The spring soccer league operated by the Aldergrove Youth Soccer Club has been one of the most successful in the region, and is being rewarded by support from major sponsors which are keeping costs down for the little players.
AYSC president Bill Ede says, “We started it five years ago to give kids something to on Monday nights and we’ve kept it laidback and informal and that seems to be the key. We began with about 100 kids five years ago and this year we were 265.”
The program runs from spring break until the last week of school and is for both genders, aged five to 12 years old. Currently, there are five divisions with four teams in each.
It augments the regular season of September to spring break, which numbered 575 players last season, and the club also offered the B.C. Soccer-sponsored Kickin’ Schools program that was taken to 1,700 students in local school gyms this winter.
Major sponsors who have leapt on board with the club include CSA Nutralite Soccer Fest, Bank of Montreal (BMO) and the Aldergrove Elks Lodge. B.C. Soccer board director Don Dancey was also on hand for the season windup at Jackman Park on June 20, and is impressed with the Aldergrove club’s growth.
“Our fees are among the lowest and this pays for the gym and field rentals, referees and clinics, and all the kids get new uniforms to keep,” says Ede.
Dancey also informed the club that they will once again host the Boys’ U-13 to U-18 Provincial Championships in 2012, following the success of the 2010 event here last year.