New recruiting showcase, the ‘MATCH,’ provides D2-D3 focus with different format
By Chris Goldberg
Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/20/13
It was a recruiting showcase with a different focus and a new format.
Heritage Lacrosse unveiled the MATCH today at The Hill School as 170 boys’ players from the East Coast received instruction and played both 7v7 and full field games before more than 20 Division II and Division III coaches.
Pat & Eamon Coughlin of Fordham Prep (N.Y.)
The event was strictly focused on the D2-3 recruiting scene and players were given free 1-year memberships to ReQRuitme, a technology that allows players to develop their own mobile profile that college coaches can access through a QR code on a smartphone or tablet. Coaches were given programs that had the player QR codes, which provide immediate access to their personal profile.
The event kicked off with specialized instruction as Philadelphia Wings GM and noted Canadian indoor guru Johnny Mouradian taught Canadian techniques on shooting and finishing while defenders got instruction from former pro player and Shipley School assistant coach Dave Stilley and Conestoga head coach Brian Samson (three-time PA state champion).
Coaches mostly from Division III schools such as Williams, Bowdoin and St. Michael’s attended the event.
“It is a great opportunity, especially with the 7-on-7 and full-field games,” said Fordham Prep (N.Y.) 2015 attackman Eamon Coughlin. “You got to see what every kid has; some are good on short fields and some on long fields. It definitely was a great showcase. I thought I played well; I had a couple goals and a couple assists.”
Added Coughlin’s twin brother Pat, a defenseman/LSM: “I heard about it from a website and from other people and D3 is where I want to end up. I found the 7-on-7 to be good. I liked the short fields.
“It was a fun day; I enjoyed the exposure. I liked my explosiveness in terms of my clears and I see I need to work on my footwork on the long field.”
Pat Coughlin also likes how the ReQRuitme membership will help him in the Division III recruiting picture. Players can upload their highlight video and fill out a comprehensive profile that includes statistics, educational honors and all key personal information. Players can then send out their links to anyone that has the QR code, which also can be placed on a business card, t-shirt or through an e-mail.
“I like how it uses bar codes,” Coughlin said. “I feel like next summer coaches will be looking at the bar codes. They can see all of my profile; it’s better than printing out large pages. Even during games they can watch videos or see all the player’s accomplishments. It’s a cool process.”
“It gives me a complete profile and even recommendations from coaches, my video, my grades, my stats, my honors,” added Eamon Coughlin. “You can put a lot in!
“And it was not difficult to do. If you are talking to a coach or anyone else, you can just send the profile and it’s all right there. It does make it so much easier to send off to a coach instead of going on a website and spending massive amounts of money. It’s much easier.”
Conestoga’s Luke Taicher
ReQRuitme co-founder Ed Gershman said the technology is ideal for the coaches and players to make the recruiting process simplified. He said feedback, especially from parents, was positive.
“The coaches love it,” he said. “For them, anything that saves time and gives them instant access to a potential recruit’s info is really what they are looking for.
“They can circle the guys they want and scan them and go back later on and have all that information. They don’t have to chase the kids – they just go out there and all information is right there.”
Other player comments:
From Conestoga (PA) 2015 midfielder Luke Taicher: “I was really pleased with the turnout. I am looking to play anywhere, D1, D2 or D3; I am keeping my options open. I like this one; it was more 7-on-7 than just straight games. The instruction was really helpful and I thought a cool part. There was a little of everything. It was different than the normal showcase and I liked that a lot!”
From Henderson (PA) 2015 attackman Luke Pennington:“I was looking for extra playing time and exposure. I really liked the 12-minute games; there were so many back-to-back. It was fun; you didn’t know who you were playing with. It was something new.”
Henderson’s Luke Pennington
From Walt Whitman (N.Y.) 2017 midfielder Dalton Chea: “I think it went really well. My shots were good, and I cut well; just my legs got tired at the end. I liked the scrimmaging. (Against the older players), the game was a lot faster and the hitting was harder.”
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