Commitment
Travel soccer is a major sporting commitment. Travel teams are not “in-house” teams, but are effectively town “select” teams that compete against the best players from other towns. Thus, GPSA requires a high level of commitment that is consistent with playing at a “select” level.
There are two league seasons in a travel soccer year as defined by The Michigan Youth Soccer League (MYSL) and the Michigan State Premier Soccer Program (MSPSP), the fall, and the spring. It is expected that travel players will compete in both seasons. Lack of participation in the Spring or Fall season will affect team placement for the following year. The commitment levels required for the two seasons vary and are outlined below.
Fall Season
The Fall runs from late August through early November. Practices are held 2-3 times per week, games are typically played on weekends however games may be played during the week as well. For teams entered in the Michigan State Cup Competition, (only applicable for U-14 through U-18 age groups) additional games will be required. Many travel teams will compete in one or two tournaments during the fall season. The individual coaches, based on their desire to seek appropriate competition for the individual team, select the tournament. Tournaments are not limited to in-state competition and may require travel outside Michigan. Tournaments are typically held on holiday weekends such as Labor Day and Columbus Day. If your child is invited to join a GPSA travel soccer team and agrees to play, they are accepting a commitment to GPSA soccer. Less than a 100% commitment is not fair to your fellow teammates or coaches. Your child is welcome to play other sports in the fall, provided it does not significantly impact the practice or game schedules of the team. Players are expected to make a strong effort to attend all practices and games, but we realize that conflicts with other sports are likely. It is expected that any conflicts will be communicated with your coaches and managers well in advance so that the impact on the team (e.g., playing with fewer players, being forced to forfeit, etc.) can be minimized. If you cannot make this commitment to travel soccer, it is not recommended that your child try out. GPSA obviously understands absences due to family commitments or sickness. We do ask that you communicate problems/conflicts to your coach and manager as far in advance as possible. If your initial intentions are good, but fade away during the fall season through unexcused absences, coaches will address this lack of commitment
through whatever means they feel appropriate such as reduced playing time. In addition, excessive absences will affect future team selection.
Winter Season
The winter season runs from November to late March. Most of our travel teams participate in indoor soccer leagues at one of several venues in the area. These sessions are not mandatory but participation is strongly encouraged. All fees associated with the winter session are in addition to the standard travel fees.
Spring Season
The spring season runs from mid April to early June. Practices are held 2-3 times per week, games are typically played on weekends however games may be played during the week as well. For teams entered in the Michigan State Cup Competition (only applicable for U-14 through U-18 age groups), additional games will be required. In addition, all travel teams may compete in one or two tournaments during the spring season. The individual coaches, based on their desire to seek appropriate competition for the individual team, select the tournament. Tournaments are not limited to in-state competition and may require travel outside Michigan. Tournaments are typically held on holiday weekends such as Memorial Day. Just as in the fall, your child is accepting a commitment to GPSA soccer. Less than a 100% commitment is not fair to your fellow teammates or coaches. Your child is welcome to play other sports in the spring, provided it does not significantly impact the practice or game schedules of the team. Players are expected to make a strong effort to attend all practices and games, but we realize that conflicts with other sports are likely. It is expected that any conflicts will be communicated with your coaches and managers well in advance so that the impact on the team (e.g., playing with fewer players, being forced to forfeit, etc.) can be minimized. GPSA obviously understands absences due to family commitments or sickness. Absences due to other sporting commitments during the spring season are strongly discouraged. Coaches will address this lack of commitment through whatever means they feel appropriate such as reduced playing time. In addition, excessive absences will impact future team selection.
Playing Time
Coaches are strongly encouraged to balance out playing times for all players during the season. Although most players will participate in most games, in certain circumstances, such as the single-elimination Michigan State Cup games, one or more players on a team may not play. However, such situations should be rare, and in any case, all players should get sufficient playing time over the course of the season.
Positions
Coaches are encouraged to give travel players opportunities to play different positions during their season and to accommodate requests from players to try different positions over the course of the season. However, players should not expect that such requests will be granted immediately or that they will always play in their “favorite” position, as the coach must consider the good of the entire team when setting line-ups and making substitutions. Obviously most players try out for travel teams as field players. However, if a U-14 through U-18 player tries out specifically as a goalie he or she should expect to play that position full time (i.e., 90% - 100% of the time). Sometimes “full-time” goalkeepers will play other field positions, but that is at the discretion of the team coaches.
Additional Training - TTS Fridays (Technical, Tactical, Street soccer)
During the course of the season, GPSA offers additional training to those players who wish to improve their skills. We offer foot skills training for all players and specialized goalkeeper training for those wishing to improve their keeper skills. All these sessions are in addition to regular team training sessions. These sessions may be deemed mandatory at the coach’s discretion.
In addition to the additional in-season training, many soccer camps are offered during the summer. Most camps can provide age appropriate instruction however some camps are team oriented for more advanced players. GPSA encourages players to attend camps and development sessions.
Uniforms & Apparel
All GPSA travel players are required to purchase a travel uniform consisting of home and away jerseys, shorts, 2-pair of socks. The fee for this is in addition to the registration fee. Individual teams may elect to purchase additional equipment such as equipment bags, warm-ups, jackets, practice “T’s”, canopy’s, etc.
ONLY GPSA APPROVED UNIFORMS AND APPAREL WILL BE ALLOWED.
Fees
GPSA charges travel players $105 per season, fall and spring. These fees are used to pay for field maintenance, referees, insurance and administrative fees. Additional fees for indoor traning may also be required as well. As you evaluate whether this Program is right for your son and/or daughter, and your family, please keep the following objectives of the GPSA Travel Program in mind:
- To enable our children to have fun playing competitive soccer;
- To teach the attributes of good sportsmanship toward teammates and opposing players;
- To provide an ongoing program of high quality, expert professional soccer training for Grosse Pointe’s more dedicated and committed youth soccer players so that they can become the best players they are willing to work toward;
- To provide continuity by requiring each player and each Team to play two (2) outdoor seasons per soccer year (Fall and Spring);
- To retain these children in the GPSA Program rather than having them leave to play for other clubs in order to meet their needs;
- To make it more likely that our children will continue to play competitive soccer at higher levels upon “graduating” from our Travel Program;
- To increase the exposure of our competitive soccer players to high school and college coaches; and
- To have a Travel Soccer Program that is financially self-sustaining.
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