Meeting Minutes - 2018

Club Meeting -- November 8, 2018

President’s Report:
President TJ Turner presented the slate of officers for 2018-2019.
- President: TJ Turner
- Vice President/ SCSL Director: Ginger Croom
- Secretary: Becky Kirk
- Treasurer/CORI: Tom Lacey
- Registrar: Rob Ryan
- Coaching Director: Rich Corner
- Equipment Manager: OPEN
- Fundraising Manager: Cheryl Gregory
- Referee Assignor: Frank Mastriano
- Field Manager: Anna Michel
1. Lauren Warburton volunteered for the Equipment manager position.
2. There were questions about term limits and how long each current member of the board had served. There was a comment that the Board should better represent families with children currently in the program.
3. There were also questions about how coaches/parents would know when vacancies were going to occur and the procedure for showing interest in a position. Candidates do not have to be present at the Annual meeting in order to be elected but would need to notify the board of their wish to be considered ahead of the Annual Meeting.
4. Coaches and parents are invited to all monthly meetings. The dates for these meetings are posted on the website. Descriptions of the duties of each officer are also posted there.
5. It was suggested that people interested in positions could “intern” for a year or some period of time to learn the job. TJ suggested that potential candidates should reach out to the officer who currently holds the position in which they are interested.
6. The slate was approved.
TJ explained and answered questions about the proposed ByLaw change saying that it would tighten up the process for changing bylaws and make the standard higher but also allow changes to go into effect sooner. Since the current bylaws allow the board to make this change, no vote was required.

Vice President’s Report:
FSC had 9 teams playing this fall.
4/7 who were eligible for playoffs made playoffs - 2 boys and 2 girls teams.
SCSL team declarations for the Spring 2019 season are due in early December.
The board will be reviewing numbers of registered players as some groups may need to be combined. Both 2007 and 2008 girls need additional players.

Registrar’s Report:
Registrations are ongoing for 2010 (9U), 2009 (10U), and 2008 (11U)
Rob identified the older teams that still need players.
Younger players and high school players (no tryouts) began registering November 1 at Uniform and Registration night.
In light of lower participation numbers, especially on the girl’s side, suggestions were made to improve recruiting. 1. Attend Rec games and talk to rec coaches. 2. Invite players to clinics on a targeted and limited basis. This might require an additional insurance waiver which the board will look into. 3. Girls don’t tend to come to clinics and perhaps the club could run some girl only events to encourage participation.

Coaching Director’s Report
The club is still looking for coaches for the following D2 teams - 2009G, 2008G, 2009B, 2008B and 2005B. The board will contact parents who have children on these teams to see if any are interested in coaching. Rich reported that fewer players attended the fall clinics this season. This could have been because of field and weather problems. Girl’s are typically underrepresented and Rich will look into holding some girl’s only sessions. Winter clinic planning is underway.

Treasurer’s Report
Sara Turner said that the club is overall in good financial shape; some money is in a money market CD and increased expenses for player training will be balanced by an increase in player fees this year. Sara will be working with Tom Lacey to ensure a smooth transition of the position.

Field Manager’s Report
Coaches expressed that they do not want to line fields. Several ideas were proposed:
1. Coaches can ask a parent or parents to do it for them. 2. The club could pay someone. 3. The club could form a Field lining team of parents who want to volunteer but cannot commit to some of the more time consuming jobs. They would be assigned fields/dates on a rotating basis much like coaches are now.

Equipment Manager’s Report
Uniform and registration night was held Thursday November 1. Falmouth Sports Exchange was on hand for fittings and help with ordering.

Referee Assignor/ Tryout Coordinator’s Report
The Club received $500 from the Falmouth Road Race for volunteering.
The board is discussing the possibility of moving our tryouts from June to the fall and requested ideas and comments from the group.
Frank Mastriano gave a comprehensive overview of the goals and the process of FSC tryouts, which has evolved over time based on feedback from parents and coaches, and ongoing efforts to make it as fair as possible. There are now a number of ways that players are evaluated including tryouts, coach rankings, and observation during spring game situations by coaches, board members and referees. Creating successful teams (D1 teams that qualify for MTOC and D2 teams that make play-offs) is the primary goal. As a club we are affiliated with USSF (national), MYS (state) and SCSL (league) meaning that certain expectations must be met. 1. Spring is the main season. 2. The seasonal year runs from September 1 - August 31. (Fall-spring) and 3. Insurance coincides with the season.
There are several options under consideration:
A. Status quo - leave tryouts in June.
Consider 1. Moving some or all indoors to avoid weather issues of 2018 tryouts 2. Holding 1 day of tryouts on a weekday to avoid conflicts with spring sports
and family vacations. 3. Continuing fall season for MTOC eligible teams and perhaps add D2 teams at those age groups. Younger groups would play rec. Clinics would be offered.
B. Move the tryouts to fall and drop the fall season. Focus on the spring season. Younger players would be encouraged to play rec. Clinics would be offered. Coaches could take their teams to indoor or tournament play.
C. Move the tryouts to fall and keep fall season. Problems would be 1. Team size and insurance would not carry over from spring to the following fall. 2. We do not currently have the resources to create and register teams twice each soccer year. 3. Spring games are important to the evaluation process. 4. Children really like to play games but that may not be the best way to develop players for their spring season.
An informal show of hands indicated that those present favored keeping and perhaps expanding the fall season for 11U-14U aged teams. Many teams in SCSL have fall tryouts and play the fall season. Understanding their tryout and registration processes might yield solutions and the board will seek more information.

The Soccer Club will participate in the Falmouth Christmas parade Sunday December 9th.

Respectfully submitted,
Becky Kirk, Secretary

Club Meeting -- October 11, 2018

President’s Report
• Annual meeting will hopefully be November 15th. This date is not yet confirmed.
• Changes to tryouts - considering moving to fall.

Advantages:
1. Closer to main season (spring)
2. Might attract players who only want to commit to spring season
3. Avoid conflicts with spring sports and other activities (suggestion from parents)
Disadvantages:
1. Would require a second round of registration to field fall teams. (Official Soccer year is
Fall to spring)
2. Players may change team size after spring - potentially a second set of tryouts?

• Changes to fall season - ideas, comments and suggestions for discussion
1. No fall FSC teams. Younger players can play rec. Older players can participate in
clinics, tournaments, short sided leagues, Lawrence School team.
2. Younger players play rec. 11u and 12u teams division 1 and 2 play SCSL games
These teams could be based on spring tryouts or through some sign-up process
if tryouts are moved to fall. (This would still require a second registration )
3. Players prefer games to clinics and practices, although games may not be the best
way to develop players.
4. Several expressed the importance of providing opportunities for fall play that are more
challenging than rec or school games.
5. The club would benefit from a stronger rec program and at least younger players
should be encouraged to play. FSC coaches and players could support the rec program.

• Changes to team format - fielding double age teams (10u, 12u, 14u, 16u )
1. To create more competitive teams
2. Double age, birth year teams would encompass three grade levels ( with players
from 2 different schools ) and might be hard on youngest group

• A sports pilot message will go out announcing the annual meeting and outlining these
potential changes.
• Flyers will go out this week for spring registration
• Players are asked to wear their uniform jerseys to school to promote registration.

Vice President Report
• Fall playoffs weekend of November 3rd.
• League has been discussing blowouts. When teams are up 5-0, coaches are
supposed to take measures to limit scoring. The league will probably deal with
blowouts more strongly in the spring.

Coaching Director Report
• Weekly clinics for non-D1 players
• GPS working with coaches every week
• D2 Coaching Slate: still needed - 2009G, 2008G, 2009B, 2008B, and 2005B

Field Manager Report
Coaches are asked to stay on top of their field lining obligations.

Equipment Manager Report
Uniform and registration night 11/1 at the Rec Center for 2008-10, 2007G and 2006+.

Referee Assignor Report
Received $500 from Falmouth Road Race for volunteering.

Other Items
• Parents may not be aware of the process for getting teams registered with the league
and the lead time required for team formation and registration. Rob Ryan will briefly
explain the process and timeline at the annual meeting.
• Player registration is a consistent problem. FSC cannot declare teams unless players are
actually registered. The idea of asking parents to register their child at tryouts was raised.
• Teams can be reimbursed for travel to MV and Nantucket. Ideally the club would write a
check after the trip when the actual number traveling is known (the actual cost). There are
directions for arranging island travel in the coaching handbook.

Club Meeting -- September 13, 2018

President’s Report

Board update:

President - T.J. Turner
VP/SCSL - Ginger Croom
Secretary - Becky Kirk
Treasurer/CORI - Tom Lacey
Registrar - Rob Ryan
Coaching Dir - Rich Corner
Equipment Mgr
Fundraising Mgr - Cheryl Gregory
Referee Assignor - Frank Mastriano

The slate was proposed but not put up for vote due to lack of required quorum. The club is looking for an Equipment Manager.
Coaches were notified that the board is working on Bylaw updates, specifically relating to changing from Grades to u’s to designate age groups, change and clarify the mechanism for changing and updating bylaws, and the relationship between the Field Mgr and Vice President and their functions as members of the board.

Vice-President/Field Manager Report

Coaches who purchase Team Snap for use in the fall will be reimbursed by the club.
The Rec program will start Saturday 9/15 so there will be less Trotting Park practice time available for FSC. Morse Pond and 151 fields will be used. 7v7 games will sometimes be played at 151 also.
Field lining schedule.
Field flexibility – The club is working closely with Rec and DPW. All issues and concerns of FSC coaches should go through the club (VP and/or field manager) and not directly to Rec or DPW.
Fall play-offs will be in early Nov, probably the weekend of November 3 (details to follow).
The league will be cracking down on blowouts where one team beats another by more than 5 goals.
CORI credentials will be required at all games in the spring.

Registrar Report

D2 players need to register to participate in the Friday clinics and to finalize spring teams.

Coaching Director Report

New weekly clinics for non-D1 players start 9/14. These are specifically intended for registered FSC players who are not playing in the fall, but are open to all FSC players. The clinics will be divided into three time slots 4:30 - 3rd and 4th grade, 5:30 - 5th and 6th grade, 6:30 - 7th and 8th grade.
GPS will be working with coaches and individual teams every week.
D2 coaching slate: need 2009G, 2008G, 2007G, 2009B, 2008B, 2005B

Equipment Manager Report

Coaches should have 2 game balls for each home game.
Uniform issues go to Kelly Crocker at Falmouth Exchange (teaticketma@yahoo.com).
Uniform and Registration Night in November (maybe 11/01) for 2010 players and 2006+.

Other items

Parents attended the meeting to express a number of concerns:

Players who are interested in playing in the fall but not the spring.
Unavailability of fall teams for players who tried out and registered.
The need for more fields to allow FSC to grow and include more children.
The tryout process, specifically having all tryouts on one weekend at a busy time of year and more flexibility in moving players between teams for maximum participation.

Potential ideas and solutions:

Look into using fields at Otis
Have FSC better support rec soccer to make it more appealing to D2 and other players not on fall teams.
Put more pressure on the Selectmen to prioritize the creation of recreational fields in Falmouth.
Board continues to reevaluate the tryout process - timing and format.

Upcoming Dates:
10/11 Club meeting
11/1 Uniform and Registration Night (tentative)

Club Meeting -- August 16, 2018

President’s Report
Coaches whose CORI will expire before the end of the 2018-19 season will be notified directly by MA Youth Soccer. If you do not receive an email from MYS, your CORI is up to date for the coming season.
A Kid Safe program (online training) will be coming soon and like the concussion training will be required for coaching once it is available.
TJ urged coaches to assign team communication to a parent or assistant coach.
Coaches present voted to allow TJ to send emails without using BCC. Coaches will now have access to each other's email addresses.
Younger FSC players should be strongly encouraged to play Rec soccer in addition to travel soccer. They will get additional practice and playing time.

Vice President’s Report
Because of the transition to birth year age groups, all Falmouth teams have been registered D2 for the fall. SCSL will require all teams to be based on birth year for the spring season but not necessarily for fall.
The SCSL fall schedule will be released 8/20.
Ginger took requests for fall practice days and time. 7 & 8 graders (2005) can practice at Trotting Park. Younger teams will use Morse Pond or 151. 7v7 teams might also play games at 151. All other games will be at Trotting Park.
Fields will need to be lined in the next couple of weeks. Paying someone to mark them off was discussed and options will be investigated.

Registrar’s Report
In order to have all players eligible for play by the first game (9/08), Rob Ryan will need to have all missing documents (pictures and birth certificates) in the next week.

Equipment Manager’s Report
Coaches are urged to address uniform issues now, especially for younger teams. Kelly Crocker has a 2-week turnaround time for uniform jerseys. Requiring players to wear their full uniform to an early practice can help players make sure they have all parts that still fit.
Coaches who need equipment should contact Tom Lacey.

Coaching Director’s Report
D2 clinics will begin in September. Players MUST be registered to participate.
Coaches do not need to keep attendance for the fall season.
GPS trainers will be working with coaches and teams during the fall season.
Each team needs an assistant coach. Once identified, these assistants must be registered and CORI’d if they are not already.

Referee Assignor’s Report
KICK CANCER COOKOUT - Saturday 8/18. Informal games, food and fun. Donations benefit Dana Farber.

Other Items
Ginger reported that FSC could purchase the Team Snap App for the 9 fall teams (for 1 year) for less than $500. Coaches who have purchased this app for themselves found it easy and effective to use. The club can get a group discount which is preferable to reimbursing coaches who buy it individually. There was discussion of using a similar system provided by Got Soccer which is not available in the fall but will hopefully be available in the spring. Its advantage is that FSC team information will already be entered into Got Soccer and it could also be used to report scores. There was some concern about whether teams would want to switch systems between fall and spring seasons. The Board will confirm details before making a final decision.

Next Coaches Meeting 9/13/2018

Club Meeting -- June 14, 2018

The meeting was called to order at 7 pm.

From Tom Lacey, Equipment Manager - Coaches who do not plan to coach next year are asked to bring balls and equipment to tryouts to be turned in.

Playoffs - The Grade 7 girls team will participate in playoffs at Mariner Saturday June 16. Grade 9 boys and Grade 12 girls also made playoffs but lost in the first round.

President TJ Turner asked for general feedback about the season.

Morse Pond may not be suitable for practices because of its condition.
Coaches requested more consistent mowing of the Trotting Park fields. The DPW is stretched thin because of winter storms and shortage of personnel and equipment. The Recreation Committee will be making a proposal to the selectmen and FSC will try to support this effort. Letters to the editor in the Enterprise and discussions with Town Committee members regarding resources for field maintenance help also.
Kudos to Anna Michel (field manager) for a job well done in her first year
Regular goalie clinics were missed. Sessions offered by GPS were helpful especially after they were divided into 2 age groups. Coaches requested continued, consistent support for development of goalie skills.
A request was made that the club cover the cost of ferry travel for teams going to Nantucket. The board will discuss.
Some coaches have been using Team Snap to communicate with players and families. FSC is planning to transition from Sports Pilot to Got Soccer for next year. Got Soccer will provide a similar app for coaches.
SCSL will be considering a Build Out line for goal kicks for 7v7 teams. Coaches and Board members at the meeting were in favor of this rule change.

Tryouts

On June 4th SCSL voted to change from Grade to birth years as the basis for team formation.
Players born in 2004 will not be playing in the fall. Players born in 2009 will try out. Flyers will go out to elementary schools and Morse Pond early this week and an extra Sports Pilot message will be sent to 2004 and 2009 players because of the change in format.
It is FSC policy that all players try out at their actual age groups.
2 year age groups are allowed but Falmouth has no plans to go to that.
Coaches should get the evaluations of their teams to Frank as soon as possible. This is an important part of placing players on the appropriate team.
Coaches should sign up to help at tryouts and choose a group to evaluate that is different from the group you have/ plan to coach i.e. same age, different gender.
The idea of signing up ahead of time for tryouts was discussed but it was decided that it would not be helpful at this time.
A SportsPilot message to all current players will give tryout information again and have as attachments all required documents (MYSA, Code of Conduct, Player Commitment)

Respectfully submitted,
Becky Kirk, Secretary

Club Meeting -- May 10, 2018

President’s Report -
The Joe Kirk Tournament netted $1099 this year. TJ has leftover tournament t-shirts. Please contact him if any of your players did not get one. The board is still looking for recipient candidates for this year.

Vice President’s Report -
• The season ends Sunday 6/03. ALL GAMES, INCLUDING MAKE-UP GAMES MUST BE COMPLETED AND REPORTED BY THE EVENING OF JUNE 3rd.

• League policy on numbers of teams that make the playoffs:
4-5 teams, 2 teams make playoffs
6-7 teams, 3 teams make playoffs
8-10 teams, 4 teams make playoffs
11-15 teams, 6 teams make playoffs
16+ teams, 8 teams make playoffs

• 6/04-15 Preliminary round of playoffs
6/16-17 SCSL semi-finals and finals
6/22-24 MTOC

Field Manager’s Report -
Please contact Anna when you have completed your field lining responsibility so she doesn’t have to go check the fields multiple times each week.
There are many Friday night make-up games scheduled so please try to line before 5 Friday evening.

Treasurer’s Report -
The treasurer is still collecting payments. If you receive a check from one of your players, notify TJ. He and Sara have been communicating with the small number of families who still need to pay.

Coaching Director’s Report -
• Rich continues to request feedback about Friday night clinics and individual team coaching sessions.
• Rob will add grades 2-4 to the Sports Pilot emails regarding the Friday night clinics. If needed, the group could be divided in to 2 age groups.
• Rich will arrange goalie training requested by coaches.

Tryout Coordinator’s Report -
• FSC tryouts 6/23-24. There are no scheduled make-ups. Please start reminding parents now to insure maximum participation. Flyers will be going home from the public schools. Notice of the tryouts will also be in the Enterprise.
• In-game evaluations are on-going. Coaches will be asked to observe a game to help identify “bubble” players on both D1 and D2 teams.
• FSC coaches will do the evaluations at tryouts but not for their own teams’s age/gender group.
• Coaches will be asked to submit a written evaluation of their own players which is very important in fairly and accurately placing players for next year.

Club Meeting -- February 8, 2018

Spring Practices:

This spring, FSC will be using all fields at Trotting Park Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Morse Pond is also available Monday - Friday and there is an additional practice field at Teaticket School for 7v7 teams. Time slots are 4:30-6 and 6-7:30. Coaches present at the meeting signed up for outdoor spring practice times.
The club is still looking for a Field Manager to help with field lining schedule etc.

Important Reminders:

Joe Kirk Season Kick-off Tournament Saturday March 3 at the Rec Center. Age group time slots will be posted on the website soon. Younger age teams will play early. Volunteers are still needed.

Some teams will have games Easter weekend (3/31-4/01) although the season officially begins the first weekend in April (4/07). Teams may also have games on one or both of the school vacation weekends. The league schedule will be posted on GotSoccer in the next couple of weeks. Ginger will send coach login information.

All players will need the new style jersey. Please check with players to make sure they have ordered one.

Field lining - 3/10 and/or 3/17. Every team must send a representative.

The next FSC coaches meeting will be April 12

Club-sponsored Friday free clinic 2/16 at TJO Sports.

Club Meeting -- January 11, 2018

The following slate of officers was approved:

President - TJ Turner
Vice President - Ginger Croom
Secretary - Becky Kirk
Treasurer - Sara Turner
Registrar - Rob Ryan
Coaching Director - Rich Corner
Equipment Manager - Tom Lacey
Fundraising Manager - Cheryl Gregory
Referee Assignor - Frank Mastriano

From the VP/ Field Manager:
Teams from Grades 5 and up are beginning indoor practices at Falmouth Academy and Morse Pond. There are still time slots open for those two schools. Anyone interested in reserving a practice time should contact Ginger. Morse Pond is free. The cost at FA is $60/hour for the full gym. Coaches are responsible for collecting money from their players and turning it in to the board in March.

Midweek practice times may open up at other schools after basketball ends mid-February. The spring practice schedule will be very tight this year because 2/3 of Trotting Park will be closed for repair. There was discussion of possible alternatives such as the 151 field, Falmouth Heights and Morse Pond. Other non-town owned fields may be explored as well.

The 2018 season will officially begin 4/07/2018 but some teams may have games scheduled the previous weekend (3/31-4/01/2018) which is Easter Weekend. THE LEAGUE WILL HAVE GAMES BOTH WEEKENDS OF THE APRIL VACATION, but not all teams will be scheduled to play on both. Ginger will work with coaches once the official schedule is published.

Season ends - 6/03/18
SCSL playoffs - 6/16-17
MTOC - 6/22-24

From the Coaching Director:
The club is still looking for a coach for the Grade 2 boys. Beginning this Friday January 19th, a free clinic will be offered at TJO Sports for all FSC players. A flyer has been sent via Sports Pilot. 5:00-6:00 Grades 2-4. 6:00-7:00 Grades 5&6, 7:00-8:00 Grades 7&8. GPS will be working with individual coaches and teams again this spring. Head coaches need to find an assistant coach if they do not already have one. Assistants should contact Rob Ryan to get registered as quickly as possible. Rich will look into finding some goalie training.

From the Equipment Manager:
All players must order the new style jersey for spring. Coaches should reach out to their players to make sure they have done so. The Equipment order form will go out soon. Equipment will be handed out in March.

From the Fundraising Manager:
The 10th annual Joe Kirk Tournament will be held Saturday March 3rd at the Rec Center. Cheryl will be looking for parents to provide baked goods for the event. Donations of Raffle items are also needed. Ideally coaches will be able to bring their teams to the tournament but all players should be encouraged to attend even if the coach is not available.

Important dates:
2/8 Next meeting at the Rec Center
3/3 The Joe Kirk Tournament
3/10, 3/17?? (Weather dependent ). Field Lining
6/22-24 FSC Tryouts for the 2018-19 season