Green Bay Strikers Soccer Club

Our purpose is to increase our youth's enjoyment of recreational soccer by improving the quality and consistency of our coaching.

Coaching your child and his/her team is fun and rewarding! Coaching gives you the opportunity to teach skills, teamwork and sportsmanship and reap the benefits of personal enjoyment and appreciation from your players. It's a great way to contribute something back to the community!

In addition to all of the benefits you'll receive from coaching, we also offer a $10.00 discount off of your child's registration fee whose team you decide to coach. It's our way of recognizing all of our coaches for their commitment of time and effort.

We invite everyone to give coaching a try. It doesn't matter if you haven't played or coached soccer before! We have a support group with plenty of help and experience ready to assist. In addition, we have a strong, required training program that will prepare you for this important role. Our program depends on volunteers like you to be successful. If you are willing to give it a try, be sure to sign up at registration. Sign up on your own or with a friend - your children will automatically be on the same team. (Limit 2 coaches per team).

If you would like to be a soccer coach for the 2008 season, please call The Answer Line and leave a message that includes your name and address and we will send you the information you need to register.

Coaches are required to participate in a training session every other year. Training sessions for 2008 will be announced later in the year.

The philosophy of SAY and the Green Bay Strikers, is that each player should have the opportunity to be consistently coached by someone who has undergone the requisite training needed to carry out the responsibilities he or she has agreed to except. As a requirement of SAY and the Green Bay Strikers, all first year coaches must participate in one of the training sessions offered. All other Green Bay Striker coaches must participate in training at least every other year. Annual training is encouraged!

We are excited about our training program. It features one hour of general information and two hours of age specific breakout sessions. This enables any coach to take any of the sessions and get all of the information they need. The club pays the cost for all Green Bay Striker coaches.

Training sessions for 2008 will be held in the gym at Edison Middle School on the following dates:

Please pre-register for one of these sessions when you sign up to coach. If you have any questions, please call the answer line at 490-7266 and leave your name, phone number and a brief message, and someone from the soccer organization will call you back within a week.

Our Coaches Training sessions are open to members of other area soccer clubs as well. If you are interested in attending our training, please let us know. As space is limited, call the Answer Line or send us an email to reserve your seat today.

If you are interested, our coaches may also attend the Referee Training. To reserve your spot contact us either via the Answer Line or email. For more information on when the training will be held see our Referee section.

In June 2002, we sent a letter to all of our coaches concerning two-deep leadership. We have always suggested that all of our coaches make it a part of how they interact with their team. In 2003, SAY National made it mandatory. To those who aren't familiar with this policy, it simply means that we need to have two adults (over 18) with the children at all times. This includes games, practices, parties etc. It also requires that the two adults not be related. For those of you who are husband and wife or other related coaching teams, this can mean going over your schedule with the parents on your team to find someone who could stay after each practice or game to help supervise. This also holds true for other coaching teams if one of the coaches can't be at a particular game or practice.

Most youth sports programs have also instituted a screening process for volunteers. While our state does not currently have laws requiring this procedure, SAY National as well as The Green Bay Strikers wants to be proactive. We understand that this process may make may people uneasy but SAY National has come up with a program that is the least intrusive of those that were reviewed.

Coaches are asked to fill out an additional form when they register. It simply asks for a previous address (if you have lived at you current address less than 5 years) and a yes/no question concerning any possible criminal history or history of violence. It also includes a standard disclaimer verifying the truthfulness of the information given. Only our Volunteer Screener will review these forms. Any "yes" answers will automatically be forwarded to SAY National and they will follow-up with the individual coach. We are aware that this is a very sensitive issue. But, as always, our primary concern is the protection of our players as well as our coaches

The Green Bay Strikers are dedicated to ensuring that each and every soccer participant has a safe and enjoyable soccer season. If you have any comments, questions or concerns (about the organization, coaches, players, referees, etc.) and you feel it inappropriate to discuss with your division coordinator, you can call The Parent Connection at 490-7266. Please don't wait until the end of the soccer season. We may be able to help!

When coaching U-8 (6-7 year olds) teams, one coach from each team is allowed on the field to help instruct the players. Things change when you move up to U-10 (8-9 year olds) where you have referees and are not allowed on the field. To ease this transition, we will allow one coach from each team to be on the field for only the first three weeks of the season. All coaches must stay between the 18-yard lines and remain neutral on infractions.

Since 1996, our 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 year olds have played "short-sided soccer". This means that teams play with fewer players on smaller fields. 5 year olds play with five players on the field (no goalie), 6-7 year olds play with six players including a goalie and 8-9 year olds play with nine players including a goalie.

Short-sided soccer is designed to help young children enjoy and understand the game of soccer a little better. It provides them with a great environment in which to develop their fundamental skills and maximize their participation in the game. Rules are simplified and coaches act as "facilitators". The more time young players have with the ball, the more fun they have and the faster they learn.

The decision to cancel a game is made at the field at game time by the referee. In the case of 5's and 6-7 year olds where there no referees, the coaches will decide whether the game should be cancelled.