Dear Barbarians:
It is that time of year when we begin to take note of who will be representing the Barbarians in league play as well as in our march to The USFF Regional and National Tournaments. I think it best to make certain we are all on the same page in our effort to have a successful year, from October through the end of March and beyond. In order to do so I am writing to make everyone aware of where we are and where we want to be. If you receive this letter then we ask that you respond as to your intentions, as we have quite a few players who are looking to gain access to our club and we will proceed to accept those interested after we have heard back from you. In order to be fair to everyone we ask that you respond by September 27, 2007 to make us aware of your intention to participate, or not. There are several things you will have to consider before your acknowledgement and so I am attempting to layout as comprehensive a plan as possible.
The details are as follows:
￭ WE WILL TRAIN FROM OCTOBER THROUGH THE END OF MARCH. THE COST OF TRAINING IS $300 FOR A SINGLE CHILD PER FAMILY AND FOR FAMILIES WITH MORE THAN ONE CHILD THE COST FOR TRAINING WILL BE $450. PAYMENT FOR THE YEAR WILL ALLOW FOR A SLIGHT DISCOUNT SO THAT FAMILIES WITH ONE PARTICIPANT CAN PAY $275, AND FOR THOSE WITH MORE THAN ONE CHILD PARTICIPATING CAN PAY $425 DOLLARS FOR THE YEAR. OTHERWISE, PAYMENTS ARE EXPECTED IN 2 SUMS OF $150 BEFORE THE END OF OCTOBER (1st PAYMENT) AND $150 BY THE END OF NOVEMBER (SECOND PAYMENT), FOR THOSE WITH ONE CHILD AND FOR THOSE WHO HAVE MORE THAN ONE, $225 BY THE END OF OCTOBER AND $225 BY THE END OF NOVEMBER. THESE FEES ARE FOR TRAINING, ONLY!
￭ WE PLAN TO TRAIN ON WEDNESDAYS, (6:30 PM–8:30 PM), THURSDAYS, (6:30 PM – 8:30 PM), FRIDAYS (6:00–8:00 AND 8:00– 10:00), SATURDAYS, (2:30–4:30 PM, 4:30-6:30 PM, AND 6:30-8:30 PM) AND EVERYONE IS EXPECTED TO BE THERE WHEN TRAINING IS SCHEDULED. IF YOU KNOW NOW THAT ONE OF THESE TIMES IS NOT SUITABLE FOR YOU AND ANY OTHERS THEN YOU SHOULD LET ME KNOW BEFORE I FINISH MAKING THE TRAINING SCHEDULE! AFTER THE FACT WILL NOT BE HELPFUL AND I AM HOPEFUL THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO DEVELOP A SCHEDULE FOR LARGE SEGMENTS OF THE YEAR SO THAT EVERYONE WILL BE ABLE TO PLAN ACCORDINGLY. THE INTIAL SCHEDULE WILL COVER OCTOBER AND PART OF NOVEMEBER, SINCE THE SEASON IS SET TO BEGIN AROUND NOVEMBER 16. THERE WILL BE NO GAMES ON WEDNESDAYS OR THURSDAYS, IN THE PRIME LEAGUE AND WE ARE SCHEDULED TO PLAY ALL OF OUR MATCHES AT THE MONROEVILLE SPORTS CENTER.
￭ REGISTRATION FEES WITH USFF ARE INCLUDED BUT LEAGUE FEES (THE COST OF ENTRY INTO LEAGUE PLAY) WILL BE COLLECTED SEPARTELY AND WILL BE ASSESSED AFTER WE BEGIN PLAY. THEY SHOULD NOT EXCEED LAST YEAR’S FEE EVEN WITH AN INCREASE FROM KIKS. WE WILL ASK THAT THOSE PAYMENTS ARE MADE IN A TIMELY FASHION AND SHOULD BE ABLE TO OFFER SOME SORT OF DISCOUNT BETWEEN THE OVERALL COSTS FOR TWO SEASONS.
￭ WE WILL NOT HOLD ANY TEAMS IN RESERVE BUT WILL ENTER AS MANY TEAMS INTO COMPETITION AS ARE WARRANTED. WHILE OUR INTENTIONS OF A YEAR AGO WERE HONORABLE WE WILL HAVE TO SUFFER WITH PLAYING OURSELVES IN LEAGUE PLAY WITH THE HOPES THAT THERE ARE MORE TEAMS ENTERED THIS YEAR THAN IN YEAR’S PAST AND THAT WE WILL NOT HAVE TO PLAY AGINST OUR CLUB TOO MANY TIMES IN AN 8 GAME SEASON! INORDER TO AID IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF OUR PLAYERS WE ARE WILLING TO MAKE THIS SACRIFICE. TRAINING IS FUNDAMENTAL BUT IT IS IMPORTANT FOR PLAYERS TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PERFORM IN MATCH PLAY AND THERE JUST ARE NOT ENOUGH LOCAL TOURNAMENTS TO ACCOMMODATE WHAT WE WERE ATTEMPTING TO DO, LAST YEAR. WE ARE DOING THE BEST THAT WE CAN FOR PLAYERS TO DEVELOP IN THIS SPORT.
￭ WE WERE SUCCESSFUL IN OUR EFFORT TO FIND SPONSORSHIP FOR THE BARBARIAN FOOTBALL COALITION AND AS A RESULT HAVE NEW UNIFORMS FOR OUR PLAYERS. THOSE PLAYERS WHO ARE NEW TO THE BARBARIANS WILL PAY 100% OF THE COST FOR A UNIFORM INCLUDING THOSE WHO WERE NEW LAST YEAR AND CHOSE TO LEAVE BETWEEN SESSIONS! SECOND YEAR PLAYERS’ COST FOR UNIFORMS WILL BE 75%, THIRD YEAR PLAYERS’ WILL BE 50%, FOURTH YEAR PLAYERS’ WILL BE 25% AND THOSE PLAYERS WHO ARE IN THEIR FIFTH YEAR OR LONGER WILL NOT PAY FOR UNIFORMS. THOSE WHO PURCHASED THEIR JERSEY FROM THE REGIONAL TOURNAMENT WILL ALSO BE ABLE TO DEDUCT THE COST OF THAT JERSEY FROM THEIR OVERALL COST OF THIS NEW UNIFORM! THE TOTAL COST FOR UNIFORMS, WHICH WILL INCLUDE 2 GAME JERSEYS (LIGHT AND DARK), SHORTS, AND 1 PAIR OF SOCKS HAS NOT BEEN DETERMINED BUT SHOULD BE UNDER $70.
￭ WE WILL PARTICIPATE IN AS MANY FUTSAL TOURNAMENTS THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF THE YEAR AS POSSIBLE. THE COSTS WILL BE SUBSIDIZED IN PART BY THE CLUB BUT NOT IN TOTAL AND YOU WILL BE ASKED TO PAY FOR AS WELL. WE ARE NOT IN THE HABIT OF CHARGING MEMBERS NEEDLESSLY TO PARTICIPATE IN ANYTHING WE DO BUT WE HAVE ALSO BEEN TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF IN OUR EFFORTS.
Without a doubt, it has been a real learning experience over the past few years! We will not tolerate anyone playing for 2 clubs or teams in The Prime League, so please do not indulge us. Each of you knows what we are about and what we stand for. We are the only club in Western Pennsylvania that is solely dedicated to futsal and command as much respect as any club you are currently with. You know our intentions well ahead of time and should have made yours known to your outdoor club if you intend to play indoor football for The Barbarians. Please, do not expect our plans to change in order to accommodate any other club’s activities, as far as training is concerned or participating in tournaments, in or out of state.
As always, if you know someone who is interested you can share this information. If they have questions about The Barbarians then by all means have them contact me for specifics. If you have any questions about anything pertaining to The Barbarians then you too should know by now that I am available to answer them, preferably via email. Please refrain from assuming; it only clouds the issues that need resolution! Time is ticking… I should have a newsletter out after September 27th when I expect things will be even clearer on who will be here and who will be gone, away!
As usual, I will see you on the pitch!
David W. Sayles