SPARTA SOCCER CLUB PARENT'S PAGE

Whether you are brand new to youth soccer or a long term veteran, you probably have questions pertaining to both you and your child. On this page, we try to provide as much information as possible and answer some of the most frequently asked questions. A lot of different terms are heard around a soccer field--town league, travel team, flights, divisions, age brackets, "U" teams, 8v8, 11v11, seasonal year, etc. 
What do all these terms mean? Let's take a look!
TOWN LEAGUE--This league is recreational in nature and emphasis is placed on teaching the fundamentals of the game. The program is for both boys and girls from Pre-K to approximately the 8th grade age level. Much more information is available on the Town Program page.
TRAVEL TEAMS--This league is more competitive in nature and is available to both boys and girls from 8 to 19 years old. It requires a higher level of skill and commitment than town soccer. Most of our travel teams play in the Morris County Youth Soccer Association.
SEASONAL YEAR--Begins on August 1st and ends on July 31st. Town league soccer is run as two distinct sessions (a spring and a fall season) while travel soccer requires a commitment to play the entire seasonal year.
AGE BRACKET--This is simply the age of the team. In travel soccer, it is determined by the age of the oldest player on the team. A team denoted as U-10 can not have any player who turns 11 by July 31st of the current seasonal year
DIVISIONS--Are made up of age brackets. At the youngest levels in the town league, a division is made up of only a single age bracket. In the older levels of the town league and in travel soccer, a division is made up of two age brackets. Just to make it more confusing, the older teams are assigned the lower division numbers. Therefore, U-19 teams are Division 1, U-16 teams are Division 2, U-14 teams are Division 3 and so on. This is shown in more detail on the Player's Age Matrix.
FLIGHTS--Are used in travel soccer to achieve balanced competition. Teams in each division or age bracket are grouped according to their respective skill level. Team flighting is based upon many factors including the past history of the team, the number of teams in each group and information provided by each club. The process is more difficult in the fall season when there is less "objective" data available on each team. Teams are re-flighted within their age bracket or division at the end of each season.
11v11--This term refers to the number of players that are on the field. U-11 and older teams play with 11 players on the field. One goal keeper and ten field players. Younger teams play with fewer than 11 players on the field.
SMALL SIDED--U-10 and younger teams play on a smaller field and play with eight players or less on a team dependant on how young the team is. Goal keepers are not used at the youngest levels in the town program.
HELPFUL LINKS--Any of the links below will also provide you with a lot of information:
Club Policies        Club Philosophy        Town Rules         Laws of the Game         Soccer Terms
Contact Us                      Parents Code Of Conduct Travel               Parents Sideline Guidelines 
Parents Code Of Conduct Town League   Division Training
ABOUT OUR CLUB
The Sparta Soccer Club is a private, volunteer organization. More than 1000 children take part in our program and we are one of the largest clubs in New Jersey. The purpose of the club is to promote and encourage the game of soccer in Sparta Township and we offer play at all levels.
ABOUT OUR COACHES
All of our coaches are volunteers and the time, dedication and effort given by them is greatly appreciated. Without them, there would be no soccer program. In addition to their visible efforts, there are countless hours of work put in behind the scenes. Attendance at coaching and safety clinics, phone calls, game and practice preparation and expenditure of personal funds are just some of the unseen things they do. There is little we can do to properly show appreciation for all their work. At the very least, we can refrain from complaining about trivial problems. If you do have a serious problem, please talk privately to the coach about it.
ABOUT OUR FIELDS
Sparta Township provides us with several excellent playing facilities. One group of fields is located at White Lake Road. There are small and intermediate sized fields here that are used for Pre-K, Division 7 and Division 6 games and practices. The other group of fields is located at Station Road. There are full and intermediate sized fields here that are used for Town League Divisions 3, 4 and 5 games and practices. The Travel Teams also play and practice here. Directions to each of these locations can be found on our directions page
ABOUT OUR REFEREES
 All of the referees for our Town League games are players that have come through our program. The younger refs do the Division 6 games while the older ones do the Division 3-5 games. Each referee attends clinics and most have several seasons of experience. Remember that these refs are also our children and that no games could be played without them. If you have a problem or complaint concerning a ref, then talk to your team's coach about it. The League Directors and Director of Referees follow up on issues that develop during the season. We remind all concerned that the referee is in charge of the game and is the one person on the field with an objective viewpoint of what is or is not occurring.

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Page maintained by ssc webmaster Created: 03/20/2000 Updated: 04/07/2003