2010/2011 Team Tryouts

Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers)



General

General


Q. How old is Woodburn United Soccer Club?

Woodburn United Soccer Club was formed in the early 1990's.

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Q. How big is the Woodburn United Soccer Club?

The club currently has approximately 180 members. This figure is made up of roughly 85 recreational soccer players, 66 competitive soccer players and approximately 30 volunteers as coaches, managers, or members.

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Q. What are the Woodburn United Soccer Club's Colors?

The club colors are Royal Blue & White.



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Q. What is competitive soccer?

Competitive soccer is an opportunity for dedicated soccer players to improve and develop their skills beyond the recreational levels. Competitive soccer provides a level of competition beyond recreational soccer. Competitive soccer is governed by OYSA (Oregon Youth Soccer Association) and therefore teams from all over the state participate within competitive soccer leagues. At the age of U-11, competitive teams can enter a seeding tournament typically held during the second and third weekends of August. The purpose of the seeding tournaments is to place teams in appropriate levels of competition.

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Q. What are the goals of the competitive soccer program?

Our commitment is to achieve excellence in player development, teamwork, and sportsmanship by providing the highest quality programs for club members in an affordable, challenging, and safe environment. The club strives to create an environment for each player to develop their skills in a fun, positive, and educational setting.

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Q. Is competitive soccer a year round committment?

Our goal is to give each player the opportunity to play year round. Games will be held Saturdays and Sundays. Most teams will continue to play indoor winter soccer and outdoor spring soccer. It is up to the individual teams to determine the degree of commitment to winter and spring play.

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Q. How are the teams formed?

Players are chosen through tryouts. Teams will consist of 14-18 players. Not all players who attend tryouts will be chosen. Since the tryouts are in May, all players not chosen will still have the opportunity to play at the recreational level. The tryouts will consist of small-sided games and large, full-sided games if needed.

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Q. How are competitive leagues formed?

The teams are placed into divisions based on the results of a qualifying tournament played in early August. The better each team performs in this tournament, the higher the division in which they will play (e.g. Premier Gold, Premier Silver, Division I, and Classic).

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Q. How will I find out if I made a team?

Each player will be assigned a number during tryouts. After the tryouts have been completed, the number of the player (not the name) will be available for viewing on the website.

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Q. What will the costs be?

Because the decisions of each team vary, it's impossible to state an exact cost to play. To maintain our goal of providing quality soccer at an affordable cost, we select experienced but unpaid coaches. The player registration fee does not cover the costs of competitive soccer. The players will pay a monthly fee. The amount is up to each individual team. If the players and parents choose to pursue fundraising activities and secure sponsorship, most or all of the additional cost items can be paid from a team account. We encourage our teams to utilize fundraising activities to not only lower "out-of-pocket" cost, but also as an off the field team building experience.

Player registration fees for fall 2007 will be $38.00. Registration fees only cover the Oregon Youth Soccer Association player card and OYSA insurance for the entire year, as long as the player is registered with the team. Additional costs may be:

* Uniform
* Tournament entry fees

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Q. How much practice time is required?

This is up to the coach and each individual team. Teams typically have two or three practices per week.

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Q. Will we have to travel long distances to our games?

The majority of teams playing Competitive Soccer come from the Portland Metropolitan area and most matches are held in the Metro area. Competitive Soccer is statewide so the potential exists for more distant travel.

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Q. I have noticed that playing time isn't equally distributed between all players. Why?

In recreational leagues, we stress that our coaches distribute playing time evenly among all players. Some of our teams, however, play in competitive leagues and tournaments. Our coaches are given much more latitude to distribute playing time among those players who will give the team a greater chance of winning the game. If your son or daughter sees more playing time than other players, that may not mean his/her ability level is better than other players. It may be a choice of the coach to utilize a particular strength in your child that exploits a particular weakness in the opposition. The bottom line is that our coaches at the competitive level are not required to play every player equal amounts of minutes in every game.

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Q. Playing time at qualifying tournaments and State Cup.

At times such as Qualifying Tournaments and State Cup Tournaments club coaches will adopt a "play-to-win" attitude where the amount of playing time may not necessarily be satisfactory to the player and/or parent.

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Q. Background Checks

All Woodburn United Soccer Club Coaches and Managers are required to submit to a thorough background investigation that checks local and national law enforcement databases for felony and misdemeanor convictions.

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Q. Who leads our team?

The head coach for your team will lead your team. Typically, he/she will have an assistant coach. There will also be a team manager who will help communication between the coach and the team. The head coach will also communicate with the Director of Coaching to help with team management & strategies.

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Q. What does a team manager do?

The team manager acts as the facilitator of information between the coach and the parents. Team managers collect the monthly dues, keep track of who is behind in dues, complete necessary forms for tournaments, etc.

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Q. To whom do coaches answer to?

All club coaches are subject to the direction of the Board and the Head Coach. The Board has authority over teams in regards to player development and team progression. The authority of the Head Coach, as granted by the Board, supersedes a coach's authority regarding his/her team. If, in the Head Coach's opinion, a coach needs assistance, they will take appropriate action to see that assistance is rendered.

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Q. I have a problem with my child's coach. To whom do I speak?

The first step with any coaching problem is to speak directly to the coach. In most cases, issues can be easily resolved by a polite conversation with your son or daughter's coach. It is also a good idea, and a requirement of the club's by-laws, that the team manager be included in all coaching complaints. In this way, all parties are covered by a third, neutral party and the team manager can keep track of any trends in complaints.

If the problem is not resolved by speaking with the coach and the team manager, your next step is to bring the matter to the Head Coach. The Head Coach will attempt to bring the matter to a reasonable resolution that suits both parties involved. Additionally, your complaint will be brought to the Board. This is done simply to keep the Board informed of any potential situation it may have to act upon.

In the unlikely event that the Head Coach cannot resolve the issue, the final step is to speak directly with the Board. The Head Coach will schedule with the Secretary a special, closed meeting for the board. At this time, the Board will hear testimony from you, the Head Coach and any other parties it may see fit, including the coach. The board will carefully consider the issue and all testimony before making a decision. In a closed session, the board will render a decision based upon all available facts and arguments. You will be notified of the outcome after such time.

Please note that in the event of extreme circumstances the Club President will be notified immediately. The President will schedule an emergency closed meeting of the Board to discuss the actions of the coach and the board will render a decision at that time.

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Q. What if my child loses his/her uniform or it becomes damaged beyond repair?

You will have to replace the jersey at full cost. Depending upon availability, we may have extra uniforms that we can sell to you at a reduced rate. Otherwise, it may prove costly to have to replace a uniform.

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