• Players are responsible to each other for their performance.
• While we will always prepare to win, we will not sacrifice the fundamentals and skills we’ve learned during our training sessions, just for the sake of winning.
• Being selected to play for a travel select team means being given the opportunity to play in youth soccer leagues and tournaments that are amongst the most competitive in the nation. To successfully compete in these leagues, requires discipline and sacrifice by players and their families alike. Players and their teammates must be physically and mentally prepared if they are to succeed. It is our desire to provide players who are seriously committed to playing the game of soccer, a positive and supportive atmosphere in which they will continue to develop their personal and team technical skills and tactical awareness.
• Our goal is to enhance our players’ understanding of and devotion for the game of soccer. We expect every player to always give 100% on the field to the best of their ability, both at practices and games.
• As a team of young athletes placed in a competitive environment we collectively need to manage expectations. For our team’s long-term development, we must place our emphasis on developing our players’ individual technical abilities by embracing creativity, encouraging risk taking, and exposing players to all positions on the field.
• We will always respect the sport, our opponents, the referees, and the spirit of the game while striving to excel in a highly competitive and challenging environment.

Goalkeeping

• A small number of keepers, due to personal choice are "designated keepers" and they will rotate through goal on a more frequent basis than others.

The Shooting Stars practice and support the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) Model:

Rules of the Road -- Being prepared to play or practice!

• Players (not parents) are responsible for taking care of their equipment -- Each player has a backpack, please use it.
• Expect to start all practices and events on time, let us know in advance if your player can’t make a game or practice. (We carefully prepare each and every practice, some games/drill can only be done with a certain number of players, and having even or odd numbers of players can sway one game vs. another).
• Please arrive 45 minutes before a game so we can get the team warmed up, and the individual players ready to play (All players, but particularly young girls, like to arrive early enough to events to get mentally ready, a player that rushes to the game with 5 minutes to spare, is normally stressed out and it usually takes 30 - 40 minutes to get mentally ready to play. Also, a large portion of team sports is the socializing that happen prior to an event, and if you carefully chart your daughter's performance you will notice that she does far better when she has enough time to prepares).
• No sideline coaching. Players should hear a consistent voice of instruction from the coaches on the field.
• Players, parents and coaches will always conduct themselves in an appropriate manner and present themselves as models of good sportsmanship.
• Under no circumstance, should a team member (parents, relatives, friends or players) approach, talk to or challenge, an opponent, referee or coach, during, before or after a game.
• Only carded players, team coaches and officials are allowed on the team sidelines before, during and after a game or scrimmage. Leagues have very stiff penalties for teams that violate this rule.

Note on joining the team/team expenses: Once a player makes the team, the parents get a call, they are offered the slot.  They can accept or not a commitment to join. Once all the players are called and the numbers of players are determined. The treasurer takes the team expenses for the season and divides into the number of players and comes up with how much it costs to run the team per player. And that number is communicated to the parents. Once a parent agrees to play with the team, payment of all dues is expected in full, and there are no possibilities of a refund, because the money has been spent.
If a parent decides to leave the team, a number of administrative steps have to be accomplished, the timing of these steps and league rules may decide if the player may join another team. As mentioned above, there will not be a refund.

 For information about the Shooting Stars Program, please contact:

Our Team Manager: Colleen Johnson: 540-891-7968 (h) or 540-538-9749 (c)

Email: http://alohact@verizon.net

This page was last modified on Tuesday, June 02, 2009