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Travel Team Q’s & A’s  As noted in the last issue of ePost News, try-outs were an overwhelming success!  Due to the increase in numbers we’ve been able to expand our travel team program from 21 to 23 teams for the upcoming 2005-2006 season.  The increase in numbers has meant a dramatic increase in email and telephone inquiries (currently we’re receiving over 100 emails a day!).  We’re in the process of responding to each individual email and phone call, however, the volume prevents us from addressing these as quickly as we’d like and we thank you for your patience if you’re waiting for a reply.   In an effort to respond quickly to many of the questions we’ve received, here’s a compilation of the Travel Team program details that we have finalized to date.  General information is contained in the Parent-Player manual.  Topics addressed here are listed below.  Several areas are still in progress and there is no further information available at this time.  We strongly encourage use of our club website for information.  Items are posted as soon as they are finalized, so if the data you are seeking is not there, then it’s yet available.    Development Teams and First Teams   Coaching Rosters   Player Acceptances   Paperwork Sessions   Indoor Training Schedule   Outdoor Training Schedule   Tournaments   State Cup   Regionals    Development Teams and First Teams  We were pleased and flattered to see so many young players eager to join the ranks of our club at tryouts this year, but at the same time, this is also a challenging time for Far Post as we know there are more players at tryouts than we have positions available.   It’s always very difficult to say “no” to so many quality, committed players.  Our desire to work with players who have a passion for the game led to the inception of our “Development Team” concept two years ago.   Development teams travel to the same tournaments with the rest of the club, and compete in the competitive Vermont Soccer League, Division I with their fellow Far Post travel teams. Development team players pursue the same soccer curriculum through our winter indoor training program and have the opportunity for indoor play in the Far Post Futsal leagues.  They, like ALL Far Post players, have the option to attend Far Post Educational programs to further advance their training, and the following year’s tryouts offers them the opportunity to showcase all that they’ve learned during the prior year.   Far Post is pleased to offer six Development Teams for the upcoming season.  Some of these are combined ages (U11/12 Boys, U15/16 Girls, U15/16 Boys) and some are single-aged (U13 Boys, U14 Boys and U14 Girls); a true testament to the increasing number of tryout participants and Far Post’s commitment to providing club-level training and competition to as many qualified players as possible.  We’ve kept the name “Development Team” because it fits the philosophy of the concept.  Some players need an extra year or two of “development” to advance toward the “First Team” – be it physical, technical, or emotion development.  A Far Post Development Team serves a player’s passion and commitment to the game by enabling play at the “Club” level and by including that player as far of the Far Post family.   In addition to our development teams, Far Post has 16 “First Teams” for the 2005-2006 season, from ages U10 through U17/18 Boys and Girls.  For the U17 Boys, there is also a Reserve team, bringing the total to 23.  “We are very pleased with the increased interest in Far Post and are excited about the prospects for the upcoming season," says Executive Director Todd Kingsbury.  "We welcome the many new players to our Far Post family and look forward to working with them and our seasoned veterans."      Coaching Rosters  The official roster of coaches will be released later this week.  In the meantime, feel free to check the Personnel page of the website for biographical information on our coaching staff.  These pages are in progress will be updated over the next several weeks so we recommend that you check back periodically for more details.    Player Acceptances  Notifications have gone out to all players and rosters are being finalized.  If you haven’t officially completed the acceptance process, please do so right away.  The Player Acceptance process is complete when you have: Submitted your acknowledgement (online) of our Parent-Player Manual Remitted the deposit (50% of the Travel Team Fee)   If you have not done both of these steps kindly complete the process as soon as possible so we can finalize our rosters.  To complete your player acceptance follow these procedures: Click here for the "Parent-Player Manual/Player Acceptance" form. Review the Parent-Player Manual.   At the end of the document is a very brief online form to be completed and sent, indicating acceptance of the rostered position(s) and acknowledgement of the manual. If you have not remitted your deposit, you may pay online by either continuing from the Parent-Player Manual confirmation form, or by going to “Travel Team Online Payments.”    Paperwork Sessions  The acceptance procedures (noted above) register players with their respective teams.  A variety of paperwork is required for each player to participate in league matches and tournaments.  We have scheduled four Paperwork Sessions for families to handle paperwork needed for the upcoming season.  It is very important that you attend one of these sessions, any time during the hours indicated below.  Please review the paperwork requirements list so you’ll be sure to bring the proper documents with you.    Tuesday, October 25th from 5:00-8:00   Wednesday, October 26th from 5:00-8:00   Thursday, October 27th from 5:00-8:00   Saturday, October 29th from 10:00-2:00 Paperwork Requirements   Birth Certificates:  Only NEW players need to bring a copy with them; we have last year’s players’ on file.     Photos:      All players should accompany their parents so they can have a digital picture taken for their player pass.     If the players are unable to attend, parents should bring a 1 x 1 inch photo with them.     Medical forms:     All players must have a signed Vermont Soccer Association (VSA) medical form on file.      The forms will be pre-filled with family contact data but you’ll need your medical insurance information with you to complete the form.     As in the past, most tournaments require completion of their own medical forms.      Please be prepared to complete as many as 3 other medical forms.      Futsal:  players participating with their travel team-mates on a Futsal team must complete the Futsal waiver form and pay a one time $10 fee.    (See more on Futsal below.)     Uniforms:  we are fortunate enough to continue with the same uniform as the past two years.      Returning players only need to order if theirs is worn or doesn’t fit.      New players must order the entire kit.  (Estimated kit cost is $105 ~ U11-U17/18 teams).     U10 age players receive one uniform kit as part of the team fee.  Extra uniform pieces may be ordered at the group prices.     Samples will be available for players to try on.      Spirit Gear:  we’ll once again offer a variety of items containing the Far Post logo with samples available to try on.   *** NOTE:  It’s very important to note that registration session prices for uniforms and spirit gear are a one time offering.  Late orders will be subject to higher pricing due to lower order quantities and any applicable rush fees.   If you can’t attend a paperwork session, please notify us at admin@farpostsoccerclub.com so alternate arrangements can be made to take care of these important tasks.   Indoor Training Schedule  We are in the process of finalizing the winter indoor training schedule.  It will be posted to the website as soon it’s available.    Outdoor Training Schedule  We have submitted our requests for Spring/Summer outdoor field space to the area recreational departments.  These requests take several months to process so we won’t have outdoor training schedules available before March at the earliest.     Tournaments  We will be sending applications to the tournaments listed below as soon as they are available.  We will send notification via ePost as soon as our applications are approved by each tournament.   In the meantime, please mark these dates on your calendars:  Memorial Day Weekend ~ May 27-29, 2006   Wellesley (MA) Memorial Day Weekend Tournament ~ U10 Teams   Needham (MA) Invitational Soccer Tournament ~ U11 through U17/18 Teams  Father’s Day Weekend ~ June 17, 18, 2006   Nordic Cup (VT) ~ U10 through U17/18 Teams June 24-25, 2006   Suffield Invitational Soccer Tournament (CT) ~ U11 through U17/18 Teams   State Cup Matches   Generally the first weekend of June ~ U12 through U17/18 First Teams   Regionals   June 29 through July 4, 2006; Virginia Beach, VA ~ State Cup Championship Teams Return to top of page Futsal Registration Deadline ~ October 14! Since there are many new faces among our Travel Team families this year, we’d like to take this opportunity to explain about Futsal at Far Post and its relationship to our Travel Team program.  Futsal is one of the three major program areas at Far Post Soccer Club – the other two being our Travel Teams and our Educational Programs (which include developmental clinics and camps).  Far Post began offering Futsal five years ago to provide Far Post Travel Team players with a playing option during the indoor season that would enhance their Travel Team training.  It has grown to nearly 100 teams in 14 leagues from ages U10 through “Mens Over 35,” and coming this year, a U8 coed league!    We encourage you to visit the Futsal homepage for detailed information.  With its ‘wall-less’ field and low-bounce ball, Futsal greatly enhances players’ skills, compliments travel team training and is loads of fun ~ for all ages!  A Futsal team consists of 4 players and a goalie; rosters generally consist of 8 or 9 players to guarantee plenty of playing time.  While participation in Futsal is optional, all Travel Team players are strongly encouraged to play Futsal with their Far Post Travel Team-mates.   There are three sessions of Futsal, with Session I beginning in a few weeks.  Futsal takes place in the Sports and Fitness Edge (Williston) field house.  Most leagues run for 7 weeks, however for Session I, the Friday night leagues will be 6 weeks.   Because Futsal is a separate program from the Travel Teams, there is a separate fee to play.  The team fee of $600 is divided by the number of players on the team.  You can generally expect to pay between $70 to $75 per session.  (Note: For Session I the team fee is $525 for the 6-week Friday night leagues.)  A Futsal Waiver form must be completed for each player and accompanied by a one-time $10 registration fee that is forwarded to the Vermont Soccer Association so players can be registered and insured to play Futsal.  Each player receives a brightly colored Futsal T-shirt (see artwork above) at their first Futsal match; teams are identified by their colored Futsal shirt so players should wear them to every match.  At this point all Far Post Travel Team players should have been contacted either by their team manager or club Business Manager Paulette Bergeron to determine their interest in Futsal.  Although space has been reserved in the Futsal leagues for Far Post Travel Teams, the popularity of Futsal has greatly increased and there are now waiting lists in most leagues.  Because of the wait list situation, it’s very important to respond immediately so that we can determine if we’ll enter a team (or even two) for each Travel Team; and very important to note ~ Far Post players/teams that do not play in Session I are not guaranteed a spot in future sessions.     If you are on a Far Post travel team, and have not been contacted about Futsal, please indicate your interest by contacting paulette@farpostsoccerlcub.com right away ~ please indicate your name, and your Far Post Travel Team!  Don't miss this great opportunity to enhance your travel team training while having great fun with your team-mates! Click here to see your team's Futsal Schedule! Return to top of page Far Posters in the News  Meghan Begins, of the Far Post U17/18 Girls team was recently featured as an Athlete of the Week in the Burlington Free Press.   Meghan is a Junior at Mount Mansfield Union High School.   The Burlington Free Press Sports Department recently reported the following honors for Sept. 25-Oct. 2 for Vermont college athletes:   Andrew Lane, Johnson State College freshman of Charlotte, was named North Atlantic Conference rookie of the week after he recorded his fourth shutout and also backstopped an overtime win over Lyndon, allowing one goal and making nine saves.  Ashley Pfaff, Middlebury College freshman of Charlotte, was named NESCAC women’s soccer player of the week, scoring three straight goals in rallying the Panthers from a 1-0 deficit to a 3-2 win over Bowdoin.  Congrats to these former Far Post players.  Return to top of page Kristin Luckenbill to Provide Goalkeeper Training  Far Post is pleased to welcome former U. S. Olympic (2004) gold medalist Kristin Luckenbill to its coaching staff as a goal keeper trainer.  Kristin was the 2002 Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA) Goalkeeper of the Year and on the First-team All-WUSA.   A Philadelphia native, Kristin started playing soccer at the age of six and played almost every sport growing up.  She was an Olympic gold medalist in 2004 in Greece.  For WUSA she has been Goalkeeper of the Year, Founders Cup Champion and First Team All-WUSA in 2002.  She attended Dartmouth College and was a three-time All-America, four-time First Team All-Ivy League and Ivy League Player of the Year in 1999.  Kristin was the starting goalkeeper for the Vermont Lady Voltage’s inaugural season (2005).   Kristin is available for individual private lessons for budding goalies.  If interested, contact Todd Kingsbury at todd@farpostsoccerclub.com or 863-8161. Return to top of page Fall Programs for Players Ages 4 through 14!  Do you have a budding athlete, age 4-6, in your household who just loves kicking around a soccer ball?  Far Post Juniors is the perfect program for your 'little Pele.'  The primary goal of 'Juniors' is to foster a love of the game while improving the skills of young players.  Sessions are an hour per week over a six week period.  This increasingly popular program has now been expanded to a Tuesday or Thursday evening option. Far Post is considering possible further expansion of the Juniors program to a Saturday session if there is sufficient interest.  If you have a youngster interested in Far Post Juniors, let us know your schedule preferences by clicking here!  We appreciate your feedback.  For further information on Far Post Juniors, contact Executive Director Todd Kingsbury at todd@farpostsoccerclub.com or 863-8161.  Are you, or do you know a player seeking to enhance their soccer skills over the indoor season?  Far Post’s Schools of Excellence run throughout the fall, winter, and spring and are open to boys and girls, ages 7-14.  Sessions meet for 1 hour, once a week, for six weeks.  The Schools of Excellence are designed to improve individual skills and build that crucial technical foundation that is necessary for any soccer player to advance through the levels.  Sessions include fun soccer-related games that will challenge their ball control skills and put smiles on their faces.  For further information contact Education Director Ben Hardy at ben@farpostsoccerclub.com or 863-8161. Don't delay!  Check out these programs today and use ! Return to top of page   Texas Hold'em at the Waterfront Save this date:  Saturday, November 12 Benefits the U14 Boys Team Spring Trip to Holland