CLUB INFORMATION

March 19, 2008
Former Bracebridge Team of the Year Getting Kick-started Again

A former Team of the Year for Bracebridge in 2005 is getting ready to start up again, and is looking to re-establish itself as one of the community’s flagship competitive teams.

The Bracebridge Storm girls soccer team that least competed as an Under-17 squad in the summer of 2005 is re-uniting for the 2008 season and will be competing in an Under-21 division of the Ontario Women’s Soccer League.

This girls team, previously sponsored by Dura, had success over a number of seasons competing against some of the top youth teams in the province.

The team was split up for the last couple of seasons as some of the squad’s younger players pursued opportunities with the Toronto Junior Lady Lynx program, and a number of players joined Barrie’s top competitive teams in their age group.

But earlier this winter, the VP Programs of the Bracebridge Soccer Club, Dino Tomassoni, began a drive to re-patriate the local players who were having to leave the community to compete at a high level.

“This team had been one of the soccer clubs, and the Town’s, flagship competitive teams,” said Tomassoni, “and the soccer club felt we had a gap at the top of our youth programs, with no team for young women to play on.

“It appeared there would be close to a dozen Bracebridge players planning to drive to Barrie for training and games, and the Club felt the timing was right to give these young women a chance to play with their home club once again.

“Almost all of the players who were with this team in the past have made the decision to return and play in their community when they are home for the outdoor season, and we are looking forward to a very exciting summer with this group of players”, he said.

Most of the players that will be joining the new U21 team are away at colleges and universities in Ontario and the U.S. Several of them are playing varsity soccer, including three players who are on scholarships at U.S. schools.

“We will start training sessions for this team by about the third weekend in April” said Tomassoni, “as soon as the first wave of players begin to return from school.

“Our schedule in the OWSL will start the second week in May, and will wrap-up in early August, when many of the players need to return to school for their varsity teams.”

The coaches for the team will be Tomassoni, and Greg Black, who recently returned to Bracebridge Soccer as the Club’s Technical Director. Both served as coaches with the team in previous seasons.

All of the Club’s other Rep Teams have now begun indoor training/tryout sessions in various school gymnasiums, as they await the end of winter and the chance to get outside once again.

There are still openings for some of the different rep teams, and club officials are particularly looking to recruit additional younger girls for the rep team program, as they start up teams at the Under-11 and Under-9 age groups.

Players looking to register for either rep teams or House League can still do so in one of two ways. The registration forms can be downloaded from the Bracebridge Soccer Club website, www.bracebridgesoccer.net, and mailed to PO Box 1203, Bracebridge ON P1L 1V4.

Registration forms can also be picked up and dropped off at the office of Dawsons Inc., at 54 E.P. Lee Drive, in Bracebridge.

March 12, 2008

Soccer Rep Teams Kick-off Indoor Training Programs

The Bracebridge Soccer Club is starting indoor training programs for all of its rep teams beginning next week, after a very positive registration response, especially for teams in the younger age groups for both boys and girls.

The Club is aiming to have new Rep teams for girls and for boys aged seven to nine years old at the Under-9 and Under-10 age groups for the 2008 season, playing in the Simcoe County Youth Soccer League.

The Club is also starting an Under-11 Rep team for girls, to complement the Boys team that already exists at the same level. Both these teams will be looking to compete in the Huronia York league, with full field 11-aside games.

While schedules may change in the coming weeks as additional school gym times become available, the soccer club will be running training sessions for different age groups every night of the week at different schools.

All boys that have signed up for U9 and U10 teams (born 1998, 1999 and 2000) will start on Monday nights beginning March 17 at St Dominic’s high school, from 6:00 to 7:15pm.

Under-11 Boys (born 1997) will start on Tuesdays at BMLSS at 6:00 to 7:15pm, and the U12 Boys (born 1996) will be at the same location from 7:15 to 8:30pm.

And the new youngest girls teams will start on Thursdays at St Dominic’s, with the U9 and U11 teams (born 1997-2000) training together from 6:00 to 7:15 pm.

The older rep team training sessions that have been going on over the winter will continue on their current nights and locations, although times may vary slightly to accommodate the additional teams starting up.

Al players participating in these training sessions must be registered with the Club for the 2008 season, for indoor or our outdoor programs.

There are still openings for all of the different rep teams, and a number of players from last season have not yet signed up, but club officials say the response so far has been very good, especially on the boys’ side.

Coaches of the new girls team, along with club officials, will be looking to recruit more girls for the rep team program, recognizing that most clubs in Ontario take a little bit more time and effort to get girls rep team programs going.

Players looking to register for either rep teams or House League can do so in one of two ways. The registration forms can be downloaded from the Bracebridge Soccer Club website, www.bracebridgesoccer.net, and mailed to PO Box 1203, Bracebridge ON P1L 1V4.

Registration forms can also be picked up and dropped off at the office of Dawsons Inc., at 54 E.P. Lee Drive, in Bracebridge.

March 3, 2008

Bracebridge Soccer Expanding Rep Teams for Younger Players

The Bracebridge Soccer Club is looking to expand the number of rep teams it runs for both boys and girls from seven to ten years old, and the response at registration sessions has been very positive.

The Club is aiming to have Rep teams for girls and for boys at the Under-9 and Under-10 age groups for the 2008 season, playing in the Simcoe County Youth Soccer League.

Players in these age groups play mini soccer rules, with seven players on the field at a time, on a two-third sized field. The league play runs from May to August, and players can also play in the House League program.

The Club is also starting an Under-11 Rep team for girls, to complement the Boys team that already exists at the same level. Both these teams will be looking to compete in the Huronia York league, with full field 11-aside games.

And the Club will also be setting up a Rep Team Development program for both girls and girls at the Under-8 age level, where House League players can continue to play over the summer once House League has finished.

The U8 Development program to train with other players from Muskoka on a weekly basis, and play in a couple of  mini tournaments against other areas of the Huronia District.

To help coordinate the development of the Rep team program, as well as strengthening the House League, the Club is bringing back a familiar face.

The former president and Club Head Coach of Bracebridge Soccer, Greg Black, is returning to the Club as Technical Director. Black has spent the past two seasons coaching with the Toronto Junior Lynx program and the Barrie U18 Girls team.

“I have seen a good number of players from this Club develop their soccer abilities to the point they can compete against some of the best players in the province,” said Black, “and particularly on the girls side, a number of players are playing varsity soccer at universities in Ontario and the U.S.

“The key to developing strong young players is to ensure they have solid coaching, beginning when they are seven and eight years old. Then you need to continue to provide a consistent quality of program as the players get older and progress to different levels.

“Working with experienced soccer people on the Club’s Technical Committee, we want to have a Rep team program where kids play locally at the youngest ages, and then progress to higher levels of play as they get older,” said Black.

So far, the response from registering players has been very strong on the boy’s side in particular, even though there has not been a lot of publicity about the expanded rep team program.

“The experience at this club, and at many other clubs in Ontario, is that it takes a little bit more time and effort to get girls rep team programs going,” said Black, “perhaps because boys may already have been playing team sports, such as hockey, to a greater degree.

“But Bracebridge girls have shown in the past they can compete against top teams in this province, and we are going to work hard at getting these new girls teams going for the coming season.”

The Club’s Technical Committee is in the process of finalizing the coaches for all of the Rep Teams, and setting the times and locations for rep team indoor training that will start after March Break.

Players looking to register for either rep teams or House League can do so in one of two ways. The registration forms can be downloaded from the Bracebridge Soccer Club website, www.bracebridgesoccer.net, and mailed to PO Box 1203, Bracebridge ON P1L 1V4.

Registration forms can also be picked up and dropped off at the office of Dawsons Inc., at 54 E.P. Lee Drive, in Bracebridge.

February 27, 2008

Last Kick at Early Bird Soccer Registration

The third and final registration session for the Bracebridge Soccer youth programs is being held this weekend, and after that the regular fees for registering for the youth House League will be in effect.

The registration session is being held upstairs at Your Independent Grocers on Saturday, March 1^st, from 1:00pm to 5:00pm, and information is available for both the House League and Rep Team programs.

The Early Bird Registration fee of $65 for the House League is in effect until the session ends on Saturday, and then the regular House League fees of $85 is in effect.

Players can still register after March 1^st, in one of two ways. The registration forms can be downloaded from the Bracebridge Soccer Club website, www.bracebridgesoccer.net, and mailed to PO Box 1203, Bracebridge ON P1L 1V4.

Registration forms can also be picked up and dropped off at the office of Dawsons Inc., at 54 E.P. Lee Drive, in Bracebridge.

The soccer club is looking for volunteers to help organize the house league program at each age level. The club will also provide the training for adults and secondary school students who want to get involved as coaches, and provide training materials for practices.

People who are interested in getting involved in the house league can sign up at registration, or contact Club President Norm Vel by phone (645-3273) in the evening, or by emailing the soccer club, bbsoccer@muskoka.com.

February 17, 2008
Bracebridge Soccer Re-Focusing on House League Programs

After completing an ambitious multi-year project building high quality soccer facilities in the community, the Bracebridge soccer club is now turning its focus on re-building the youth house league program.

The soccer club is aiming to re-invigourate the house league program with a renewed emphasis on strengthening the organization of soccer activities, and the quality of coaching that is provided for young players.

“The Bracebridge Soccer Club has now developed some of the very best soccer facilities in the province, and I think the whole community should be proud of what we have accomplished,” said Club President Norm Vel.

“It has been hard work on the part of a lot of volunteers over the last three or four years,” he said, “and it has taken a great deal of our energy. Now we have some terrific facilities.

“But it may be that we have also not paid quite as much attention as we should have on making sure our core program, our youth house league system, was delivering a high quality and enjoyable soccer experience.

“So in 2008, the Club’s top priority is to ensure that the house league soccer is not only the largest, but also the best quality recreational program for youth in this community.”

Youth soccer registration starts this week, with the first session being held upstairs at Your Independent Grocers on Thursday night (February 21) from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. And Vel says the first priority will be to recruit a strong team of volunteers to help organize the grass roots program.

“We are already strengthening our technical capabilities within the Club so we can deliver better content on the fields,” he said, “but the key is to have a strong group of volunteers who can organize programs at each age level.

“This is a volunteer-based organization that belongs to the community, and we need community members to get involved in helping us deliver better programs. We’ll provide the soccer-specific expertise, and we want to have a solid team of volunteers to make sure it all runs smoothly.”

A group of current Executive members has already begun the task of identifying some of the volunteers they will be looking to recruit, but Vel says he is really hoping that interested people will come forward on their own and offer to help.

“You don’t have to know anything about soccer to be a volunteer and help us run a good program,” he said. “We’ll provide the training for adults and secondary school students who want to get involved as coaches and provide materials they need to deliver good recreational soccer training.”

It is expected that all of the house league soccer activities will be run at the soccer fields in the centre of the community this season, at Monck Public School and across the street at the old BMLSS fields.

“This provides us with good access as all the fields are close together. The fields themselves will be in great shape without spring high school activities tearing up the grounds. And we’ll have improved storage capacity for our equipment,” said Vel.

People who are interested in getting involved in the house league can contact Vel by phone (645-3273) in the evening, or by emailing the soccer club, bbsoccer@muskoka.com.