Bays United Youth Soccer Association

General Guidelines

Scheduling Practice Fields for Youth Teams (U12 to U18)

By Derek Graham

June 2006

Who has access to fields for practice?

Teams from U12 to U18 are given time at fields to practice their soccer skills (U8 to U11 get access to school grass field from the third week of Sept to the end of the second week of October, and then they move to school gymnasiums). U12 to U18 are scheduled time at fields usually from the last two weeks of August to the end of the second week of October. The Club then moves to a lighted practice schedule and moves off most grass fields and utilizes Henderson soccer, Finlayson turf and Beacon Hill all-weather soccer pitches.

Gold teams begin one week earlier than other teams so they are scheduled time for practices first. Gold teams are usually allocated two practice slots per week as they normally require this level of practice time for their very competitive divisions.

Silver and Bronze teams can be allocated two practice times per week but will often select one slot only.

When are fields available for practice?

Aug 21 to Oct 15 – Ample field space is available at City of Victoria and School District fields. Most teams will be able to schedule two practice times per week during this part of the season.

Oct 15 to Dec 14 – Practices are scheduled at lighted fields only. Primary lighted fields are Henderson soccer, Finlayson turf, and Beacon Hill All-weather. Secondary fields are Windsor and Carnarvon Lit Practice areas. Practices may be reduced to one session per week.

Jan 7 to Feb 21 – Depending upon the weather, practice field access can be limited to Finlayson and Beacon Hill All weather only. Limited grass field access may be allowed if weather permits.

Feb 21 to March 21 – School district and city fields again become available for scheduled practices.

How are practice fields utilized during the season?

Practice times are allocated starting with U18 teams and ending with U12. U16 to U18 must take later time slots (i.e. 7-8 or 8-9 pm); U13 to U15 are given 6-7 pm and 7-8 times; U12 are given 5-6 pm slots. This approach is to reward those players that have been with the Club longest the optimum practice time.

U10 and U11 teams that wish to supplement their weekly practice times are allocated time at Carnarvon Lit Practice during the mid season.

It is best to look at our soccer season as being broken into three sub-seasons:

Early (Sep 1 to Oct 15)

Mid (Oct 16 to Dec 15)

Year End (Jan 8 to Apr 1)

During the Early season, there are many grass fields available and lots of sunlight for teams to conduct practices to 7 pm. The Club encourages teams to practice as much as possible during this time of the year (usually two practices per week).

By Mid season, it is too dark to practice much after 6 pm and the wet weather begins so the Club moves practices away from grass fields. Henderson Soccer, Finlayson Turf and Beacon Hill All-weather are the Club’s primary lighted fields. Gold teams are reduced to one hour at Henderson or Finlayson and one hour at Beacon Hill. Silver and Bronze teams are allocated one hour at Finlayson or Henderson and if necessary a second time at Beacon Hill. Time is also made available at Windsor lighted field for Silver and Bronze teams. There is limited space however and some teams may have Beacon Hill only available to them.

Year End practice field allocation is dependent entirely upon field and weather conditions. Mild winters will mean lots or practice fields. It is very difficult to predict grass field availability due to the capriciousness of the weather.

Derek Graham