The primary goal of the Hudson United Soccer Club in sponsoring our recreational leagues is for your child/ teen to play the game of soccer in a safe, fun, and educational environment. We need your support and cooperation to achieve this goal. We offer the following guidelines that we encourage you to read and take to heart:
Please make safety your first priority
| 1) Please supervise your player and their siblings at all times. Do not let them wander unattended. Our coaches and volunteers are not babysitters. | |
| 2) Please do not let your child and their siblings climb or play on any soccer goals. Most of the goals we use are small portable goals that are made of plastic or metal. They can tip over easily or break if even a small child tries to climb on or hang from them, and this could result in serious injuries. Even the large metal goals can tip over easily. | |
| 3) Please keep siblings (especially young children and infants), yourselves, and your belongings a safe distance from the playing field while watching games. | |
| 4) Please do not bring pets to the games. Even pets get excited during games. | |
| 5) Please make sure that your child is hydrated before, during, and after the game. | |
| 6) Please encourage your child/teen to stretch before games, and arrive early so they have an adequate opportunity to warm up. | |
| 7) Please make sure that your child/teen wears shin pads. They will not be allowed to play without them. We also encourage children to wear properly fitted mouth guards. |
Please try to relieve the pressure of competition.
Don't increase it by focusing on winning and individual performance. We instruct our coaches and referees not to keep score for grades 1-5. We do not keep standings or have championship tournaments.
Always encourage good sportsmanship.
You can set a good example for your child/teen. The opposing players should shake hands or high five after each game.
Support your child's coaches.
They are volunteering their free time to help your children have a good experience.
Please do not openly question any calls of the referees.
The referees are teenagers for the youth leagues and this is a learning experience for them, too. Refereeing in front of a crowd of adults can be very intimidating.
We encourage positive cheering during games.
Please do not make any negative or inflammatory comments about players, coaches, or referees.
Research shows that most children stop playing organized sports by the age of 13.
The reason is simple. Sports stopped being fun due largely to pressure from parents and coaches. This statistic is upsetting to us because soccer and other team sports give children the opportunity to learn about teamwork, to make new friends, and to develop the bonds that teammates often form. Soccer will give them the chance to develop their leadership skills and to learn to compete fairly and graciously. Playing soccer also will give them the chance to develop their physical and mental skills and self-confidence while having fun. We are confident that the guidelines set forth above will enable soccer to be a safe, fun, and meaningful experience for your children.
