Stanford Soccer Club


	Tryouts
	How to Join a Stanford Soccer Club Team All Stanford Soccer teams hope to add new players, so even if you do not see an appropriate team for your family, please check either Teams/Schedules or send a message to recruiting@stanfordsoccerclub.org. Team Tryouts Listings It should be assumed that all the Stanford Soccer Club teams, reachable through Teams/Schedules, are seeking new, committed soccer players and will be conducting player evaluations. Listings below are desccriptions of and planned tryouts for specific age groups. To facilitate fast and accurate communication, email is preferred. Please include the four items of information as shown under "Contacting the Appropriate Team" Note: Age Group designation (e.g. U10) are for the Fall 2008 season; Birthdates are shown to help clarify this. Stanford Dust Devils U9 & U10 (born after 8-1-99 & 8-1-98 respectively) and Stanford Earthquakes, a new U11 team (born after 8-1-97) have openings for girls who love soccer and are ready to step up to CY play. We offer experienced, positive coaching. Our focus is skill development and teamwork. Interested players are invited to give the teams a try at a combined tryout as follows: Mondays through May at 4pm at Seale Park Wednesdays through May at 4pm at Greer Park field#5(Bayshore at Colorado) Thursdays at 4pm at Greer Park Stanford Storm, Class 1, U11 Girls (born after July 31, 1997) Looking for 2-3 new players, the Storm balances competitve soccer with having fun and developing knowledge of the game. We are looking for girls with a combination of passion for soccer, strong competitive drive and athletic skill but we also have a schedule that accomodates the many girls who play other winter or spring sports. If interested in joining a couple of practices, please contact Ed Feitzinger at feitzinger@gmail.com for more information. Stanford Firestorm, Class 3, U11 Girls (born after July 31, 1997) Established in autumn 2006, Firestorm is a competitive and supportive team. Our coach is a highly qualified professional with college and international experience and is supported by a strong staff of former college team athletes. A few spaces are available for hard working, dedicated, and skilled young athletes to play spring and fall of 2008 and into the future. Email Molly Goodman at Woof222@aol.com or call Maggi Smeal at 650-303-8499 Stanford Fire, Class 3, U11 Boys (born after July 31, 1997) The Fire new team in the Spring season of 2008. For more information, contact the manager, Bill Barnett, at stanfordfire@gmail.com or go to the team website: http://stanfordfire.googlepages.com/home Stanford Mudslides, Class 3, U12 Boys (born after 7/31/96) The Mudslides are looking for a few more dedicated, enthusiastic, defensive players to add to our roster. We are excited be coached by two outstanding professional coaches, Freddy Ferragut and Amy Love. Please contact the team manager, Bruce Andrews, at 650-493-9799 or at stanfordmudslides@gmail.com to arrange for a tryout. Stanford Cyclone, Class 3, U12 Girls (born after July 31, 1996) The Cyclone is looking to add strong, competitive, and motivated players to the roster. We offer dedicated and positive coaching by collegiate trained women committed to developing individual athletes and a skilled, competitive team. Interested players are invited to participate in a practice. For information, contact team manager Andrea Fish at andreafish@sbcglobal.net. . Stanford Hurricane, Class 3, U13 boys (born after 7/31/95). We are a fun, competitive, and supportive Class 3 CYSA soccer team looking for a few enthusiastic, hard-working and dedicated boys to join our team. We are fortunate to be coached by Freddy Ferragut, a professional coach and highly decorated player from Chile and founder of Sporttram. Contact team manager Jeanette Harrison at stanfordhurricane@gmail.com if you have questions or if your son is interested in trying out for this team. The Stanford Monsoon, Class 3, U13 Girls (born after July 31, 1995). The Stanford Monsoon, a competitive girls soccer team is looking to add experienced field players and a goalkeeper to its fall roster. Players who are born after August 1, 1995, are invited to tryout at a Tuesday or Thursday afternoon practice in May and early June. Please contact team manager Christy Wolf at wolfmom@yourbrandhere.com or coach Lauren Aspegren at msboot@yahoo.com for more information and to schedule your tryout. Stanford Typhoons, Class 1, U13 Girls (born after July 31, 1995) -- winners last year of District Cup -- looking for future Olympic team goalie and great field players! Coached by two all-star Brazilian players, we're a fun-loving group of hard-working, enthusiastic young athletes now in our 7th season as a CYSA team. If you know a girl who loves soccer and wants to have a great time winning on a supportive team, please contact team manager Cathy or Coach Avi at abmaharaj@comcast.net. Stanford Blaze, Class 3, U14 Boys (born after July 31, 1994) is looking for a few more enthusiastic players to tryout in mid-June to complete our fall roster. The Blaze is a Fall-only team and is focused on improving each player’s skills during our second season of play. The team has added the former Gunn High School men's soccer coach as head coach this year. For team and mid-June tryout specifics, contact Duncan at dmcmllan@pacbell.net. Stanford Lightning, Class 3, U14 Girls (born after July 31, 1994) is looking for a few more enthusiastic and well-rounded players to complete our spring roster. Lightning is a parent managed team focused on improving each player's skills in a fun and supportive environment, and is coached by a licensed Olympic Development Program and former Gunn High School Women's soccer coach. For team and tryout specifics, contact Coach Ed at prospero1960@yahoo.com or Joe at JERizza@sbcglobal.net. Stanford Inferno, Class 3, U15 Girls (born after July 31, 1993) The Inferno is looking to add a number of well-rounded players to play Spring and Fall 2008 and into the future. We're committed to soccer excellence, developing players, and having fun, and have many girls who also participate in other activities and sports. Our coach is a state licensed instructor, coach of the Olympic Development program, and current coach of Gunn's Girls Varsity team. Potential players should attend as many of the try-out sessions as possible. For more information please contact the team manager, Gary Sharp, at sharpgary@sbcglobal.net, or 650-996-2064. Stanford Thunder, U16 Boys (born after July 31, 1992) Class 3 team, will be holding tryouts for two to three qualified players for the Fall 2008 season during our Tuesday and Thursday late afternoon/early evening practices in August. The team is coached by Juan Mayora, who holds a national B level coaching license. Coaching emphasis is on strong individual skills and development and playing together as a cohesive team. We value well-rounded athletes and have many boys who also participate in other activities and sports. If interested in trying out or for more information, please contact the team manager, Mary Dimit (marydimit@mindspring.com or 650-321-6226) or the coach, Juan Mayora (jmayora@mayorasoccer.com or 650-799-2439). Stanford Riptide, U16 Girls (born after July 31, 1992) Class 1 team. The Riptide is a fun, hard-working team of strong players. We're serious about playing soccer, but are also out there to have a good time and enjoy a great team experience. The team is coached by Freddy Ferragut, who holds a national B level coaching license. We believe in excellence in play but value well-rounded athletes. We are currently looking for a goalkeeper and one or two strong field players. We invite interested players to join a few practices. For more information please contact the team managers, Alexandra Ohlson, at alexandra@slgroup.com or 650-321-0343 or Margie Cain at margiecain@earthlink.net or 650-321-0848. Stanford Wildfire, Class 1, U17 Girls (born after July 31, 1991) The Wildfire is entering its 6th season together and is now coached by Claire Walters. The Wildfire is looking for a few strong players. Interested players please contact: Barb Zimmer at kev-barb@pacbell.net or Margie Caine at margiecain@earthlink.net Stanford Flood Class 3, U17 Boys (born after July 31, 1991) The Stanford Flood is a new CYSA Class 3 team for U16 boys (born after 7/31/91). For more info, contact stanfordflood@sbcglobal.net. Stanford Vortex, Class 1, U18 Boys (born after July 31, 1990) The Vortex completed its seventh season together in Fall 2007, playing Class 1 competitive soccer. The Vortex coach is committed to strong individual skill development over the long term for each player on the team. Scholarships are available if needed. To sign up for tryouts, or for further information, please contact manager Terri Lobdell at 650-321-5944 or tlobdell@infionline.net. Stanford Tsunami, Class 3 U-18 Girls team (born after July 31, 1990). This team is three years old and is looking for 2-3 more players. Seeking experienced players with a passion for the game to join this supportive team full of enthusiasm and strong camaraderie. Contact team manager Debbie Hall (650 322-8470) to come try out by joining in on some of our practices. Team practices later afternoon/early evening on Mondays and Wednesday. What is CYSA? Is your child interested in playing CYSA soccer? If so, this background information about the Stanford Soccer Club could allow your daughter or son to gain much benefit and pleasure from competitive soccer in the Palo Alto area. If you are not familiar with CYSA, it is a youth soccer association in California that is generally much more competitive than AYSO, attracting youths who excel in soccer. CYSA teams play official soccer games in the fall and spring of each year; in addition, many Stanford Soccer Club teams offer team soccer and social activities for their players between seasons.
	Player Recruitment The Stanford Soccer Club offers teams in various stages of progression: More established teams, whose player rosters are quite full New teams, whose rosters need to be built from scratch or a small core of excellent players “Open team slots,” for parents and coaches who want to start or bring over a team in an age group that is currently not represented in the club (for example, a boys' or girls' team for a younger age group, or for a gender where the club has an age-group opening) These various kinds of teams all have the same recruiting objective: to make their team as competitive as possible by adding kids with optimal mix of talent, skill and attitude. Even a well-established team with a nearly full roster will normally be willing to add an extremely capable player. Less established teams will be more flexible in their recruitment expectations, perhaps underscoring ability and attitude more than experience. While the club assists all Stanford teams with player recruitment, each team is responsible for creating and implementing its own evaluation process. Evaluation Process New players usually join a team between seasons, that is: Between December 1 and March 31 Between June 1 and August 31 While you should definitely contact a Stanford Soccer Club team whenever your interest points you in this direction, the above two periods are the best times to contact a new CYSA team of interest to your child. Please understand that it can take a month or more to register a player with CYSA and receive an official player card (this requires photos, birth certificates and other official documents); moreover, a CYSA team's roster is usually set at the season's start, making it more complicated to add new players during the season. Most established teams will not add a new player unless he or she would rank in the top half of the team, since players at the bottom half will hopefully improve over time. To evaluate candidates, some teams hold open tryouts on weekends, whereas other teams ask prospective players to participate in normal practices both during the regular season and between seasons. The club places more emphasis on quality than quantity, also because the “process” of “mass tryouts” is often arbitrary and disappointing when dozens of kids show up who aren't CYSA-caliber soccer players. Therefore, a pre-evaluation discussion usually takes place between the team's manager and prospective player's family to determine if the player is in the ballpark of eligibility. Contacting the Appropriate Team In light of the above information, please go the Teams/Schedules page to determine the Stanford Soccer Club team responsible for your child's age group and gender. To improve the accuracy of the recruitment process, please send an email to the team manager including the following details about your child: Name and date of birth Soccer and other sports experience Family's contact information (parents' names, address, email, home and cell phone numbers, etc.) Other details that you feel are important, such as how you heard about the Stanford Soccer Club If you do not receive a response within a day or two, please feel free to call the club hotline phone number (650-322-CYSA) or send an email to recruiting@stanfordsoccerclub.org repeating the above details. You should soon hear back from the appropriate team's manager or coach to exchange more specific information, also about the team's tryout plans. New Team Formation The Stanford Soccer Club welcomes parents who want to start a new team, or bring a Palo Alto-based team from another club. To form a team, active parent leadership is required by the club. Parents who are unfamiliar with CYSA yet wish to start a team may turn to club leaders for guidance regarding practice expectations, game schedules, recruitment, the logistics of CYSA, and other aspects of creating and sustaining a successful soccer team. To be accepted by the club, a new team's leaders must present themselves and their objectives at a monthly club meeting. Existing teams associated with other clubs may apply to join the Stanford Soccer Club, especially if a team for a particular age group and gender is not already represented within the club. If you wish to create or register a new team within the Stanford Soccer Club, please send a mail to recruiting@stanfordsoccerclub.org. Financial Parameters Each Stanford team sets its own budget so seasonal fees vary. Fees for younger teams typically range from $200 to $400 per season (other clubs may charge over $1,000 per season); if equipment or uniforms must be purchased, or if the team participates more heavily in tournaments, fees may increase. In general, the Stanford Soccer Club has lower-than-average fees because the community-minded club charges only a small amount for providing its largely volunteer-provided services. In addition and in exchange, the club's teams rely on parent volunteers to manage the team, set up the fields, assist with team and club functions, purchase items, organize social activities, coordinate tournaments, lead conditioning or off-season sessions, and so forth. Coaches are typically paid professionals with impressive soccer credentials and the desire to help children develop a passion for soccer. They must be licensed by an appropriate professional soccer association. The Stanford Soccer Club features some of California 's best coaches. Age Group Definitions The cut-off date for each CYSA age group is July 31. A child's age on July 31 determines his or her CYSA age group. For example, if a boy is 12 years old on July 31 then he must play in a U13 (or older) age group. The 'U13' designation means "under 13 years of age as of the end of July 31." Any player is eligible to play in any older age group, skill and team permitting. A player can play in any geographical area of choice, regardless of CYSA District or league boundaries. Longer travel distances often apply to older age groups; younger players usually stay closer to home. Teams may have a maximum of 18 players. Most teams have 15 or 16 players to allow sufficient playing time for most players; the rules, however, require no minimum amount of playing time for any player. Other Questions? Navigating through the CYSA labyrinth can be challenging, since good information is hard to find. Your best way to get straight answers is to call the manager of the team that interests you, at Teams/Schedules. We at the Stanford Soccer Club wish you much luck in your search for an appropriate CYSA team!