By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
October 3, 2018-The Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL), the largest league in the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA), held its first Petro Home Services Club Development Day of the fall last Saturday, September 29 at the Peter Collins Soccer Park in Plainview. This is the third consecutive year that the LIJSL is holding these festival-type events, free-of-charge for all squads, with two more dates scheduled for October 28 and November 17, also at the Collins Soccer Park.
Under-7 and Under-8 boys and girls teams from 17 LIJSL clubs from Hewlett/Lawrence to Manorville and Southampton played on 18 fields. Per US Soccer’s Players Development Initiatives, the teams played 4v4 with no goalkeeper, no ref, no scores, no standings and a number three ball. Teams played three high-energy, 20-minute games and Red Bulls coaches gave clinics to festival players on an adjacent field.
ENYYSA Director of Coaching Instruction Tim Bradbury was there and explained, “A festival such as this reaffirms the fact that the players need to play, they need to think and they need to create their own solutions. Coaches therefore should really only ask questions rather than giving orders.“
Many of the intramural players having fun had never played any teams outside their own club so it was new for them to play against different color shirts and different towns.
Manorville coach and former St. John’s University goalkeeper Jon Urbom said, “We’re coming back for the next Club Development Day on October 28.”
If the October 28 festival goes as well as the one on September 29, then Long Island soccer players will again be having a great deal of fun! For more info and to register for either October 28 and/or November 17, please contact Club Development Day Director Steve Padaetz at stevep@lijsoccer.com or 631-648-9020.
With over 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with nine leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log onto http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.