The Colonie Soccer Club's philosophy about recreational soccer is straight and to the point.

"We try not to do too much," director of player development Al Angelo said. "Simplicity is the case."

In other words, Colonie wants every child that participates, whether he or she is three- or 13-years-old, to have fun.

"What makes our program special is that it's for every kid, tall or short to play soccer for an hour or an hour and a half because they love to play," Angelo said.

The club's goal is to teach the players some rudimentary skills.

"We don't do it with Pre-K and kindergarten, but with the second and third grades," Colonie S.C. president Dave Franchi said.

Colonie attracts between 600-700 players for each of it's spring and fall seasons.

"People seem to enjoy it and keep coming back year to year," Franchi said.

The club holds a two-part coaches meeting every year, which gives them a structure on which to base their goals.

"We don't want to make it more than what it is and throw all sort of rules at them," Angelo said. "It's all about helping the kids to enjoy  the game, give them an hour of playing soccer and do it the best way we can."

Colonie's rec program begins for children at 42 months -- 3 1/2-years-old -- and runs through the eighth grade (13-years-old). Club officials are considering moving it up to the ninth grade, if there are enough players to fill two teams.

"You might have 20-30 kids who might want to get the exercise and kick the ball around," Angelo said. "And at that age they're not too bad."

Some players might not be interested in putting in the time that travel soccer demands or might not be as good as some of those players.

"Some kids want to play recreational soccer only," said Franchi, who has three children playing with the club at the U-8, U-12 and U-15 levels.

Angelo said that every player who has gone on in soccer, whether it was at a Division I college or at the professional level, had the same thing in common, starting in the rec program.

"The rec program for the masses is as important as the travel program for the travel kid," he said.

"Our rec program has been an essential part of our program on so many different levels, It's been huge. A win, win win all the way around."

Indeed, it has been.

The rec program, which helps pay for the facilities, is a feeder for the club's travel program.

The key to Colonie S.C.'s success is its work with the community and the Town of Colonie. "The town has been nice to us," Franchi said.

Colonie S.C. calls the Lisha Kill Sports Complex its home, although it also plays games on local school fields. The teams usually play on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Keeping costs down, especially in these difficult financial times for many families, is a must.

At Colonie, Rec soccer over a seven-week season costs $55 person child. That fee also includes a club t-shirt, a participation trophy and a team picture. "We try not to make money an issue here," Franchi said. "If the family needs help, we have scholarships. You're going to play whether you can afford it or not."

To help with the club's finances, Colonie S.C. has a local bank underwrite costs. The bank gives money to the club to keep the costs down. The club also has 14 local sponsors per season. Sponsor costs range from $300 for one season and $500 for both seasons in a year.

For example, a local veterinarian that sponsors the club was allowed a table with printed material about its practice at local soccer events. Angelo said the practice was "busting out of the seams with success. It generates more revenue for them, which is reasonable revenue."

It certainly doesn't hurt when youth players wear the club's garnet and gold soccer jerseys around town, giving the sponsors, whether they are a dentist, pizza restaurant, bank or a veterinarian, some more publicity.

Angelo said the club decided to change its colors to garnet and gold "to match our school colors because I wanted the continuity between our program and the school program."

The club and schools need each other. The soccer club needs fields, especially ones that are at little or no cost. The schools need players for its soccer teams.

"They're going to reap the benefits when the kids go up to the varsity or JV," Franchi said. "They know they're going to come up. It's a close-knit community here between the schools, coaches and the kids."

Colonie S.C. also understands how it important is for its high school-age players to be ready for the fall high school season. So, the club has summer sessions. So when pre-season begins in August, "players and teams . . . are prepared to go," Angelo said, and are "not coming out of a stupor."

Mike Trimarchi, the varsity coach at Colonie High School, is the club's director of coaching.

"A lot of recreational coaches don't have to be players," Franchi said. "They are parents. It's kind of a learning curve. It's good to have a coach to help us."

Trimarchi has multiple responsibilities with the club, which includes auditing coaching sessions to make sure everyone is on the same page, training the coaches and making suggestions.

"He is one of the former gurus in soccer in the community who has come back," Franchi said.

The flip side of working with schools is the cost of the facilities, especially during the harsh winters in the Albany area when players and teams cannot train outside.

"We are also lucky because the school system gives us the gymnasium free of charge," Franchi said. "Colonie has been great. They have been doling out times for us for years.

"There's a happy mixture out there. No one can do it alone. If we had to do paid practice at indoor facilities, it wouldn't be feasible. Fees have to go up and we do not have to raise our fees. We reduced our competitions fees this year. I'm definitely grateful to the school system and the athletic director to give us the free time.

"He understands these kids are part of the community and that they go back into the school system. Everyone is being on the same page."

Franchi tried to put the Colonie S.C. into perspective.

"It's not my club," he said. "It's not your club. It's part of the community