Dear Barbarians:
Perhaps this newsletter will bring relief to some while it may bring heartache to others. One thing for certain is it is long overdue, but many years ago I learned that if you don’t have something good to say to someone, or if you cannot say it in a positive light then why say anything at all. It some times becomes difficult to see the same errant thing over and over, and to have to grin and bear it, or to see those who have repeatedly thrown jabs your way and to be genuine in all manner of approach to them and to not be about the business of deceiving others while all the while they cannot even speak truthfully to you about what you see with your own eyes. Oh, the world of youth soccer in Western PA! And yet they wonder what is wrong with the youth of today, just look at the parents.
At any rate, we have to attend to our business because time is of the essence and most assuredly everything happens suddenly, no matter how long it takes. We appreciate the support that most of you have shown in our effort to train the players in the Barbarians to compete at a level of consistency in an even broader spectrum to savior the notion of continuity. We have given as many of you as we are able to give the chance to play and contribute to the team and club all to get to this point, at this time to select those who will perform for us at another point in time, and while we make these decisions we do not take them lightly, nor anyone or anything for granted. We continually work for you, and not against anyone for any reason, and will continue to do so as an advocate for each of you who come here to play and accept what we do and how we do it. Our end is your recognition so after all what sense would it be to allow you here, to do it your way? You need to know that it is not my way but rather the way of the Barbarians!
We have entered teams in the State Cup and will have to play at least one game with each team that we entered. The largest competitive age group for our State Cup hopefuls will be the U16B division with at least 4 teams participating in a minimum of 3 matches before moving onto the finals. At this writing the Barbarians have also entered teams in the U10B, U10G, U11B, U12B, U12G, U13B, U14B, U15B, and U15G, age groups with each of these teams playing one game to see who will be Champions and Runner’s Up. We have also entered our U17B into the U19 bracket and have automatically qualified for the regional pool should there be a U17 bracket, which is supposed to be the case in Regionals and in the National. As manager of this club, my attempts are to always keep open as many viable options as possible for our players and teams. That being said, of all the teams that we have entered into competition, our goal is to send as many of these teams to the Regional as possible.
As we move forward it may not be a viable option for some of the teams given the fact that 2 of teams have not even participated in league play and several others are just beginning to grasp what the game is all about not to mention the players who have just come onboard with us, but at this point in time we do need to make certain we have an operational plan and need to hear from each of you on all of the teams listed to see how many will be available for the Regionals, over the weekend of February 13-16, 2009 in New York City. We must hear from you on or before January 16, 2009.
The cost per player is $15 for those players participating in the State Cup and for those who will be traveling to the Regional Tournament the cost per player will be $60. We are in the process of putting together information about traveling to NYC and encourage you to do some research on your own. We know that it provides a financial hardship for some families to participate. It is our hope that you can feel confident in bringing that to our attention and allowing us to help in any way we might so that we can make certain to have the best representation for our players, teams, and club as possible. We can only provide what is asked of us when we are able, for we are always ready and willing, and there are others who believe as we do!
The majority of the matches for our State Cup are planned for the last week in January and we encourage everyone to attend as many scheduled training session over the next few weeks as possible even if you are unable to train because of injury but know you will be available for State Cup Week. We would really appreciate having as many members of the Barbarians as possible in attendance when there is a cup event. Schedules are not out yet for either the State Cup or Regional, of course, but you can learn more by visiting and touring the following website http://www.northeastfutsalchampionship.com/. If this link does not work then cut and paste it into your web browser.
Our emphasis to this point in the season has been about the development of the team and players, and our emphasis will continue to be about the development of our players and the teams in the Barbarian FC. Our strategy in match play during tournaments will be as it has always been; we are there to win!
As usual, I will see you on the pitch!