Hello BYSA Families!

I hope your summer is off to a safe and fun start!  As of this writing, it appears as though there WILL BE FALL SOCCER, and that it’ll be remarkably normal for the kids. And so, as we work towards safely returning to the fields, here’s both a short and long update as to where we currently stand:
The short version…
  • We’re on track to have relatively normal Fall soccer.
  • We are not able to hold in-person tryouts/evaluations.  Players will be placed on teams to the best of our ability using prior knowledge and coaches’ input.
  • Registration for 2020-21 Programs – for both players and coaches – is OPEN!
    https://www.bevsoccer.org/registration
  • Full refunds will be issued in the event of season cancellation.
  • Financial assistance is available.
  • Pre-K/K will happen in smaller sessions throughout the morning on Saturdays to meet state venue capacity limits.
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The long version…
Return to Soccer Activities
On July 6th, when the State moved to Phase 3 of its reopening plan, Soccer was declared a ‘Higher Risk’ sport, and was placed at Phase 3, Level 1, Step 1.  This allows for socially distanced, individual training sessions, and will be revisited by the state every three weeks.  The next phases would be:
  • Phase 3, Level 2, which could begin as early as July 27th, would allow essentially normal practices and intra-squad scrimmages.
  • Phase 3, Level 3, which is the phase we’d need to be at for a ‘normal’ fall season, could begin anytime after August 17th.  This would allow for normal ECYSA and BYSA league games, modified versions of our Pre-K and K programs.  Parents, coaches, and other spectators will be required to wear masks and socially distance, but the game itself will be played normally.  As long as we are moved to Phase 3, Level 3 prior to Labor Day, we should be able to run a full 8-Game Season.
If you’d like to learn more about the various stages and dates around the Return to Soccer Activities, check out MYSA’s frequently-updated website:
Team Selection
Although we’d hoped to run some sort of on-field evaluations for the kids, the July 27th date and extraordinary on-field requirements we’d have to contend with make that not feasible.  We are currently collating Fall 2019 coaches evaluations and Spring 2020 rosters to use as a starting point for team selection, and will use this data as well as input from Fall 2019 coaches to form teams.  This is not ideal, and will almost certainly not be a perfect process, and we need to ask for extraordinary patience and understanding in the team formation process.  Without tryouts, there’s a certain amount of guess work involved in team formation, and we will undoubtedly make a few mistakes.  To that end, ECYSA has completely removed rules around in-season player moves, and we plan on creating rosters with a little extra space, so that any egregiously placed kids can be shifted mid-season.  But our primary focus is on getting the kids back on the field playing soccer – please bear with us.
Registration
Registration for all 2020-21 programs is now OPEN at https://www.bevsoccer.org/registration !  You can register for Fall 2020, Spring 2021, or both.  Because there’s some uncertainty around the season, the full-season discount is built into the current pricing for the two individual seasons.  In other words, if you register for both the Fall and Spring seasons now, you’ll receive the full-season discount price.
We also fully appreciate that every family is going to have a different level of comfort – and tolerance for risk – around returning to youth sports, and so registration will remain open through the start of the season, and thanks to some super-flexible policies from ECYSA, we’ll continue to place kids right through the beginning of the Fall season.  Obviously, we do need to form teams, so if playing on a competitive team is important to your child, you’ll probably want to register now, but please know that we understand the fluidity of the situation around the pandemic and want to do everything possible to ensure that soccer is a positive part of your family’s fall and not a source of stress.
In the event of a cancelled season, we will once again provide full refunds.  For families experiencing financial challenges, we do have assistance available.  Please reach out to our Registrar at registrar@bevsoccer.org for details.
Pre-K/K
We’ve received a lot of questions about Pre-K and K soccer, and how our ‘jamboree-style’ program will be impacted.  We’re still hammering out the details, but based on current guidelines, you can expect a very similar setting, but with fewer participants at a time, staggered throughout Saturday mornings.
On behalf of the entire Beverly Youth Soccer Association Board, Coaches, and Volunteers – I can’t wait to see you on the fields soon!
Regards,
Ryan
Ryan Reed
president@bevsoccer.org
https://www.bevsoccer.org
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