PowerPoint Presentation

							Traveling – how much and how far?


                                                                                  Travel Soccer
How much? Half of your games are in Berlin (one or two a week). All
 your practices are in Berlin (usually two a week). That means 75% of
 the time, you’ll be bringing your child to soccer in Berlin.

How far?
Normally: It changes every year, depending on the composition of your
  league and whether the “faraway” team is home or away. Most typical
  teams are Wethersfield, Plainville, Glastonbury, West Hartford,
  Newington, Avon, Farmington, Simsbury, Cromwell, Manchester.
Occasionally: Berlin is at the southern end of the District League it’s in.
  So, Middletown is the furthest South, Easthampton is the furthest East,
  Canton is the furthest West, and Enfield is the furthest North. But,
  those games are on the weekend and there’s usually only one of them
  each season.
Tournaments: Each team usually goes to one or two tournaments a
  season. Unless a team is very competitive, they are in-state, with the
  above towns being the most common places.
State Cup: If your team enters the state cup, you can play anywhere in
  the state, because it is a random draw. But, once again, it’s half home
  and half away. Also, it is a single elimination tournament, with one
  game a weekend.
Car-pooling: Team spirit develops very quickly, both among the players
  and the parents. Any time a player needs a ride, there are usually 5 or
  more parents ready and willing to give that player a ride, whether it be a
  practice or a game. Car-pooling is common, usually based on local
  neighborhoods. There are usually several small groups of parents that
  do this - setting-up a schedule to take turns bringing the players and
  picking them up.

 Cost
 Besides the normal BYSA registration, there are additional fees for
 Travel Soccer, due to additional costs incurred. There is a second BYSA
 fee to cover extra uniform costs, the higher costs of referees (3 instead of
 1, and more experience), and additional league fees (State Cup,
 insurance, hired training, etc.). This cost is variable. Also, there will be a
 team fee if your team does a tournament. Tournament fees are
 approximately $25 per player per tournament, depending on the number
 of players on your team.                                                         Berlin Youth Soccer
Any more questions? Just call your BYSA Travel Supervisor, Mario
Boninsegna 860-829-9898 email: bonimba@comcast.net or your BYSA
President John Riley at 828-6465
                                                                                      Association
               Travel Soccer – What is it?                                      FUN
It’s an opportunity for the soccer player who wants to be the best

      Travel Soccer
they can by getting additional training and playing at a higher level of
competition both in practice and games. But most importantly it is
to have FUN playing soccer.
                                                                                   The one thing that is true for all players, is that they are playing soccer
                                                                                because it’s FUN. When it’s not FUN, they will find something else to do
                                                                                (and they should, regardless of what activity they’re doing). They may be
                                                                                playing because they enjoy the sport or it may be because all their
Try-outs: Each year in June, we have Travel Try-outs. If you are                friends are doing it. But, regardless of the reason, they are doing it
selected for the team, you will be on the team for the upcoming Fall and        because it’s FUN.
following Spring. In order to attend Try-outs, you must be registered with         Some players have found Travel more FUN than Recreation. A few
BYSA. It is best to attend both try-outs. You must attend at least one try-     reasons we have heard: “Rec is too easy.” “It makes me a better
out in order to be selected for the team. Sometimes in the Spring when a        player.” “In Travel, my teammates are as good as I am.” “We travel to
team is short of players, a Spring supplemental Try-out is held to select       different places to play.” “I’m playing for Berlin.” “My friends are playing
additional players.                                                             Travel.” “I get to play for the State Championship.”
Higher Level of Competition                                                        For some players, Travel isn’t more fun. Those players should
   Travel is for the players that enjoy competition. There are tryouts - only   continue to play in the recreation program. If a player tries Travel and it
the best of each age group make the team. These players train with and          doesn’t work for them, they simply move back to recreation and have fun.
against each other. They play the best players from other towns. They           A number of players have done this.
have to practice and play harder.
   One question you may ask, is it the right level of competition? The          Playing Time
answer is “YES”. The Central/North Central Districts provide travel             BYSA encourages coaches to play everyone. How much each player
leagues at varying levels of ability. In order to maintain competitive          plays varies for a number of reasons:
balance every season they move teams to different divisions based on
                                                                                • Age: Leagues don’t keep standings until age 11. Tournaments don’t
their prior performance.
                                                                                  have winners until age 11 (everyone gets a participation award) There
   Is my child ready to play travel? The player is ready if they have played
                                                                                  isn’t a State Cup until age 11. Therefore, for most teams, playing time
recreation soccer and done well. They know they can do it, because they
                                                                                  is much more balanced at ages 9 and 10.
have already done it. They know they are ready for more competition and
                                                                                • Competitiveness of the particular game: As players get older, and
they want it. When you watch them, you will know it too.
                                                                                  league and tournament records are kept to determine champions,
Better and More Training                                                          league and tournament games will have less balanced playing time as
  Occasionally, a player will get lucky and get a recreation soccer coach         coaches try to make adjustments to “win” games. For non-league
who has played High School, College, or Professional soccer.                      games, coaches will try to adjust playing time for balanced play.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen enough. It’s often a volunteer parent        • Players individual drive: Playing time may vary based on each players
who is learning soccer along with their children. Their level of soccer           attitude and participation during practices and on the field during
knowledge is generally dependent on whether it’s their first or second            games. Players develop physically and mentally at different rates, but
child. The Travel coaches, as a whole, have had more soccer                       in Travel the players are all in the same age group which helps balance
experience, taken training courses, and have the time to spend learning           skill levels.
and teaching soccer. Many are also certified referees so they have a
more complete understanding of the game. In some cases they may be              This will vary with the philosophy of the coaches and parents. For most
those same volunteer parents who have made a concerted effort to learn          of our Travel teams, everyone will play a lot and you won’t see a lot of
how to coach soccer at a higher level.                                          difference from game to game. Usually, the players will be fairly equal on
                                                                                the team, and their competition generally equal to the skill level of the
   To supplement travel coaches training sessions, a coach may hire             team.
outside trainers for training sessions. This provides enhanced training         Original Document designed by Tony Rauseo
for players to learn more complex skills and tactics.                           Updated by Mario Boninsegna 05/03/2010