Coaches who know coaches - I have access to 4 fields. I have another coach who has access to more. We have a 3rd coach with deep roots locally so between all our players, kids and friends we get plenty. We created a fb page as well and this season we took time to speak with opponents/coaches who provided a good experience on the field for their players as well as are. We invited them to join us this summer - so you can see it's starting to become a summer league sort of. No refs or coaching - I just bring a vodka and lemonade and kick back and watch these kids play good soccer! Obviously the younger ones require more guidance but I leave that up to those coaches. I'll make sure the field is ready and help them with some concepts but that's it. I need my time off the field sometimes Pick up games that are informal do not require insurance. We are pretty big now - about 60 kids so we will be registering kids and have a question "Did you participate as a player for a travel or recreational team during the Fall or Spring of the 2018/2019 season? If yes then they are covered already through one of the leagues (YSSL/NISL/IWSL/Rec Leagues). If no then we will charge them $7.50 and cover them through IYSA. We have indoor teams as well. One parent has resources that allow him to pre-pay for 3 teams. Jerseys are $7 and each game is $10 per player. You don't pay if you don't play. My 05 daughter plays up on a u16 boys team and loves it! Very likely we will expand this for other ages this winter. From a travel perspective my area is horrible but there are a ton of other resources out here to provide for additional time on the ball with quality players. Yeah my kid would dominate on a group of rec girls her own age. So as mentioned - we move her up where she is challenged on the ball and physically. We're flexible - we want this to be fun. Take the pressure out of the equation and let them play.
So your rec league provides insurance year round, or just during official seasons? It's always been a question to me how to get it going during summer and off-season months. I always thought I'd have to set it up all myself, but if it's available through my state association then I'm all for it. Heck, I might even set that up this week.
We have travel and rec players. If they participated in Fall/Spring they are covered year-round. So they carry insurance. In some cases it won't cover a player if it is not a league event so you have to do some homework. However we have just a fb page at this point and we clearly call this out often as open play. By that it is not "organized" play so insurance in most cases is not required. However we are considering (as mentioned), coverage for player who are not covered because they did not play in any league for that period. And also a flat $15.00 fee per player for the summer which would cover additional pinnies, line paint and insurance. I think that is the way to go IMO. People will gladly pay for their kids to get outside and be active twice a week a at least 2 hours a pop during the summer.
This is great. Thanks for that. I'm going to contact some people and start asking around and see if I can replicate this in our area. It's the missing piece that links together separate seasons.
High School ball is WAY WAY WAY WAY down the line and shouldn't be a factor in anything you decide at age 6. IMO, the goal at age 6 would be trying to find something the child enjoys doing and gets them involved with other kids. If you can teach them some skills at the same time, great! Our paths... Oldest DD played rec soccer from U6-U8. Not bad, not great. She decided it was too much running (although she played GK 1/2 the time) and moved to softball. DS played rec soccer from U5-U8. Good player, usually outplayed everyone on the field. Decided he liked it, so we signed him up for Academy travel (not to be confused with DA) on the local team. He stayed with the local travel club from U9-U11. He was generally one of the top 1-2 at his age group. At U12, he moved to the nearby larger town's club. He's now the middle of the pack (at U16) skill wise. He made his HS team as a freshman (started all but two games), and the state ODP team. Younger DD played rec U7-U8. Wasn't bad and wanted to try Academy. So she's done that and is finishing U13. But she's not good enough and doesn't have the desire to go to the larger city's club. Travel has given us: 1) Better coaching 2) Teammates/families with a similar commitment level 3) More challenging practices/games 4) An experience outside of our immediate area Yes, I'd say club can lead toward a larger love for the game. But it's not automatic. You child is 6yo. Let him play soccer, basketball, t-ball, tiddlywinks, whatever. As long as he's having fun, you're good.