Spring is here, and so is soccer … well, almost.
Come May 6, Barrhead’s two-month soccer season will kick off amid a fanfare of optimism that the sport can strengthen its uncertain hold on Canada’s imagination.
There may be more hope than expectation, but nobody can accuse organizers of not trying to whet youthful appetites early enough.
For the first time, three-year-olds have gained admission into Barrhead’s soccer world.
And why not? If you can kick a football, surely you are old enough. That seems to be the thinking of parents and the Barrhead Minor Soccer Association.
Last Friday, association member Amanda Fauser said 292 children had been registered this year – among them 28 three-year-olds.
“We are going to have 36 teams,” she said.
Fauser said the 6-7 age group attracted the most registrations, while 28 children aged 14 to 16 had been signed up.
Fellow board member Mike Nanninga said last year parents had asked about the possibility of three-year-olds playing.
“We thought if we get enough requests then we would do it,” he said.
On Tuesday, April 9, the association held its registration night in the foyer at the Agrena. Queues of families lined up behind a series of tables, and among them were several parents wishing to register three-year-olds.
There were certainly enough to validate the association’s decision to ease the age restriction. The upper age limit is 16.
“We were quite surprised by how many three-year-olds registered,” Nanninga said last Friday. “Overall we are very happy with the numbers. We seemed to get quite a few late registrations.”
In 2012 about 250 boys and girls from the area laced up their boots to play soccer at the Barrhead Composite High School grounds, Cecile Martin Park and the field by the United Church.
They were divided into teams such as Germany, Brazil and Argentina, countries who dine at international soccer’s top table.
Nanninga admits it is an uphill struggle to whip up enthusiasm for soccer in a country that worships hockey through winter and baseball in the warmer months.
He doesn’t play soccer himself. His involvement is down to his soccer-playing son, Ethan, who is just 10.
If Ethan’s sporting interests follow the trajectory of most Canadian youths, he will stop playing soccer in his late teens.
It is a fact that his father accepts. No matter that soccer, or football as it is known in its birthplace, England, remains the world’s most popular sport.
Not surprisingly, the Barrhead association faces a constant challenge in attracting coaches.
“They are always needed,” said Nanninga. “We would like to hear from anyone interested in coaching. Last year we had 42 coaches. All you need is a basic knowledge of the game.”
A coaches training night is scheduled to be held at Cecile Martin Park on May 1, between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Soccer games and practices will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays, between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.
The eight to nine-year-olds will play in Beaver Brook, while the others will gather across from the Keir Care Centre. It is hoped that this year the football pitches will have lines and nets.
June 24 will be the wind-up of the season, a festive occasion which usually sees coaches show off their soccer skills.
For more information contact [email protected] or Barrhead Minor Hockey’s Facebook page.
