six runners. However, in 1953 the sixth runner,
Lacrosse protect against concussions. Women goalies wear a helmet, gloves, and chest protector. Lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball, commonly played indoors or outdoors. Players use the head of the lacrosse stick to carry, pass, catch, and shoot the ball into the goal. The sport is governed by the Federation of International Lacrosse; the most prominent international competition is the World Lacrosse Championship, which has been dominated by the United States. The sport has four versions that have different sticks, fields, rules and equipment: field lacrosse, women's lacrosse, box lacrosse and intercrosse.