St. Charles Soccer - League Information

(Updated June 2007)

The St. Charles Soccer Board meets the second Monday of each month alternating between the East Bank & West Bank Libraries. The meetings are open to every parent who has a child playing in this program. Your attendance and suggestions are welcomed. Any individual interested in being on the Board please contact a present member and come to any meeting. Check our web site for schedule of meetings.

At the 2004 Winter AGM Meeting LSA re-structured their playing levels. They now include Premier, Division 1 (Formerly Rec+), and Recreation. At this time we do not have any Premier teams.The Recreation Travel & Division 1 Travel programs were approved by a majority vote of the LSA membership and will be in effect this season.

St. Charles Soccer is run by volunteers and not by the St. Charles Parish Recreation Department. All of our funding is from the registration fees and some donations. The parish provides a great service to us as they cut the grass and paint the fields each week during league play, and pay for our referee fee expenses we incur in the Fall season only. Without their assistance we would have to increase our fees tremendously in order to pay for these services. We are also truly grateful to the St. Charles Parish School Board as they allow us to use their fine facilities each and every week. We are a club that is associated with the Louisiana Soccer Association (LSA) and we abide by their rules. Our Recreation and Division 1 programs are strictly under the guidance and rules of LSA. Our Parish In-House program, ages 4-9, is a program that follows all guidelines by the United States Youth Soccer Association (USYSA). These players are not registered with LSA and therefore are not allowed to travel outside St. Charles Parish to play games.

And finally, St. Charles Soccer is an organization, which is run by VOLUNTEERS. Please consider lending a hand to help this program continue to grow. In order for us to continue to provide the quality of soccer which all of us expect, we would like to have more parents volunteering. If you are concerned about not having a high knowledge of soccer, please do not let that deter you from committing a few hours a week to the program. We can use help in every aspect of our program: coaching, organization, making phone calls, administrative work, field maintenance, etc. There is a place for everyone.

Explanation of the Recreation (In-house), Metro Rec, Lake Recreation
and Division 1 League Programs

The SCS program consists of 4 Leagues: Fall Rec U5-U10 (In-house) - play in the Fall (August - November), Metro Rec (U10), Rec League, (U12-U14) and Division 1 (U11-U19).These leagues play in the Fall (August - November) and start back up in January and completes its season by the first weekend in May. The following is a Summary of each Program.

	Age	Level of Play		Age	Level of Play		Age	Lavel of Play
U5	4	Fall Rec, No Spring	U11	10	Lake Recreation or Division 1	U17	16	Division 1
U6	5	Fall Rec, No Spring	U12	11	Lake Recreation or Division 1	U18	17	Division 1
U7	6	Fall Rec, No Spring	U13	12	Lake Recreation or Division 1	U19	18	Division 1
U8	7	Fall Rec, No Spring	U14	13	Lake Recreation or Division 1	ADULT League	19+	Too Old for SCS
U9	8	Fall Rec, No Spring	U15	14	Division 1
U10	9	Fall Rec, or Metro	U16	15	Division 1

(CHANGES POSTED TO THIS POLICY-June 2007).

RECREATION (IN-HOUSE) PROGRAM: U5-U10, AGES 4-9

This league is open to all children from the ages of 4 to 9. This program makes up the largest segment of the SCS. The older age group has teams provided there are enough players & coaches to form enough teams. This league provides a fun & instructional environment for the children as no scores or standings are kept. This SEASON WE WILL ATTEMPT to have separate teams for Girls and Boys U7 and older. Younger teams will be co-ed. Participation trophies are awarded to all participants (U8 and under) at the end of the season. The U10 season concludes with the Plantation Cup Tournament. Each player is awarded a patch and the 1st & 2nd place finishers in each tournament are awarded trophies.

Formation of Teams: Formed by each age Division Director & Committee. Criteria used for forming teams include: side of the river live on, appropriate age group, years played, & sex. The teams are formed equally amongst these criteria and the number of teams in each age bracket depends upon the number of registered players. We have eliminated our "core-team" policy for the U5 - U10 teams as of the Fall 2006 season. These age players for now on all players will be assigned to different teams and coaches each year.
Practice: Each team is assigned two practice sessions a week, usually a 1 to 1.5 hours each. This season, Fall 2007, we will have training sessions weekly for each team age bracket with outside coaches and trainers. Coaches and their teams will be required to attend these sessions to game the experience from our coaching staff.
Games: One game a week at JB Martin (West Bank), Saturdays only. Games begin the weekend after Labor Day and end the weekend before Thanksgiving.
Monetary Commitment: The registration fee is $40. This includes a complete soccer uniform & a participation award. The purchase of soccer cleats ($15 +) is optional, shin guards (mandatory) ($5 - $15+). If the family has financial problems, then the League may waive the registration fee.
Length of Season: Practice begins mid August and Season ends the weekend before Thanksgiving.

METRO RECREATION (LSA) PROGRAM
U10, Ages 9

This program is for the 9 year old player. It is a more intense league with more than 1 game per week. The league is associated with other area clubs and games are usually played on Sunday afternoon. There are separate teams for boys and girls.Teams are allowed to play in Jamboree tournaments throughout the season. This is a Fall and Spring league. If your child's level of commitment and interest isn't that intense, and if a player is new to the sport, then Recreation might be the best choice. Playing here will present to each player challenging competition and will definitely help in their player development.

Soccer Options offered by St. Charles Soccer for U11 and older players
(ages 10 and older)

There are generally 3 levels of play offered for the U11 and older player: Premier, Recreation and Division 1. Premier Soccer is not offered by us at this time.

What level of play should my child participate in?

As a parent, the most important thing for you to consider is where your child's interest and abilities are related to soccer. It is widely accepted that players develop the best by playing in an environment based on interest and ability. If you have a player that is very committed to soccer and desires the highest level of competition and training, Division 1 (formerly Rec+) soccer might be the best choice for you. If your child's level of commitment and interest isn't that intense, and if a player is new to the sport, then Recreation might be the best choice. Playing here will present to each player challenging competition and will definitely help in their player development. No matter what the commitment and interest level is, there is a program available to challenge and develop your child. The most important thing is for the kids to have fun, develop skills, and play the game.

LAKE RECREATION (LSA) PROGRAM
U12 and U14, Ages 10 – 13.

All criteria listed above except for the fees and game locations apply to this division.Teams will play other area teams, one game per week on Saturdays, on a home - away basis. There will be NO TRYOUTS and the 50% Play Rule is in affect. Formation of these teams are strictly based on our registration numbers. This season the registration fee includes both the Fall and Spring seasons.

If your child's level of commitment and interest isn't that intense, and if a player is new to the sport, then Recreation might be the best choice. Playing here will present to each player challenging competition and will definitely help in their player development.

We are planning to associate ourselves with the other area clubs to form the “Lake League". This was implemented last season to have a place for the older players to play as there is much concern by us and the other clubs that Division 1 may lead to leaving many players without a place to play soccer. This is a U12 and U14 league. As of now we are planning to have separate teams for boys and girls, if the numbers allow. All games will be scheduled by the “League Director” and teams will play only one game per week. The other clubs involved in this include: Lafreniere, PAC, Carrolton, and a few others. The plans as of now are to play at least 10 games per season and finish with a tournament. Details of this will be completed before the start of the season. There may be a Spring State Tournament scheduled for 2008.

DIVISION 1 (LSA) PROGRAM (Per LSA Policy 311-1, page 41)
U12 – U19, Ages 11 – 18.

St. Charles Soccer participates in the Louisiana Soccer Association’s (LSA) Division 1 (U11+) program. This league is open to all children from the ages of 9 to 18 who want to experience a more competitive soccer environment. It is highly recommended that first time players play in the Recreation League. If you have a player that is very committed to soccer and desires the highest level of competition and training, Division 1 soccer might be the best choice for you.

This league will be one for the more advanced players where TRYOUTS may be required and there will be NO 50% Play Rule. While the official position of LSA is to not have a 50% play rule, we will “highly encourage” all coaches to have a minimum play rule to encourage player development.

Try-outs will be conducted by a staff from outside St. Charles Soccer. The selected team coaches may have an input to players making these teams. All players are subject to a tryout/evaluation if more players register than there are available roster openings.

A greater Time and Financial commitment are expected from both the parents and the players in this League. There are more practice sessions, games, traveling out of the parish, and a greater financial commitment in the purchase of uniforms, & tournament fees. The registration fee includes both the Fall (August – November) & the Spring (January – April) seasons. Games are played at home (St. Charles Parish) and away at other soccer venues such as Houma, Raceland, Lafreniere, PAC, NOSA, Mandeville, Slidell, and for the older age teams, out of state. The Coach is responsible for acquiring Uniforms, and the scheduling of games. The SCS will pay for referee fees for Home games for both seasons.

There may be more than one game a week with 2 or more games scheduled on one day. Teams in this League participate in Tournaments, which involve a weekend commitment from the players. The Fall season begins in mid August and ends around Thanksgiving and the Spring season starts back up in January and ends in early May. These programs stress a high degree of competition; therefore the coaches will demand much more work out of their players. Again FUN is still the main objective of this League, but with more emphasis on winning and improving the individual soccer skills. Both coaches and players much adhere to stringent guidelines as outlined by the LSA.

If the numbers allow we try to form age perfect teams. But teams can be formed based on 2 ages: age 13, 14 make a U15 team. In this League there are separate teams for Boys & Girls, U12, U13, U14, U16, etc. But if necessary, Girls can play on all boys’ teams. The number of players in each age bracket, and the available coaches will determine the number of teams that will be formed.

Division 1 League: Ages 10 and older. Number of games unlimited, Tournament play is competitive for championship honors.
Formation of Teams: This league will be one for the more advanced players where TRYOUTS may be required and there will be NO 50% Play Rule. Coaches are not allowed to “hand-pick”, recruit, or select their own players. Players MAY NOT play down in age, and playing up one age bracket is not recommended. Playing up 2 age brackets is not encouraged by LSA. Try-outs will be conducted by a staff from outside St. Charles Soccer. The selected team coaches may have an input to players making these teams. All players are subject to a tryout/evaluation if more players register than there are available roster openings.
Practice: Each team is assigned two practice sessions a week. More time may be needed if the coach requires it.
Games: Two or more games a week are possible. The schedule is the responsibility of the coach. Games may be played on either Saturdays and Sundays and sometimes both days. There will be NO 50% Play Rule. While the official position of LSA is to not have a 50% play rule, we will “highly encourage” all coaches to have a minimum play rule to encourage player development.
Monetary Commitment: There is a much greater financial commitment in this league as compared to the Parish League. At this time the initial registration fee $ 80 of which $15 goes to the LSA for insurance and State registration. Each team is responsible to purchase their own Uniforms (two jerseys mandatory), with a cost range of $50 - $150, pay all of their Tournament fees, pay all of their own travel expenses, and other expense for the better development of the players as deemed necessary by the coach. Many teams get sponsors or have fund raising events to help defray team expenses. The only monetary assistance these teams receive from the SCS is the payment of Referee fees for both the Fall & Spring seasons. If the family has financial problems, then the SCS may waive all or part of the registration fee.
Length of Season: There are two seasons, Fall & Spring. The Fall season begins with practice in mid August and the season ends in November. The Spring season begins mid January and ends in late April. For some age groups there will be a conflict with the Basketball & Baseball seasons. But if you are committed to Soccer we ask that you commit to your soccer team first.