In the first week of the Premier Lacrosse League’s 2021 season, the Archers did not play their first game until Saturday, so attackmen Will Manny and Marcus Holman sat in the stands Friday night to watch the Redwoods take on the Cannons in the summer’s opening game.

For the first time since September 2019, there were other fans in the stands with them. Manny and Holman were excited about what they saw and heard.

“I was like, ‘We’re back,’” Manny said. “Hearing how loud the crowd got in the fourth quarter of the Cannons game gave me chills.”

“I took a seat in the crowd, and being a spectator myself, it felt cool and surreal to see my peers compete at the highest level and see the crowd so invested in it,” Holman added.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the Premier Lacrosse League and Major League Lacrosse (which have since merged) had to alter plans for their respective 2020 seasons. Both leagues played in quarantined bubbles — the MLL in Annapolis, Md., from July 18-26 and the PLL in Salt Lake City, Utah, from July 25-Aug. 9.

Because of the quarantined nature of both events, fans were not permitted to attend games, making for unusually less enthusiastic environments. While it wasn’t ideal, it did remind the players of their playing days before becoming pros.

“It was quite the changeup going to the bubble for no fans,” said Chaos attackman Bryce Wasserman, who played in the MLL with the Boston Cannons in 2020. “I didn’t play huge Power 5 lacrosse, though, so the bubble sounded like playing at Wagner College on a Tuesday night, and it’s 32 degrees and snowing.”

For Chaos defensive midfielder Mark Glicini, he missed the fans but also appreciated the callback to his earliest days playing lacrosse.

“It had been years since I played in a quiet stadium,” he said. “It was refreshing because it reminded me of being a young boy, which we can’t lose sight of. It brings you back to your roots.”

In mid-April, the 2021 PLL season schedule was officially released, confirming the returns of both the touring model and having fans in the stands.

From a logistics standpoint, the PLL Championship Series was convenient for the players. While they were away from their families for several weeks, they were able to stay in one place and work on team chemistry every day.

As many Americans are back to commuting to work, PLL players are once again flying or driving to games every weekend. It is something they have been looking forward to.

“I went to Japan twice in one year to teach the sport,” Glicini said. “I don’t mind traveling for the sport I love. If you get caught up in it after a loss, the travel isn’t as great, but if you’re able to occupy it with phone calls like this, getting work done on a plane, it goes by quickly. It’s definitely something I’m used to.”

“I have family and friends I get to see that I haven’t seen in a while,” Manny said. “I missed my Delta miles and getting a free trip at some point. There’s a lot of pros and cons. It feels like we’re back to normal in a way. Still wearing masks on planes doesn’t help, but the travel piece for me makes it feel normal in some fashion. I enjoy being able to enjoy going to different cities.”

In the first five weeks of the season, the league returned to three cities — Foxborough, Mass.; Atlanta, Ga. (the league played at Fifth Third Bank Stadium at Kennesaw State University as opposed to Georgia State Stadium, the venue from 2019); and Baltimore, Md. — and two new destinations on Long Island and in Minneapolis.

“One of the cool things I remember about pro lacrosse is it gives you an opportunity to see new places and see new cities,” Holman said, “[like] going to Minnesota and playing in front of fans that love the sport but don’t get to see the game at a high level with no Division I teams in Minnesota.”

The players have not been allowed to get up close with the fans and participate in the usual postgame autograph signings, but the players are happy just to have the fans back.

“It’s great to have support out there,” Atlas LSM Kyle Pless said. “Fans bring a lot to the game. It’s great to hear and see them back in the stands.”

“I was looking at the kids in the first and second row, pointing at them, dancing with them,” Holman said. “I threw a couple balls in the crowd. I feed off the energy of the crowd and my teammates. I do remember that at Gillette, like, ‘Dang, we’re back.’ I remember this feeling that this is why I love playing professional lacrosse.”

Throughout the season, PLL host and Manager of Content RJ Kaminski has highlighted the fans who have come from far and wide to be present at PLL games. There was one fan who drove 16 hours from Michigan to Foxborough, a family of three that drove 10 hours from Orlando to Atlanta, and another family with three young boys that drove four hours to the games in Minnesota.

For the players, the expression of gratitude from the fans was commonplace. Not knowing what the games would look like after playing inside bubbles last season, the fans have brought back an enthusiasm to the games that has sent a strong message to the players.

“Seeing all these fans in full force in just as good of numbers or better, it shows how much people love this sport and how much of an appetite there is for this sport,” Wasserman said. “They want to see lacrosse stick around, and the best way to show support is by going to the games.”