I. Purpose

The mission of the boys travel soccer program is to provide the best possible training and development program possible for the youth of the Medina City School District and surrounding communities.  In doing so Medina Soccer seeks to prepare our players for the Medina High School Soccer Program and Create a Lifelong passion for the beautiful game. Creating lifelong players, coaches, fans, referees and supporters of Soccer in the community we love.     

To accomplish this mission, we seek to:

A.    Provide a high quality competitive soccer program for boys growing up in the Medina Rangers Program

B.    Create an environment where every player is provided the opportunity to be the best he can be.

C.    Use the game of soccer to teach life lessons that will make our players better people as well as better soccer players.

II. Structure

The boys travel program will field soccer teams at least two different levels of competitiveness.  All teams will be under the direction of the Director of Boys Travel.  U8, U9, and U10 teams will have a maximum roster of 12 players, U11 and U12 will have maximum of 14 players, while U13 and U14 teams will have a maximum of 18 players. These levels are:

• Medina Rangers – Competitive Teams

This team and/or teams are for the most talented, committed and competitive players in an age group and as such will compete in the Ohio Travel Soccer League (OHTSL). Each team will have access to its own full time professional trainer. Team members will be selected via an open tryout. We intend to have our professional trainer Game Day coach our competitive teams as well each season.

• Medina Rangers – Academy Teams

The primary purpose of these teams is player development…not team development. Academy Teams are intended to operate as a "farm system" for the competitive teams and a place where players not quite ready for competitive level competition can build their skills and understanding of the game. These teams will also have their access the age group full time trainer and play in the OHTSL.  Players will be selected by open tryout.  Game Day Coaching will come from Trained Parent Coaches.  All of our Coaches are required to attend our in house training and are experienced Coaches.

III. Positions

The following positions have been established to provide leadership and direction for the boys travel program:

A.    Director of Boys Travel (DOC) 

The boys travel soccer program will be managed by the Director of Boys Travel (the Director) who sits on and will be responsible to the Medina Soccer Association (MSA) Board of Directors on all matters relating to this division. The Director will make all day-to-day and longer-term decisions

with the assistance of an advisory board. This person must have at least five years coaching experience and have a full understanding of premier soccer in Northeast Ohio. If such a person is not available or willing to take the position, the position will be filled by the MSA Board of Directors.

B.  League Representatives

The boys travel program will compete in the Ohio Travel Soccer League (OHTSL). A league representative, who will be appointed by the Director, will be responsible for serving as the liaison between the league and the MSA.

C.  High School Development Program (HSDP)

 The Medina High School Boys head varsity soccer coach may serve as the organization’s Director of HSDP. In this role, he will (1) provide advice and counsel on soccer matters and (2) work directly with the coaching staff and paid trainers to maintain and organize our HSDP program.  This program focusses on our U13 and U14 age groups to better prepare them for Medina High School Soccer. This program falls outside of the Rangers Training Environment and structure but is managed and provided by Medina Rangers Soccer in conjunction with our High School Coaching Staff.  The DOC will also work closely with the MHS Soccer staff to ensure consistent philosophy and approach to the game between MSA and the MHS Soccer program.

D.  Coaches

Coaching assignments will be made by the Director, subject to the approval of the MSA Board of Directors. All coaches must have at least a USSF "F" license (or equivalent in house training) or higher and be certified via the OYSAN Risk Management program every two years. All coaches serve at the will of the MSA Board of Directors and the Director for a period of one year (fall and spring).  Coaching assignments will be made on the candidate’s ability to prove that he or she has:

• A solid understanding of the game as a player and/or coach.
• A proven track record of success coaching kids.
• Agrees with the goals, rules and philosophy of the MSA.
• The ability to serve as a proper role model for the players.

E.  Paid Professional Trainers

The boys travel program is committed to providing every team with high quality coaching for both practices and games. This commitment will be fulfilled in one of two ways: (1) By the assignment of a volunteer or parent coach with a proven track record of success at the travel level or above or(2) By hiring a paid soccer professional to train the players. These professionals will work directly with the Director of Travel and operate within the scope of the organization’s coaching curriculum. Professionals will be compensated at a rate of pay determined by the Director and approved by the MSA Board of Directors. This pay level will be based on the professional’s level of experience and the rate of pay being offered by competitive organizations.

F. Age Group Administrators

 Selected by the coach, the Age Group will have its own Administrator. The Admin will be responsible for disseminating information from the coaches or league, as well as the collection of all player dues and fees.  The Admins will also maintain and update the Club’s communication tool. Team Snap and ensure that all events and games are on the master schedule for the age group.

IV. Policies

 The following policies have been established to deal with certain questions and situations that affect the manner in which the organization runs on a day to day basis:

 A.  Commitment

 When a player accepts a position on a boys travel team, the commitment is for an entire soccer year…fall season, winter indoor, and spring season. This commitment includes attending all practices, league games and tournaments that the team decides to participate in during that soccer year.  Also each Spring, MSA along with the Boys and Girls Travel programs will host a tournament as a way of generating funds to defray the cost of professional instruction. The parents of every travel player, both boys and girls, are required to donate at least four hours of time per year to help run the tournament. Parental support to insist that their sons live up to this commitment is not only expected, but required. The policy of this program is to encourage players to play other sports besides just soccer. Toward this end, coaches will do everything possible to work out scheduling conflicts with players to enable them to play other sports and participate in non-athletic activities. Conflicts that cannot be worked out between the parents, player and the coaching staff will be mediated by the Director.

B.  Playing Up

 Our policy is that all players normally in their proper age group. The proper age group will be determined by the player’s date of birth in relation to the USYSA age grouping; and the player’s grade in school. In general, a player’s proper age will be that group with whom he will attend high school. However, The  Director will have the final authority for granting any requests for a player to play in an older age group.  Requests will, however, be considered for playing an entire team up an age group if the competition in that team’s age group is not sufficient to challenge the players.

C.  Teams

 Teams will be formed for the U-8 through U-14 age groups. Older groups (U-15 through U-19) teams may be formed in the spring season, in accordance with Ohio High School Athletic Association guidelines. Teams will be formed based on the availability of talent and coaching. Talent level will  be determined by open tryouts.

D.  Tryouts and Team Assignments

 Travel players will be selected annually from open tryouts held in late May. Once open tryouts are held, any openings that still exist (or those that may develop later during the year) will be filled by the Director and the coaching staff in each age group. Tryouts are open to all  area boys, but preference will be given to players in the Medina City School District.

Evaluation will be done by a team of up to five people: the Director of the Boys Travel program, the parent coaches, an experienced boys travel coach who has nothing to do with the age group, and a paid professional. Tryout procedures will consist of objective and subjective measurements as defined by  the Director of Boys Travel. Players will be notified if they have been selected for a team within 10 days of the tryouts. Tryout results will not be made public. Players who move into the community between tryouts will be placed on the appropriate travel team, when possible, by the Director.

E.  Fees

 The boys travel program will be self-funded. Fees will be paid to MSA every season and kept in the MSA checking account. The fees for participation in the boys travel program will be determined annually by the Director, subject to the approval by the MSA Board of Directors.  Families will be billed in advance of each season and fees must be paid in full by the first game of the season.  Hardship cases should be brought to the attention of the Director and arrangements will be made to assist the family whenever possible.  All teams will be encouraged to undertake fund-raising activities to further offset costs.

F.  Playing Time