The 2009 Youth Soccer season kicked into action Sept. 12 with an opening ceremony at the IronWorks Gym here.
A total of 26 teams gathered at the IronWorks gym to begin the nine-week season.
Following the ceremony, 13 teams battled out their first games.
The 3- to 4-year-old age division along with the 5- to 6-year-old and 7- to 9-yearold ages do not keep score, so it’s all about fundamentals and fun.
“Some of my strategies I use are cone drills. That is running zigzag through cones and then kicking the ball in the goal and kicking the ball to each other as they run down the field so that they can share the ball,” said Roderick Jelks, coach for the 3- to 4-year-old Glow Worms.
Parents seem to be more concerned with how well the children are playing or what the score is, but the children are all about running and laughing.
“In the end it doesn’t matter whether your team is good or not, what matters is whether they’re having fun,” said Jacquelyn White, coach for the 7- to 9-year-old Iwakuni Thunder.
All parents cheer and scream every time their child gets the ball to run, shoot and score.
“In the end it doesn’t matter whether your team is good or not. What matters is whether they are having fun, learning and getting something out of the training,” said White.
Children are encouraged to conduct good sportsmanship and proper soccer techniques as well.
When a player goes down due to an injury, all the players are taught to immediately drop to one knee and wait for a coach to assess the injury before resuming play.
When the injured player comes to his or her feet or is taken out of the game, all spectators and players clap and cheer.
“I feel so privileged and honored to be coaching such a great group of kids,” said White. “The fact that the children look up to you, listen to you and you watch them grow together on and off the field, there is no better way I would spend my time.”