Haverford Soccer Club Kicks Off the Fall Soccer Season

By Tricia Woodman

Summer’s over, school has started and so has fall soccer for the Haverford Soccer Club. This weekend over 2,300 children from our community will play their first games of the season on intramural and traveling teams for the HSC.

With a mission to promote youth soccer in our community, the Haverford Soccer Club offers programs for children of all abilities beginning at age 3 and continuing through age 18. Programs for the youngest children focus on skills and ball touches in a group setting. As they grow and develop, the HSC offers players the opportunity to play on intramural (“shirt league”) teams with other children from the area, or to compete at a higher level on travel teams against other soccer clubs in the region. For children with special needs, Haverford Soccer Club offers the TOPSoccer program which is designed to give boys and girls with mental or physical disabilities an opportunity to learn and play soccer.

The Haverford Soccer Club is proud to have some of the lowest registration fees in the area for youth soccer programs. As part of their commitment to increase participation and exposure to soccer, the HSC even offers financial assistance for families in need and scholarships to graduating seniors. Sponsorships from businesses in the community are one way that the Club manages to cover expenses without raising fees. This year, the HSC will be undertaking a major fundraiser in the form of the Welsh Cup, a soccer tournament for boys and girls travel teams ages U8 through U12. The tournament will take place on November 19/20, 2011 and will draw teams from around the region. (www.hscwelshcup.org )

Behind the scenes work for the fall soccer season has been underway for months. As the largest youth sports organization in Haverford Township, the HSC faces the somewhat daunting task of scheduling games for 152 intramural and 37 travel teams. Each weekend this fall, there will be approximately 95 games played on about 24 fields at 12 locations throughout Haverford Township. Coordinating this effort requires a virtual army of volunteers to assign teams, set up schedules, assign referees, distribute equipment and prepare the fields for play. Luckily, the HSC has a dedicated Board of Directors and volunteers.

HSC President Jonathan Donley had this to say about the upcoming season: “Soccer is growing more popular than ever in the Philadelphia area. The Haverford Soccer Club is growing as well. In addition to the greatest volunteer coaches on the planet, the club has increased its training offerings for both coaches and players by bringing in a Director of Coaches and Training, Steve Roper. Steve works with the Intramural, Travel and Developmental Academy programs to ensure proper training is in place and provides state and national licensing opportunities for our coaches.

Great players need great fields. We have increased our efforts to upgrade and maintain the fields by working with the Township to help improve field conditions for our players and other groups who use the fields. Heading up field maintenance is Michael Gove, our Director of Field Maintenance, and Bob Burd, our Field and Facilities Coordinator.

Great volunteer coaches, increased training opportunities and improved fields all make this a great year to be a member of the Haverford Soccer Club.”

For more information about Haverford Soccer Club, visit their website at www.haverfordsoccer.org .