COVER
Last week a meeting of the minds in Washington took place at the first ever WSYSA Summit!The Pulse! No. #9COVER STORY & LATEST HEADLINES:"WSYSA SUMMIT MEETING! WPS WAS THERE!"WSYSA Summit! Submitted by our staff writer~Futsal
SATURDAY AM (Club Select)
Since this was the first Summit of its kind, a little disorganization seemed appropriate. WSYSA stated that the meeting was not to tell members what WSYSA wanted but insteady they wanted to hear from the membership.
Several issues got tossed out and about. This included calendar, standardized program definitions and PDL.
Most of this meeting centered around defining what Club Select was. One club suggested to restricting Club Select to players within their Association only. However it was pointed out that that definition would not work in most areas of the state.
Some clubs would rather not define themselves as their goal is to allow teams to play at their appropriate level whether that be Disrict or Premier. They felt that labeling would restrict their programs. Many rural clubs cannot field a program if they relied only on players from their Association.
There was a visible divide between the larger clubs and smaller clubs.
The discussion also confused some in the group who felt that Select was a method of selecting players.
Several times the discussion drifted off to the PDL. There was an overall feeling that the group (probably not the PDL clubs) wanted WSYSA to become more involved in the PDL. Questions such as how teams are selected ... the ever changing rules for being accepted ... were brought up.
Saturday PM (Recreational)
After lunch WSYSA took a vote by hand on whether the group wanted to continue with Club Select or move onto Rec. The group decided to move on to recreational.
Recreational issues included player retention ... especially at the older age groups.
This became more of a sharing of issues and solutions across the state. Some ideas included:
1. Drop In Spring Leagues
2. Coed Leagues
A special presentation by the Diversity Committee was held. They presented a new effort by WSYSA to become more inclusive with its soccer. Several areas were selected for pilot programs.
SUNDAY
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This was probably the most productive of the two days. There was suppose to be separate breakout between DOC's and Administrators, but it was decided to keep everyone in one room.
Many issues were tossed out and four were targeted for group discussion.
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CLUB PASS
It was suggested that the Club Pass be tested within the PDL. Movement between teams would be allowed within the club. The committee that discussed this asked that the procedures be documented so they could be presented to WSYSA.
One quesetion I had but I guess did not ask ... If a club has both PDL and non PDL teams in the same age group, will they be able to move a player from a non-PDL team to a PDL team?
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DISCIPLINE
This group looked at the newly proposed Discipline rule and made a few suggested modifications.
1. On Appeal, suspension will be postponed until the hearing
2. The person carded has the right to face their accuser (Referee)
Logistically, #2 might have to be via conference call.
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PLAYER CONTRACT
A suggestion was made about a player contract to prevent players from jumping clubs without paying all their fees.
This defined two parts ... Obligation on behalf of the player & parent ... Obligation on behalf of the club.
It was suggested that there be some type of release clause and that all clubs have a similar looking contract.
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CALENDAR (PDL Only)
The Calendar Breakout was more defining a year for PDL clubs. It appeared that only two non PDL clubs were involved in this breakout group. Recreational, District and WSPL calendars will have to be considered separately.
The calendar which will be proposed looks like this.
TRYOUTS - After July 5th
LPT's - Early Aug
Fall League - Sept - Nov (U11-14 & BU15+)
Spring League - Feb - Apr (U11-14 & GU15+)
Championship Cup - Apr - May (U11-14 & GU15+)
Championship Cup - May (BU15+ weekday & Sunday games)
Other events
Commissioners Cup - Dec
Challenge Cup - Dec
Commissioners & Challenge Cup to be condensed to 3 weekends. Preliminary, Quarter & Semi, Finals.
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OVERVIEW
Being the first of its kind, overall I think the meeting served some purpose. There were some ideas that were brought out and overtime we will know what type of consideration WSYSA will actually give them.
The group said they wish to hold another meeting later this winter.
Great Job Futsal in sharing with us a participants perspective!! :mrgreen:
Below in is the WSYSA coverage of the Summit from their website!
Soccer Summit 2007 Helps Shape the Future for Washington Youth SoccerFEDERAL WAY, WASHINGTON (Wednesday, August 29) – On August 25 and 26, members of the Washington State Youth Soccer Association (WSYSA) community gathered at the Sea-Tac Hilton for Soccer Summit 2007. This two day event, hosted by WSYSA, provided the perfect forum for association presidents, board members, coaches, coaching directors, administrators, and referees from across the state to openly discuss the current soccer landscape and collaborate on ideas that will help shape the future of the sport in Washington.
Kicking off the weekend, WSYSA President Doug Andreassen established the purpose of the Summit; “WSYSA is here to listen, listen, and listen some more. We are looking at our structure and programs from top to bottom, nothing is immune. Change is overdue and we want your input.” He further stated, “We must return the common sense to soccer.”
Mediated by various WSYSA Board members, day one focused on key issues related to Select Clubs and Recreational Soccer. From the lively discussion early on, it became clear that the significant topics for those in attendance were the PDL (Premier Development League) and CYL (Commissioners Youth League). Extensive conversation continued as distinct differences in club and association infrastructure ultimately lead to the realization that many of these groups faced the same challenges and issues. As discussion continued, the lack of a solid understanding of league definitions and communication across all organizational levels became central themes of the day.
With 80% of WSYSA’s participants falling under the recreational umbrella, the recreational meeting in the afternoon was well attended with the majority of the guests remaining from the morning discussion. Similar to challenges faced around the country, WSYSA associations discussed their frustrations with recreational player retention, opportunities for play at the older levels, player passes, coaching education for the novice coach, the extensive amount of rules and field limitations.
As the day continued, members were also treated to a special power-point presentation by WSYSA’s new Diversity Committee. Citing staggering statistics, Committee members touched on the need for an inclusive multi-cultural youth soccer program and the steps being taken by WSYSA to fulfill the promise of making soccer “the game for all kids”.
Lead by influential community members, the Diversity Committee is currently reviewing ways to best integrate players of different cultures and ethnicities into the WSYSA organization. This complex issue not only brings into account WSYSA’s infrastructure from the club level up, but also addresses the challenges caused by the state’s extremely diverse population, geographical limitations, and financial accessibility. With their goal of starting small in order to create a successful model that can be administered state-wide, the Diversity Committee will initially focus on reaching out to the large Hispanic population and then expand their efforts to incorporate other ethnic groups in the youth soccer system. With complete WSYSA backing and support, the Diversity Committee’s promotional endeavors will soon have a constant presence within the state’s communication outlets including the web site and Play On! publication.
To end the first day, WSYSA hosted an invitation only working dinner that included state Board members, committee chairs, and association presidents. The discussion led by WSYSA President Doug Andreassen and Executive Director Todd McGann was a result of discussions that occurred at the Association Presidents session during Soccer Fair, in April 2007, asking for more communication with the BOD. It was at dinner that WSYSA leadership took the opportunity to reinforce the weekend’s theme of “listen, listen, and listen some more,” and encouraged discussion and answered numerous questions from the membership.
On the second day of the Summit, WSYSA welcomed attendees from all across the state, including Directors of Coaching; all of whom wanted to address concerns at the Premier Club level. Dave Schumacher, WSYSA Director of Coaching, led the open forum by stating, “the game is changing; coaching is becoming professional. Coaches and administrators need to work in concert for the betterment of the game.”
With that, the group covered an array of issues including player movement, the PDL, USSF’s new Academy Program, club passes, the soccer calendar, judicial and appeal challenges, the Olympic Development Program (ODP), and the State Cup. Due to the multitude of ideas that were generated during the initial discussion, WSYSA separated the participants into break-out sessions to address the four priority topics as decided by the group – Disciplinary/Judicial, Player/Parent Contracts, the Soccer Calendar, and Club Player Passes.
Each group was allocated an hour to collaborate and provide WSYSA with suggestions on how to improve issues relating to their topic and provide potential action items for consideration. Thanks to the extensive soccer backgrounds and experience of the attendees, the subsequent presentations reflected positive and sweeping ideas for change in an effort to strengthen the development of youth soccer throughout Washington.
As the Soccer Summit concluded, the WSYSA Board Members, motivated by the ideas that stemmed from the weekend, convened an emergency Board meeting. As a result, the WSYSA Board unanimously approved the Club Pass proposal presented by the task force. By approving the Club Pass proposal, WSYSA recognized the shared importance of player mobility and development and therefore will adopt this pilot program, effective immediately for the PDL Program’s 07-08 soccer season. Complete details will be released to the membership about the Club Pass in the upcoming weeks.
“Soccer Summit 2007 was a huge success,” exclaimed WSYSA Executive Director Todd McGann. “Our goal at the state level was to listen to those most affected and open up the lines of communication at all levels. The great ideas that came out of this weekend will be the basis for helping WSYSA shape the future of youth soccer here at home and ultimately improve our programs for these young athletes regardless of the level they play at.”
Comprehensive details and discussion notes from Soccer Summit 2007 will be posted to the WSYSA web site at
www.wsysa.com shortly. Based on its inaugural success, the next Soccer Summit is currently being planned for this winter. Event details will be announced as they become available.
For additional information, please contact Todd McGann at Washington State Youth Soccer Association, 253-476-2237 x.105.
It's good to look at the Summit from both sides of the podium. Over all Dragon thinks the Summit was a great idea, and hopes they continue to have more in the future :mrgreen:
HEADLINES!"Historic Ground Breaking at WPFC fields!"Today was the big day for the club down by the river. We have a few pictures to share of the big rigs down on river road. Wish there was more of a ceremony (like Greg with a shovel LOL), but this is all we could bring for you at this point. This should be a big deal as the WPFC Club starts the process of making some very nice turf/lighted fields. It shows they are dedicated to excellence not only now but in the future. Dragon salutes the whole group of people that were involved in making this all happen...there may be some detractors to this move who feel only the boys will get the best use of it, but for right now those are the naysayers. Dragon will give the Riverroad peep's the benefit of the doubt, and trust it will used for the betterment of the boys and girls equally and hopefully also the betterment of the whole surrounding soccer community. Good job on your club's vision, and starting a place where hopefully a lot of young dreams can come true
The big rigs are out by the river getting ready to break some ground
As the construction and progress of turf fields continue, we will be bringing you more photo's and updatesTeam Highlights- It was a "Go Big Red Weekend"!
The gals from "Big Red" show off their Blue kits, along with the gold bling!Moments after the game a certain mother of a tall, very talented player (#5) received a phone call from Dragon. It was a short and sweet congratulations, but very heart felt. Dragon knew it was a big deal for the team, coach, and of course the players that have been with the team since U11.
Big Red's 1st tournament victory, and they did it playing up in U14!! You can almost see the pride in the coachs (the sexy russian) face!
NWN Red did well in the tournament as a whole, and only lost one close game. After getting revenge for the loss they faced the Mighty Arsenal team! Was it destiny that they face this undefeated team? It sure seemed so. The U14 Sno-Ho team was not only undefeated, they were also unscored upon during the whole tournament! Well Sno-Ho's scoreless run lasted about 45 seconds as the awesome gals of Big Red marched down the field after stringing together 5-7 passes right from the kick-off! #18 Sis hit a left footed cross into middle where #13 Gabby dropped it back to #3 Natalie who made a sweet touch shot up and over the keeper into back left side of net from about 18yds out! Later Gabby #13 made another great run down left side beating several players and hit a hard shot that appeared to be a cross; the force of her kick made it screwball and the keeper was fooled as the ball sneaked in near post! The U14 Sno-Ho team put up a good rally but could not muster a goal in the first half. The 2nd half was more of the same, with Big Red continuing to apply pressure on the goal and putting on a passing clinic. With about 10 minutes left to go, NWN Red had a corner kick which resulted in a volly shot; The goalie saved the shot by punching it out, But low and behold though the ball went right to Sis #18 and she hit another volley in the back of the net from about 10yds out front. Final Score:
NWN 3-0!
Great job Big Red on your 1st tournament win, may you have many more in the future! Also kudo's must go out to the parents of the 93 Sno-Ho team, several of them were very complimentary to the gals during the awards ceremony! :mrgreen:
LEAGUE LOONEYNESS!(this week we will look out to upcoming league games)"League News!"PASTDid not have any past weeks to cover this week, so I will post last weekends tournaments for your viewing pleasure. This week Dragon is just covering a game or two at a couple age groups. Next week this section should be greatly expanded!
Kitsap Kickoff
August 31st –September 3, 2007
http://www.sksoccer.com Starfire Labor Day Cup 2007
August 31, September 1-3, 2007
http://www.starfiresports.com Puyallup Valley Kickoff
August 31-September 3, 2007
http://biysc.com Skagit Labor Day Kick
September 1-3, 2007
www.skagitselectsoccer.orgLabor Day Kickoff Jamboree
September 1-2, 2007
http://www.lwysa.org 2007 U6 - U8 Tracy Whitney Jamboree
September 29-30, 2007
http://www.federalwaysoccer.comTo see how your favorite teams did in these fine tournaments, please look to our Recap thread:
http://www.washingtonpremiersoccer.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=6178If there is not enough blah blah blah there for you, then you only have
yourselfs to blame :lol:
FUTUREThis is one of the best weekends in the year! The first week of league play! Be it PDL, or District 6...there are kids out there having a blast and CP's dying to cheer them on! Hope to highlight a few "big games" each week and even make a few predictions along the way! Each week send me a "reason why" your game is the GOTW in a Private Message before Monday night is over, and Dragon will consider highlighting the match here in the Dragon News! :mrgreen:
PDL-U11 Girls:
Eagles vs
Harbor: Gonna go with Syngy's suggestion this week. It looks to be a great match up fo sho! With Harbor getting so close at SF this past weekend, going to have to go with the gals in Green!
Dragon say- Harbor 3-1U12 Girls:
Das Uberteam vs
Lil' Red: (yes it is true, a new nickname has been born LOL). This is one of the most anticipated match ups of the year! It will be a slug fest equal only to the State Cup finals it self! Never has there been more hoopla surrounding a first league game in the last decade of youth soccer!!! (ok, might be overdoingitabit lol). Seriously though, this is a great match fo sho! Dragon would not miss this one for the world and D is sure Mufasa wouldn't either :mrgreen: Gonna be a close one, but gotta go Uber with my pick:
Dragon say- Das Uber's 1-0U13 Girls:
X-Empire Batman vs
X-Empire Batgirl: Holy bologna Batdragon, it looks like the slugfest of 60acres this weekend! All D has to say it watch out! It is bragging rights for the "Batbard" household. Holy Bat$#@! is another expression that comes to mind LOL. Think this will be a close one. Batmans team is going to have to prove they belong, and the Batgals are looking to prove they deserve to move up!
Dragon says- Holy Bat$#!@ :lol: :lol: :lol:
That's it for now. Did not have a lot of time to prepare for this section this week, will try and do better next issue :mrgreen:
CRAZY PARENT WATCH:"Shout out to da newbies"Lots of new posters this week! As always lets give a shout out to all the new ones that have taken the time to post at least one post since joining recently:
This week Dragon has a few new peep's to point out!
Soccer 123
The Flash
Man Utd
Soccer Spaz 17
PlayOn
IToeKickAs always it is great to see so many new members here on the Pulse of Washington soccer, even better to see new young superstars posting!! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
To the rest of you newbies, don't be scared jump in! The waters fine!
"WPS Paparazzi"Let's take a look at what our "under cover" photographer brings us this week!
Coach Care Bear laughs out loud in glee as he realizes he has beaten Coach Batman to the punch in signing the WPS Ball LOL"The Weekly, Can't win for losin' award"And this weeks winner is..............
Drumroll..........................
NeverAsleep!Over 2300 hits for old insomniac's post on Guest playing! Way to stir up the old blah blah blah...now go take a nap! :lol:
OTHER NEWS AND GOSSIP AND TIDBITS:"COACHS CORNER!"This weeks topic for the coach is
"Training & running up scores"
This was a question I received:
How about some insight from the coach on speed/agility training, corver training, fitness in general and what ages should this start? or should the coach incorporate their own fitness into practice.
I know that a lot of CP's send their kids to speed/agility training and teams have corver training. Just think that some might be wasting money.
I’m going to start this by saying at u10 and below your children should probably be doing enough playing around outside that they should naturally be in good enough shape to play in those youth games. That’s just my opinion. Also I think its important to start looking into fitness training as their season’s start to get longer and longer (I.E. the premier season which feels like year round)
Speed/Agility: No matter how fast or agile you are it is important for every player to work on those parts of their game. We all hear the term speed kills, and that’s something that is a lot of natural ability combined with hard work in developing muscles and proper running technique. As a premier coach at just about every level I enjoy bringing in a speed and agility coach a few times a year just to give the kids an idea on what the proper techniques they should be doing. Working on agility will also help greatly as they go through growing spurts, and also help those players stay away from serious injuries.
Fitness: The hardest thing about fitness is every coach has different beliefs and there is no one set way to do things. Personally if I were getting ready for a season for the first 3 weeks I will do nothing but long distance to build up their endurance, then after that switch to short distance fitness for the next 3 weeks now that their lungs are ready to handle the heavy burden. Then for about 2 weeks after that I focus on strength development. After all that hopefully they are in good enough shape to really compete in just about any game. The next step is to keep that level. I find it important at least once a week to give them a session of fairly hard fitness that incorporates all three aspects: long distance, short distance, and strength. They should be working hard enough in the practices themselves to help keep their endurance up also. Like I said this is just how I personally do things, and each coach has their own way.
Corver training: I would say this is a great thing for any player to do. Anything that gets a player touches on a ball can’t be a bad thing right? Along with this I would encourage players to juggle daily that alone is a HUGE help in development. As far as the corver training goes it is also up to debate, some coaches like to use it all some coaches like to use some of it some like to you none of it. I have seen good development from kids who started this training at a young age though.
As far as wasting money: if your daughter/son is a little thicker build or is injury prone I think sending them to a speed and agility trainer is a great idea. A lot of injuries can be prevented just by working on their agility and strengthening those joints.
BONUS TIME: I was also asked by someone my thoughts on lopsided scores since that seems to be a hot topic on the forum right now.
I read a lot of the comments and agree with little pieces all over the place. It’s one of the toughest things for a coach to deal with when their team is completely dominating another team. Either way it seems like they will get looked at poorly. One of the comments I liked was “Part of growing as an individual is not only learning to lose with grace but also winning with grace”, made by BK. This is true, the coach is nothing more than a teacher to these kids. Whatever attitude the coach has the players will start to develop. This is something you as parents must look at when choosing a team, make sure you are putting your kids in an environment that will not only help their soccer development, but also their personal development. Another great comment on this topic was by Skagit coach “I've never understood why people say playing keep away makes a weaker opponent look like fools”. You make a great point here. If your getting killed by a team and they start playing keep away and you can tell they are intentionally not trying to score on you, are you going to get upset with them? Or are you going to just simply watch them and be impressed by their great ball control and movement? If you get upset then you truly don’t understand soccer at all.
Now different tactics a coach can use to help keep the score lower would be 1. Pulling players: personally I’m not a fan of this. It has nothing to do with the other team, but couldn’t you use this time to work on other things with your team rather than pulling players? 2. Put a pass restriction before shooting: perhaps 10 passes in a row, and if you lose it you have to start over. 3. Scoring only on crosses with headers. Those are three easy ideas that many coaches already implement. The key is when you start it, I personally like to start those rules if you are up by about 5 goals and there is still over a half to go. Then you know the game could get really ugly. You can also combine things like 10 passes and only header goals. If your team does this then that’s not disrespectful to the other team, you are just simply working on things that your team may need to work on.
Wow! Another great edition of coachs corner! Thank you SOOO MUCH for all you do! :mrgreen: (please forward any questions for the "coach" to Dragon. He/She would love to answer your questions!)
"VIEW FROM BEHIND THE WHISTLE"Myths of the Game and other Nonsense Part 3
Over the next few weeks in Dragon's newsletter, I’d like to help clear up some common myths in soccer. My intent is to help increase an understanding of the game and the basis of some referee decisions.
As with most myths, they develop from a small grain of fact that becomes corrupt or embellished over time. Many of the myths have been around for many decades and appear to be impossible to kill.
I never cease to be amazed at how some of these myths persist among very experienced players and coaches who should know better. Unfortunately, some are even found and reinforced by referees who should also know better!
Ref, you gotta protect the keeper!
The referee’s most important job is the safety of ALL players. Attackers must be penalized for careless or reckless play against goalkeepers. Likewise, goalkeepers must be penalized for careless or reckless play against attackers.
There was a time in the history of football when goalkeepers were the target of deadly attacks by the onrushing attackers. There was no violation for attempting to dislodge the ball from the keeper or for ramming the keeper with the ball into the goal!
I’m sure the short life expectancy of goalkeepers led to the introduction of modifications to the Laws to provide some degree of reasonable protection. Today, the protection comes principally because the ball is effectively unplayable when in the hands of the goalkeeper.
Recognizing the danger of the position, referees strongly penalized charges and attacks on goalkeepers, often giving the benefit of the doubt to the keeper. However, in recent years, the modern game at the professional level has seen spectacular abuses of this “protection” by goalkeepers making reckless attacks on opponents.
The LOTG extend no additional protections to the goalkeeper beyond not permitting a challenge for a ball in their possession or interference with releasing the ball from possession. In youth soccer, State and local associations sometimes also extend further protection in the goal or penalty areas.
stay tuned next week for more..........
Great job Ref! We all love your insight and wisdom into the beautiful game! :mrgreen:
Now for a brand new section!!!!!!!!!First ever edition of "Dear Eggy"Dear Eggy,
My DD is having a hard time accepting the fact that she rides the pine more than she plays.
What are things we can do to get rid of splinters?
Signed ,
Bench sitters momDear Bench sitters mom,
Sometimes players have to realize that their skills are still developing and that they might not be at the same level as everyone else on the team. Bench sitter should continue to work on their foot skills at home/outside of team practice time. If they do that I think they will see their bench warming time reduce. If that doesn't take out the player who gets the playing time at your position.Dear Eggy:
Why do people grumble so much? I think life should be about smiles and hugs.Dear Smiles and Hugs,
I think that people grumble because they are not happy with their own life. If people would give more hugs and smiles life around the pitch would be a nicer place to be. I am sending a smile and hugs your way---pass it on.Thanks Eggy for being our local "dear abby"...Keep those questions coming to Eggy (send them in a PM), we will print the best 2 or 3 each week! :mrgreen:
"SCREAMING MAD!" (
? wtf?)
WHAT THE F*&^()$???!!! OK SO I AM NOT ALWAYS MAD AS PEOPLE MAKE ME OUT TO BE BUT MY LAST NERVES SOME OF YOU GETON SO WHAT YOUR STEP OUT THERE AND NOW IT IS EVEN MORE IMPORTANT THAT YOU MIND YOUR P&QS WITH THE SEASON AT HAND I WILL BE ON THE LOOK OUT FOR YOU BOZOS SO DONT STEP ON MY SHADOW OR I WILL REMOVE THE SUNSHINE FROM YOUR WORLD BELIEVE IT!
(next week I will know someone will tick me off and I will lay it on the line)
Thanks SM! Don't have a clue what da heck you are talking about! :lol:
THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GO MMMMMMMMMMMMMM?"Remember the Coachs Interviews??"Those were really fun to do and read for everyone. Dragon still has the old quesitons that were used before. If any coachs would like to participate we would LOVE to hear your answers :mrgreen:
Below are the questions, just copy and paste them in a PM and place your answers in there as well and send them to Dragon....
Dragon will starting running Coachs interviews in next weeks newsletter :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
Questions:
DRAGON: Why did you decide to start coaching kid's soccer?
DRAGON: What do you do for a living outside of coaching?
DRAGON: Who do you think is easier to coach, boys or girls?
DRAGON: What is your feelings on the WPS site? (if you have ever read it)?
DRAGON: If you have read it, has anything you have ever read had an influence on what you have done as a coach?
DRAGON: What do you think your team's chances are this year?
DRAGON: What are your personal goals as a coach?
DRAGON: Besides yourself (LOL), who is the best coach you have seen?
DRAGON: How long do you feel a coach should coach a specific team?
DRAGON: What are your feelings on players "playing time"?
DRAGON: If you could not coach with your team tomorrow, name one team you would not mind taking over if you had your pick of any?
DRAGON: What is some thing you would like Dragon to tell the whole world about you?
Look forward to a few coachs to volunteer out there to make this section one of the most looked forward to in the newsletter! :mrgreen: Not too pooped this week, just happy I got this done before midnight :lol: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
See ya'll next week, as always
"play with Heart & Fire, play with Heart & Fire always" :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
