The following is an attempt to describe the Dudley Soccer Club's mission, structure, goals and procedures:

The Dudley Soccer Club is a non-profit organization that organizes and administers soccer for the youth of Dudley. We are affiliated with Mass Youth Soccer and the United States Youth Soccer Association, as well as participants in several leagues within our area.

The Club is governed by a seven member board, elected by the parents/guardians of the players. The Club's annual meeting and election is on the first Saturday in November.

Players are placed in groups or on teams based on their age. The national soccer year runs from August 1-July 31, meaning a player's age on August 1 each year determines his "soccer age" for both the fall and following spring season. For example, if you are 6 years old on August 1, 2010, then you are considered a U7 (Under-7) for the fall 2010 and spring 2011 seasons.

The Club sponsors soccer for age groups U6 through U16. Our youngest age group is U6, for kids 5 but less than 6 years old on August 1. At this age, beginning Spring or fall season, we will create individual coed teams. All teams will practice in Dudley on Saturday mornings for 30 minutes, followed by a short game, with the total time spent at the field being one hour and 15 minutes. All teams practice and play at the same time and same location. All players receive a Dudley Soccer Club tee shirt.

The next age group is U7 and U8. At this age we form teams of 10-12 kids for our in town program. Teams may be gender distinct or coed, depending on the mix of kids who register. They will practice once a week and play one game a week.

For the kids who want more of a challenge we offer a travel team that will compete against similarly formed teams from nearby towns.This team(s) will be formed by an evaluation process

Once you graduate from U7/8, all teams are travel teams and are gender distinct. They are also set-up in two-year groupings: U10, U12, U14 and U16. Sometimes we have enough kids to have more than one team at an age group. It is our current philosophy to establish multiple teams at an age group based on ability (with evaluations/try-outs to make that determination), in order to provide the most appropriate challenge for each player. These tryouts will be held after the spring season for both the fall and the following spring.

Soccer is played in both the spring and fall, with the spring season being the more competitive--providing the opportunity for league and state playoff competition. Additionally, individual teams may choose to play in tournaments during either season.

Registration fees are charged to cover the cost of state and national affiliation, insurance, league and referee fees, equipment, training and maintenance. Uniforms are purchased for $45, and are collected from U10 and older players There is also a $5 fee for each pair of socks. Players keep these uniforms. No Dudley Soccer officials are compensated.

We hope you find this summary of Dudley Soccer helpful. If you have any questions, please send an e-mail from the home page of this web site. Please also sign our Guest Book (click the Contact List link on the home page) in order to receive e-mails regarding Club activities, such as upcoming registration dates.
 

Mission Statement

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