FAQ

SnVYSA Policies and Procedures

Advanced Development Program

Please refer to the information flyer attached and to the Bylaws, Article XII.

Age

Your soccer age is determined by your date of birth. The soccer year regarding age is August 1 to July 31. If you turn 12 on July 31, you are a U13. If you turn 12 on August 1, you are a U12.

Playing Up: A player may request to play up one age group. Any such request will be considered on an individual basis. Consideration will be based on the reason for the request (i.e., to play with other players in the same grade), whether there is room in the older age group for the move (no player is to be removed from a team to make room for someone requesting to play up) and what the move will do to the team the player would be leaving.

Playing Down: A player may request to play on a team one age group below said player’s ONLY due to a medical dispensation. The granting of the request shall be contingent upon the player’s registration form being accompanied by a doctor’s recommendation explaining the condition requiring play at a younger level, a signed Hold Harmless form and approval by the Association Board of Directors. Any such granting will only be effective for one season and must be renewed at each registration period. In the event a player is allowed to play down, in actuality the team is registered at the oldest player’s age and the team is then allowed to play down. This is only effective “in Association”. A team entering tournaments, interlocked in play with another association or participating in district play must play at the age of the oldest player.

Birth Certificates

Verification of date of birth is mandatory for all players not previously registered with SnVYSA and will be accomplished by submitting a photocopy of the player’s birth certificate to the Club Registrar at the time of registration. A registration form without the accompanying birth certificate will not be considered valid until the birth certificate is provided. In lieu of the birth certificate, a photocopy of a current passport in the player’s name or a military identification card in the player’s name will suffice for verification of birth date. In the event a person has a foreign birth certificate, the same must be translated by a qualified translator on the form for said purpose. The form can be found in the WSYSA Registrar Handbook.

Club Expenses

Club expenses such as miscellaneous postage, copies, long distance calls, office supplies (envelopes, labels, etc.) will be reimbursed upon presentation of receipts at the monthly Board of Directors meetings. Individual item expenses greater than $50.00 must be moved and approved in advance by the Board of Directors. This approval can be given via a telephone vote or email vote and said proof of vote brought to the next Board Meeting for inclusion in the Minutes.

Club Rep Responsibilities

The Club Rep is the liaison between the Association Board of Directors and its coaches. They have the responsibilities of player registration, team formation, dispensing equipment, collect and inventory equipment, submit field use forms, field maintenance, holding preseason (July/August) and postseason (November) club meetings. In addition the Club Rep may be called upon to assist Association Officers in the implementation of their responsibilities (i.e., contact coaches for clinics, provide coach and player information for scheduling, secure meeting locations). The position of Club Rep is voted on by the coaches in the club at the November club meeting. Club Reps will complete all documentation as required by the Board to include, but not limited to, Risk Management paperwork and Code of Ethics.

Coach Responsibilities/Training

Pursuant to US Soccer implementation of licensing requirements SnVYSA will provide in-house training and WSYSA licensing training for its coaches. Coaches are required to attend age level appropriate training and are also required to complete Risk Management requirements. In addition, all coaches will be provided with current Rules of Competition and complete original player registration forms, which they are to have on hand at all practices and games. Further, coaches are required to complete a Coaching Application, sign a Coaches Code of Ethics and complete the Risk Management process mandated by WSYSA.

Coaches will hold at least the minimum WSYSA licensing as follows:

Level 1 U6-U8

Level 2 U8-U10

“E” U11 and above

Field Maintenance

Each club needs to form a Field Maintenance Committee which will have the following duties and any others as needed:

1. Lining fields

2. Putting up/taking down nets

3. Anchoring goal posts

4. Perform cost effective and responsible maintenance (i.e., filling holes in the field)

5. Act as stewards of the fields to coordinate relationships with other sports organizations in the mutual maintenance of the fields

6. Perform regular field evaluations with proposed improvements

Field Use Agreements

Coaches may not complete and submit forms for the use of the fields within the Association’s boundaries. Individual club representatives have the responsibility of completing the necessary paperwork in order to secure fields for the upcoming season for practices and games.

First Aid Kits

Each team is encouraged to put together a first aid kit. Supplies should include the following: Band-Aids, antiseptic wipes, gloves, an ace bandage, cold packs (or ice), baggies, scissors, gauze pads and athletic tape. Other items that may be useful include tweezers, sling, tissue, sunscreen, tylenol and advil (to be dispensed by the player’s parent).

Game Cancellations/Reschedules

In general, games are not cancelled due to inclement weather except for lightning. The referee, however, has the ultimate responsibility of insuring player safety and has the authority to cancel a game in the event player safety is at risk.

Teams are expected to play their games as scheduled. Requests to reschedule by Association teams must be submitted in writing to the Area Rep of each team three (3) weeks prior to the regular scheduled game for approval and if approved, the rescheduled game must be played within three (3) weeks of the original date or prior to the last scheduled season game, whichever is sooner. Requests to reschedule by District teams must be submitted in writing to the District Rep for approval. District teams whose referees are provided by ECKSRA may incur additional fees because of a reschedule whether due to, but not limited to, a change of field location and/or time, canceling game without prior approval, not showing up at a scheduled game without notifying anyone (visiting teams included) and/or rescheduling without approval. Entering tournaments and having a tournament game on the day of a regular season game is not grounds for rescheduling. Said game will be forfeited and the visiting team will enter a score of 1-0 in their favor. The only WSYSA sanctioned reschedule events are conflict with the Canadian Exchange or conflict with the President’s Cup.

Goal Posts/Anchoring

All goal posts must be securely anchored in the ground prior to the start of teams practicing in a manner that best suits the playing surface but does not create other hazards to players. Develop and follow a plan for periodic inspection and maintenance. After the season is over (and unless the goals are permanently anchored [i.e., Carnation Elementary]) remove the goals from the fields and secure so that they cannot be tipped over. See flyer attached.

Monies Received

All monies received will be deposited into the SnVYSA General Operating Account as soon as possible after receipt but no later than three (3) business days of receipt (unless otherwise meant for the Field Development Account or Charitable Solicitations Account whereupon said monies shall be forwarded to the Treasurer for deposit).

Insurance

For more information on insurance coverage provided through WSYSA go to www.wsysa.com.

Jamboree

Generally SnVYSA has two jamboree locations. Carnation and Duvall hold a jamboree for their clubs in Carnation. North Bend, Snoqualmie and Fall City hold a jamboree for their clubs in North Bend. The Area Reps involved in each jamboree will have a meeting in June for initial planning and to secure the photographer and location(s) for their jamboree. Each jamboree committee should report to the Board in July as to their plans for Board approval of activities planned as well as anticipated expenses. All monies generated from jamboree fundraisers are to be deposited into the SnVYSA General Operating Account. Jamboree expenses, if any, are to be brought to the Board for payment. Payment is not to be made out of fundraising proceeds taken in at jamboree.

Referee Clinics

The Vice President of Development has the responsibility of scheduling USSF licensing clinics. In addition to the licensing clinic(s) each Club will have at least one in-house (non-licensed) ref clinic prior to the start of the season. Clubs may have joint in-house clinics. Anyone from any club is welcome at any clinic. Likewise, a referee may officiate anywhere in the Association. They are not restricted to the club in which they may reside.

NSF/Account Closed Check

Checks that are returned to the Treasurer due to insufficient funds or the account being closed will carry a $5.00 resubmit fee. If the check is for the purposes of player registration, the registration becomes void until the check and fee are made good.

Porta Potties

Porta potties will be secured for all locations used for practices and games by midAugust and through the end of the regular playing season (November). The individual school will need to be contacted in order to give instructions as where to place them and how they wish them to be secured. It will be determined at the July Board Meeting who will take the responsibility for this scheduling and which fields will need porta potties.

Referee Coordinators

Each Club is responsible for assisting in assigning referees to all home games for U9 through U13. Ideally each Club should have a Referee Coordinator to oversee this procedure. A person assigned to ref a game must be two (2) years older than the age of the team on the field and in order to receive payment cannot be related to any player on either team. Referee Coordinators are to keep records indicating the name of the referee, date of game, home coach of record, age group and field location and submit such records to the Board on a monthly basis to coincide with the monthly Board meetings. Referee Coordinators are not to pay the referees with their own personal funds. The per game fee will be determined by the SnVYSA Boards of Directors each year prior to the start of the season. FIFA licensed referees will be paid the same as “in-house” referees for recreational, non-district U11 through U13 games (teams in these age groups that play with an outside Association are still Association teams, not district teams).

Registration Information

Registration information will be sent out through Valley newspapers and flyers sent home with school children. In addition, Clubs can advertise on school reader boards or sandwich boards and information sheets can be left at banks, libraries, stores, etc.

Registrations will be considered timely when received no later than June 1st. Registrations received after June 1st will have a late fee. For additional registration information and procedures please refer to SnVYSA Rules of Competition, Article IV (and more specifically No. 3).

Coaches will be given the entire registration form containing original signatures.

Team Names/Sponsors

Each team will be registered with WSYSA as follows: Club Name/Coach's Last Name. Each team, however, may choose a name (i.e., 'Sounders') so long as the name is in the spirit of the game of soccer. Coaches are required to submit the team name to their Area Rep for approval. The Association Board of Directors reserves the right to disallow any name.

Coaches must outline, review with Area Rep the nature and extent of sponsorship (i.e., advertising by placing logo on uniform/t-shirt) and seek approval PRIOR to accepting sponsorship(s). Any team accepting sponsorship without having first received the approval of the Association will be required to meet with the Board of Directors and may risk not being allowed to participate in play and/or not being allowed to wear the uniform bearing the logo of an inappropriate sponsor. “Inappropriate”, as used herein, shall be deemed to mean anything that would be detrimental to the character, health and promotion of youth soccer.

Based on recommendations received from CPAs knowledgeable in nonprofit tax laws and situations (including former WSYSA Treasurer Dave Painton), at no time will SnVYSA’s Tax Identification Number be handed out to coaches and/or sponsors.

T-Shirts/Uniforms

T-shirts:

Each club will be assigned a t-shirt color each season and all teams in that club with the exception of the micro teams will be that color. All teams modified and older will need to carry white t-shirts as their alternate jersey in the event of a color conflict -- home team changes!

Teams Purchasing Uniforms:

If a team wishes, they may purchase uniforms. There are, however, some conditions and restrictions. The uniform color (presently forest green and white) worn by the Advanced Development Teams (Cascade Select) may not be worn by SnVYSA recreational teams. All Cascade Select teams wear the same uniform which is by decision of a majority vote of the Advanced Development Board (head coaches of Cascade Select teams).

If a team decides to purchase uniforms that are not the color assigned to that team’s club and they play another team that was assigned the color of the uniforms purchased, the team must wear their SnVYSA assigned t-shirts for said game. It does not matter whether the team in uniforms is the home team or the away team. SnVYSA assigned colors take precedence over nonassigned uniforms.