8/28/09 Opening Game Sharks vs. Jaguars

An opening day bonanza full of parades, games, goals and even face painting! Outstanding offense displayed by Shark's players Andrew Polkinghorne who displayed his dribbling skills along his way to scoring goals. Hands together as well for Shark's Cole Citarella for not only scoring, but his defensive tactics to help keep the ball away from the Shark's goal.

Opening Day Parade and Fun Festival

Opening Day Parade and Fun Festival

Saturday August 29, 2009
9:00 am – 2 p.m.

Assembly:
This year, all teams will be required to travel the parade route in a truck. This change has been made to shorten the duration of the parade and reduce the impact on downtown businesses. Teams should assemble with their coach and vehicle on Railroad Avenue (see Parade Staging Area diagram). The parade will begin from the corner of Railroad Avenue and Grant Avenue. Team trucks should line up by approaching from Olive and turning on to Railroad. Volunteers will direct team trucks. Trucks will be positioned in the parade based on their arrival times.

Team Truck Line-Up Times:
8:00 a.m. – Under 6, 7, and 8
8:20 a.m. – Under 9, 10,& 12
8:30 a.m. – under 14, 16, 19, All Upper House and Select

Players from all participating teams should arrive and find their team trucks by 8:30 a.m.

Teams should arrive on time and be dressed in full uniform except tennis shoes instead of cleats

Decorations, streamer, balloons, bubbles, pinwheels, noisemakers are highly encouraged!!!

Throwing candy or other objects to or from the trucks is strictly forbidden.

At 9:00 a.m. the parade will travel down Grant from Railroad to Virginia. At the end of the parade route, teams will be directed right on Virginia and then left into the parking lot of Our Lady of Loretto School. Team trucks will be directed into parking spaces and coaches should stay with their teams until all players have been picked up by parents. Our goal is to avoid a traffic jam on Virginia Avenue.


Parents – Please pick up your children promptly at the end of the Parade!
Coaches – You are responsible for team members until they are released to a parent

Team trucks must park at Our Lady of Loretto at the end of the parade.
Trucks may not leave this area with passengers in the bed.

Parents please park away from Railroad Avenue for drop off and outside of Our Lady of Loretto for player pick up in the suggested parking areas and walk to these locations.
No vehicles other than team trucks will be allowed into these areas.

Parade Staging Area on Railroad Ave.
Player Pick Up In Our Lady of Loretto’s Lot

Opening Day Fun Festival – 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., Indian Valley College Soccer Fields
Come on out and watch the U6 teams play their very first games ever at Indian Valley College! There will be food and drink for sale and fun activities for all ages. Arts and crafts, several soccer and non-soccer related games and even a special wet surprise for coaches will be on hand for the league’s first ever Opening Day Fun Fest! We hope to see you there!

Volunteers are still needed for the parade! Please let your coach know if a family member can help out.

The Novato Police Department Reminds Us Parade Rules Will Be Strictly Enforced!
· No Pets Allowed

· No Alcoholic Beverages Allowed

· No Smoking Allowed

Welcome Sharks!

NYSA Opening Day and U6 Fun Fest

Coaches/Team Managers,

The Opening Day Parade is set for August 29th from 9am to 10:30 am. The kids will need to ride in the back of a truck for the parade (no walking). You can decorate the truck however you would like, and each team should make a banner with their team name (it can have kid’s names and team logo, if you’d like). If the coaches don’t have a truck, touch base with player’s families to see if anyone on the team has a truck that can be used.

This will be followed immediately by the U6 Fun Fest to be held from 11am to 2pm at Indian Valley Campus of Marin City College (on Ignacio). The U6’s will go first at the parade so they can get to IVC in plenty of time. The Opening Day Fun Fest will be a day of fun, games, and prizes. Come cheer on the U6 teams as they play their first-every NYSA games. There will be soccer-type games, face painting, crafts, and a snack shack for older kids as well.

Plans for U6 Fun-Fest

Games

· There will be 6 total games played (each team will play one game)

o The first set 3 of games will go from 11-11:45 am

o The second 3 games will start at noon

· Activities for the kids will be available for the duration of the Fun Fest (see below)

· We will have Photo Day for U6/U7/U8 teams





Activities

· Juggling (demonstrations by various select team players)

· Face painting and tattoos station – provided by league

· Musical balls game (like musical chairs but with a ball that gets taken away instead of a chair)

· Sack races

· “Easter Egg Hunt” game

· Crab soccer – mini games of soccer to be played on the ground (can be very small – even 2 v2)

· Target practices

· Relay game



Prizes/Game cards

· Each time a child participates in a game they receive a check mark (20 boxes on cards for checks)

· every 5 checks they receive a small prize from a prize basket

· For every child who participates in 5 activities (or receives 5 checks – can be same activity multiple times) gets put into a raffle. Raffle prizes are soccer balls (20) provided by NYSA



Other

Food/snack shack – snack shack with prepared, healthy snacks (lots of water, granola bars, fruit, Gatorade)

Arts and crafts booth ($2 for 3 crafts)

Welcome Message From our Coach

Hello Team:

My name is Geoff Shepherd and I will be coaching our children’s U6 soccer team. I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself and my family and outline some of the goals I hope to accomplish this season, as well as provide some important details in preparing for the season.

My daughter, Zoe (age 5) is extremely excited and is looking forward to the season. The Shepherd cheering section will include my wife, Julie (age omitted), as well as my oldest daughter, Cali (age 7). We moved to Novato in 2006 and enjoy being a part of the Novato community. I am a local business owner in town and am fortunate enough to live and work here in Novato.

With regard to my soccer knowledge, I played recreational soccer through high school, as well as some adult recreational leagues, but it has been years since I have been on the field as a player, so I am sure the kids will have me running.

Thankfully, Patti Moresco, the mother of Dominic Moresco, has offered to co-coach with me. If there are any other parents who would like to participate as a coach, please let me know. My goal is to run a practice that promotes parent participation, so if you are there watching the practice, hopefully you will not mind if I bring you into the activities.


In terms of practice, I have signed up for the following:

Days: Tuesday & Thursday

Time: 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Location: Pleasant Valley Elementary School

· The target date for the first practice is Thursday, August 13th (please advise of any conflict)


My goals for the season are the following:

1. Have Fun! I want each and every player to come away with a positive experience looking forward to the next season

2. Safety. From inspecting the field prior to practice, to conducting drills that are age appropriate, to ensuring that every child has a ride home with an identified adult after practice, the safety of the children is very important.

3. Skill introduction. I am looking forward to observing the varying degree of skill level, and my goal is to introduce the basic skills that will help to prepare them for advancing to the next level. I am open to any suggestions/assistance parents may have with regard to specific drills.

4. Communication. I want to keep all lines of communication flowing amongst myself, the team, and the parents. Below I will provide all of my contact information, please do not hesitate to contact me at any time with any suggestion, question or concern.

5. Have Fun! Yep it is there twice – this age group wants to run and play, and I do not want to get in the way of that. Plus, we parents can have fun in the process.


I need your help with regard to a team name. I asked my daughters for some ideas, and there was some interesting offers (“Doug” from the movie up was one). If you and your child can please choose one of the following, the name with the largest number of votes will be our official team name:

1. Strikers

2. Pumas

3. Sharks


If you have a name that you really think is perfect I am open to suggestions, but I do not want to make the team name process too complicated.

Here are some important dates to be aware of:

August 29th – Parade, Picture Day, and Opening Day

September 3rd – No practice (Pleasant Valley Open House)

November 8th – USF Novato Youth Soccer Day (all league participants get in free @ USF soccer game)

I am looking forward to the season and getting to know the parents and the kids. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.

Sincerely,



Geoff Shepherd