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By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association 

November 15, 2021-As the School Fall Sports Season reaches its conclusion, two girls born in 2008 are making names for themselves. Both play for the Olympic Development Program (ODP) 2008 South Team of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA).

Ruby Erstein of Roslyn is an eighth grader who played against boys as a member of the Schechter School of Long Island boys varsity soccer team. She started in the Private Schools Athletic Association (PSAA) Metro Conference final against Waldorf.

The football team of Howitt Middle School in Farmingdale struggled with an inconsistent kicking game. Coaches took notice of Gianna Recine’s strong foot while she was practicing with the middle school girls soccer team at the other end of the field.

“I asked Gianna to come over and practice a few field goal kicks,” said middle school football coach Colin Leary. “It was obvious she was more than capable.” 

After squaring away all the protocols with the Athletic Department and getting her parents’ blessing, Gianna threw on football pads and practiced with the team. 

She went 3 for 3 in extra points in her debut against Oceanside, kicking the football dead center through the uprights. Farmingdale was victorious with a 36-0 win.

“Ruby and Gianna are excellent soccer players who tried out for ODP and made the team. We look forward to their continued success athletically and scholastically,” stated ODP Director Jim Volpe.

 

In club soccer, Ruby plays for the Long Island Soccer Club while Gianna wears the green and white of the Farmingdale Soccer Club.
 

 

Gianna Recine. Photo courtesy of the Farmingdale School District.

With approximately 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. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
 
August 20, 2019-The Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is very pleased to announce that Deanna Schlott is receiving a Patricia Louise Masotto and Brenda Driscoll Scholarship. 
 
The Hopewell Junction resident is a member of the National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society at John Jay High School. Deanna volunteers in tutoring foreign exchange students from Guatemala and is applying for a seal of biliteracy in New York State.

She received the Patricia D’Amato Exemplary Character and Citizenship Award last year. She wrote in her essay that she hopes “to become a Physician Assistant in dermatology after my schooling and coach soccer for town leagues.”

Currently in the East Hudson Youth Soccer League (EHYSL), she plays for East Fishkill Bobcats and referees for the East Fishkill Soccer Club.

The Masotto/Driscoll Scholarship is based on academic and athletic excellence as well as community service. The scholarship’s namesakes, Patricia Louise Masotto and Brenda Driscoll, were best friends and top women’s soccer players from Massapequa, Long Island and Eastern New York set up a scholarship in their name after they were killed by a drunk driver in 1985.

We wish Deanna the best of luck in studying biology and playing soccer at Oneonta State.

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 on to http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association 

September 1, 2022-As the Metrokids Youth Soccer League hosted their Champions Cup at Frank Principe Park in Maspeth on Saturday, August 27, the park was crowded with activity as the Metrokids were playing on one field and there were pick-up soccer games on the other field.

One mile away at another Metrokids field, Big Bush Park in Woodside, that park was very quiet with one child in the playground with his mother and two men talking while sitting on a bench. The soccer field had no activity, organized or pick-up, as the field is badly in need of repairs.

New York City Parks & Recreation’s website describes the park as a “hub of recreation for Woodside families, and a delightful play space for kids. The park features a large synthetic turf ballfield for soccer and other sports.”

The turf field at Big Bush Park is not the state-of-the-art Field Turf and Sprinturf that has been the most popular forms of turf for the past two decades since it resembles natural grass. Big Bush’s surface is Astroturf. When the many repairs needed to be made to the surface during the past few years, the field was patched up. Unfortunately, the surface is now very worn and the remaining turf has divots, a danger to the players who run up and down on the field. 

The Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is again calling on New York City government to put in a new turf surface. Without help from the government so far, Metrokids has a Go Fund Me page to raise $50,000 to help repair the field so everyone can safely play there:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-renovate-big-bush-soccer-field

With approximately 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 10 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. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/

By Tim Bradbury, Director of Coaching Instruction, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

People hate change and, based upon actions I observe and comments I hear, most people would prefer the status quo and go down with a sinking ship than go about doing things differently. As I have written and presented about on numerous occasions, youth sports in the US has issues. At the heart of many of the problems is the simple truth that many coaches and parents put winning before development. They are more happy for their child’s team to have a winning record than to see their child learn to master the fundamental skills and ideas of the game.

The problem is more serious than that, I believe. It would be true to say that a large number of parents and coaches, given a choice between development or winning––you can have one or the other, would unfortunately jump to the give me the win, nothing else matters, position very quickly. Leagues, clubs, governing bodies and administrators frequently caught up in the moral dilemma of “We can do what is right by the players or we can try to placate the parents (in the hope we do not lose some registrations)," unfortunately have often been forced into decisions based on self-preservation.

So US Soccer, in a brave and amazing move, recently made sweeping changes to the game format across all leagues and clubs. That is right, regardless of which banner you play under and claims to the contrary, within the next 12 months, all will be playing from the progression in numbers from 4v4, 7v7, 9v9 and 11v11 model. This decisive and sweeping change was brave enough and had player development at its heart. Thankfully in some situations they went even further to protect the game and player development and so we have the 7v7 build out line.

The concept is a simple one. On any goal kick, the opposing team is forced to drop behind a line on the field (equidistant between the edge of the penalty area and the half way line) until the goalkeeper's pass leaves the goal area. Brilliant! Even better, goal keepers in this age group are no longer allowed to punt the ball (mindlessly down the field to their lone forward, who is often heavily outnumbered). At last changes in the game that make developmental sense.

Admittedly the change only makes sense if you understand the following logical recipe:

1. Players learn and develop by touching the ball in a controlled fashion.

2. Players learn to make decisions by having the ball and being allowed to decide what to do with it (without fear as the driver).

3. The more passes a team plays, the more each player touches the ball and, therefore, the more they learn about the game.

4. Any team or coach who states they are most invested in player development is therefore honor bound to play a possession-based game. Yes. playing style and formation do have a direct impact on player development.

5. Possession soccer starts with the goalkeeper playing a calm and short pass to his nearest supporting player.

6. This pass causes the chain reaction in which passing and possession breaks out and player development occurs.

There are not many hard and fast rules in soccer but the recipe presented above for player development at younger ages is without doubt something we should enthusiastically encourage.

Thankfully, US Soccer understood this and initiated the build-out line described above. How do I know people hate change, because despite all of the above there are those that say they hate the build out line but put player development first? For the record, this statement makes no sense. It’s a bit like the parents who claim they know the screaming hurts and yet go to every game and yell at their child every time they touch the ball.

This rule change presents a chance for a real tipping point, a change in culture where learning skills and having fun get placed as a priority before win, win, win. This will only happen if all concerned coaches, refs, educators and administrators take the time to both support this change and teach parents what it is all about.

As I said, not many absolutes in soccer but the build-out line idea is one we can bank on.

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
 
June 8, 2018-Sometimes, soccer can be confusing. In the Boys Under-13 State Open Cup finals on June 2 at Stringham Park in LaGrange, FC Select Green wore orange uniforms and Stony Brook Red Star wore white.

D.J. Parouse scored the first goal for FC Select Green and Michael Haro had the game-winner on a left-footed shot to squeak out a 2-1 win.

“The game was pretty competitive,” stated FC Select Green coach Andre Duncan. “We had a little bit extra push and more energy."
 
FC Select Green is also taking the Rocco Amoroso Sportsmanship Award, as determined by the game officials, back to Brooklyn. Amoroso, a US Soccer Life Member who died in 2016, started the Sportsmanship Program of the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) in 1980 and it spread to Eastern New York, nationally and then to China and Ireland, and in the process, made soccer games kinder and gentler.

FC Select Green will represent both the Cosmopolitan Junior Soccer League (CJSL) and Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) at the Regionals from June 29 to July 3 in Spotsylvania, Virginia as part of the National Championship Series.
 
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 11 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.

By Tim Bradbury, Director of Coaching Instruction, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

The youth soccer landscape is more fragmented and complicated than ever. I am not sure whether those ingrained in the youth soccer scene truly understand it. Keeping track of the changes at all levels of the game is practically a full-time job. So trying to ascertain what may be the best developmental place for a player is difficult at best. I believe it is also difficult for any club to decide which leagues, cups, winter events etc. to play in to form the best possible developmental program for its players.

I firmly believe that in the current youth climate, Clubs need to evolve to become TRUE CLUBS and not just a collection of teams playing under the same name and same colors. To this end, I urge any club seeking to offer a transformational rather than transactional experience for their players follow the recipe offered below:

1. Decide on your philosophy and associated core values – include your non-negotiables, those things that you will simply never go back on.

2. Take the above and build your mission statement – the WHY of what you offer.

3. Based on one and two above, you should be in a place to define specifically your playing style and coaching methodology.

4. The quality of your coaches will be the major factor on the developmental projectory of your players so be sure to have a definite policy on A. Their responsibilities, B. Their job description, C. The qualifications required to fill the role.

5. For each age group, design a specific calendar of events and be sure to include number of games and training sessions

6. For the parents – acknowledge their importance and engage with them on a regular basis. Include a calendar of Club-wide parent meetings by age and team specific parent meetings.

7. For your board and for your coaches, be sure to build a calendar of events that include work meetings, social meetings and development meetings.

8. For your whole club, create a calendar of social events that go beyond soccer. Create a social environment that shows the parents and players you care about them beyond soccer.

9. Create a feedback mechanism that works throughout the Club and enables open and honest communication

10. Design a job description for one or more Director of Coaching’s that enables them to focus on coach development rather than player development

11. Create a pass-back program that is responsible for ensuring that those players old enough develop some sense of social responsibility and give back to the community your club is placed within.

12. Schedule a series of player meetings based around helping them deal with the stresses of being a student athlete –some examples: goal setting, dealing with stress, nutrition and rest, college process.

13. Set up a definite plan for the manner in which disputes and problems are handled. One which is open, honest and fair.

14. Design and have in place a Grow the Game Committee, that is responsible for growing the game by offering soccer participation programs to kids who do not yet play.

I believe that if we can redefine Clubs and the way they function, all our players, parents and coaches will be much more likely to stay in the game for life.

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations
Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

November 6, 2018-Are you ready for some futsal? With the weather having turned colder, soccer fields will soon become unplayable so the winter is the time for players to continue to improve on their ball control skills by playing the developmental game of futsal.

Having kicked off in 2010 with 24 teams, New York Futsal has grown exponentially and enters its 10th season this winter expecting nearly 200 youth soccer teams to register once again under the umbrella of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA). Officially, New York Futsal is a recreational club of the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL). New this year are the Rec and Plus Divisions and with teams from US Soccer’s Development Academy taking part, New York Futsal is arguably the most competitive futsal league in all of New York State.

Part of the popularity of futsal is it only takes five to play and the league kicks off on Saturday, December 1 and concludes on the first weekend in March. Venues include the Joan of Arc Elementary School, the Sarah Anderson School and PS87 on the Upper West Side, the Dwight School on the Upper East Side plus the Tito Puente Education Complex in Spanish Harlem. In a sign of the growth of the game, Tito Puente is the first school in New York City with permanent futsal lines on the gym floor.

Futsal promotes quality touches and ball control in tight spaces and players utilize those skills when they return to playing soccer outdoors in March. Many of Brazil’s best players ever such as Pelé, Zico, Socrates, Bebeto, Ronaldinho and Marta all played a version of futsal as children.

International futsal coaches Maciej Woloszy and Pablo Guere, Red Bulls coaches Sebastian Gonzalez and Steven Steadham plus New York Futsal’s own Jaime Arias will be giving expert training to the players.

The registration fee per team is $1,600, which includes 10 weeks of league play plus playoffs. If a family registers a child as an individual, it’s $275 and New York Futsal puts the player on a team and gives him or her a uniform and a coach. To register to play futsal this winter, log on to: http://nyfs.siplay.com/site/

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 on to http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.