Spring soccer sign-ups February 24, 25

Is it Spring yet? Despite the cold and ice, the Whitehall Soccer Board is busy making plans for the spring soccer season. First practice for middle and high school players (levels U12-U15-U19) will be March 21. Elementary school kids (levels U6, U8 and U10) will start April 4. Jamboree, which is a special level of soccer for preschool ages, will start April 10. The U10 League will play at the Cardwell Fields.

A soccer registration event will take place February 24th and 25 at the Borden’s conference room at the corner of Legion and Main street in Downtown Whitehall. At the event, players can try on uniforms, buy soccer gear and parents can sign up to volunteer and get help registering. The event will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. on February 24 and from 10 a.m to 2 p.m. on February 25. All registration will be done online this year, so attendance is not required at the registration event. To register, just go to the website http://www.ayso.bluesombrero.com/region1538 and click on the “Register Now” button on the top right hand side of the page. Registrations received after April 4 will have a $20 late fee. Scholarships are available for athletes.

Each year, around 150 kids participate in Whitehall Soccer. The program is run entirely by volunteers and more help is needed this year to keep the program going. In particular, we need additional coaches for the younger ages, referees, help with mowing the fields and help with coordinating the program. No experience is necessary and professional training is provided free of charge. Soccer in Whitehall is heavily reliant on our many generous sponsors that help offset the costs of the program.

Soccer players that can’t get enough soccer are encouraged to save the date for British Soccer and Tetra Brazil soccer camps right here in Whitehall June 12-16, 2017. British Soccer Camp is for elementary school ages and Tetra Brazil is for middle and high school ages. If kids register for the camp by April 28, they receive a free soccer jersey.

Whitehall is part of the national American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) which provides excellent training, expertise and structure for our program. AYSO has over 500,000 soccer players nationwide and is organized around six principals including 1) everyone plays, 2) teams are balanced, 3) registration is open to everyone, 4) coaching is positive, 5) good sportsmanship, 6) player development.

Whitehall Soccer teams in the U12, U15 and U19 divisions travel to Helena to compete against Helena’s Vigilante Soccer’s AYSO recreational league. Elementary school players compete against other Whitehall teams on the fields behind the school and do not travel.

For more information, please contact one of the Whitehall Soccer board members including, Tara Mastel at 490-4180; Kelley Seccomb at 490-5837; Eric McMillian at 490-0687; Kyra Williams at 565-0839; Dan Volz at 490-5519; Dana Brunet at 439-6589; Amy DuBois at 491-4904 or Amy or Nacho Rodriguez at 490-9681.