This is an okay stick. The traditional pocket is somewhat stiff, and new players may be frustrated playing with it until the pocket breaks in. The sidewall hight is average, the stick is at most slightly off-set. The stick head itself may be fine, but the leather pocket will make catching hard until the pocket is formed. (Kind of like playing with a new baseball glove that has not been broken in yet)I would lean more towards a stick with a synthetic like the Myssy or Response(deBeer)or the Vibe (Brine) would work as well. Another sugestion would be to try a stick from deBeer with a Pro-trakker pocket. This pocket is mostly synthetic, but has two real leather runners on the sides (and two synthetic runners down the center). This allows you to tighten the outer runners to create a channel for the ball. Play around with some different types and see what you like. 3 stars