For the next two months, the fields at Brennan Park will be overrun with hundreds of soccer players playing in dozens of leagues with hordes of parents huddling on the sideline and braving the rain.
Youth soccer is back and according to the 麻豆社国产Youth Soccer Association president Katrina Doherty, local kids are still eager to learn and play the beautiful game.
Every year seems to be a success, she said. Were pretty consistent with our numbers and its great to see so many children playing the game they love.
Doherty said 83 association teams formed this year 71 house teams and the remainder being travel or rep teams.
With 890 kids signed up, the numbers are slightly lower than last year but still on par with those of previous years.
After spending three years as the groups vice-president, its Dohertys first year as the acting president of the SYSA and she said shes looking forward to the year ahead.
It must have been a moment of weakness when I took on the role of president, she laughed.
Id like to do this role for a year and go from there. My kids are getting older and the number of years I can be involved is limited. I think this year, in particular, we have an amazing group of executives and strong people working with equipment details and scheduling. Im going to get a lot of quality support.
Quest University soccer coach Adam Day is the groups technical director and has been implementing a goal of player development for the town as a whole over the last number of years.
Doherty said the SYSAs goals are to keep players coming back and keep them enjoying the sport.
We always want to have as many children as possible return and continue playing the game, she said. And above all, for them to have fun and enjoy the game.
She also explained why she believes soccer is so strong in this community.
I think 麻豆社国产is a fairly multi-cultural community and soccer is a game that is played and loved on every continent, she said.
Soccer is a mainstay sport wherever you are in the world and for a lot of people, its the sport they know and pass on to their kids.
The SYSA has been working with a number of groups, including the Whitecaps, to try and get kids more interested in soccer from an early age, another one of the groups goals.
We are happy to try and provide any type of soccer experience we can, she said. Anything we can support and bring to town, we try to.
She thanked the many parents and volunteers who devote their time to helping out.
Im eternally grateful to all the people who volunteer their time every week, she said. Weve actually even had a number of people who have kids who have grown up stay involved and help out with coaching.
The SYSA is still looking for referees and there are a few spots still available on select teams for those parents who havent yet signed up their kids.
The SYSA season runs from mid-September to mid-November then resumes again in mid-February. For more information on the SYSA, visit www.squamishsoccer.ca.
