Frequently Asked Questions About Select Soccer

When do the try-outs take place?
Try-outs for U11 through U14 may start on the first Monday after June 1st. The earliest date that an Area may hold try-outs is dictated by the WYSA (Wisconsin Youth Soccer Association). Boys U15 and older shall take place after July 1st.

Over how many nights and how many hours are the try-outs held?
U-11 try-outs are held over three nights and last approximately two and one-half hours each night. A sample schedule would be: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 5:00-7:30 p.m.

Is there a charge for try-outs?
Each child in U-11 through U-14 levels must pay $5.00 when registering for try-outs.

What do the players do at the try-outs and what do they need to bring?
Try-outs will consist of small sided games such as 1 v. 1, 2 v. 2, 3 v. 3 and progress up to 5 v. 5. Different age levels may vary slightly in what is done at try-outs. Players should bring water, a properly inflated ball, proper shoes, shinguards and any incomplete try-out registration or try-out fee.

How many teams will be formed?
The numbers of teams will be determined by the quantity and quality of the participants. There will most likely be an "A" team and a "B" team. If the talent is deep and number of players is large then a "C" team may be formed. At the U-11 and U12 level (8 vs. 8) the teams will be 12-14 players and U13 and U-14 (11 vs. 11) levels the teams are usually made up of 15-16 players; U15 and above (11 vs. 11) - 18 players.

Must I attend every night of try-outs?
The answer to this is yes, however we do understand that there may be conflicts. The select coordinator should be notified in advance of an absence. The head coach running the try-out should also be informed. It should be pointed out that the less you are seen at a try-out may hurt your chances for being chosen for a team.

May my child try out for another area? And what if the nights coincide with each other?
Every child has the right to try out wherever they would like to. As with question #6, the select coordinator and the head coach running the try-out should be notified. It should be pointed out that the less you are seen at a try-out may hurt your chances to be chosen for a team.

How and when will my child be notified?
Currently our procedure has been to have a letter available for pick up at a designated location a few days following the tryout.. The child is then requested to call within 24 hours and accept or reject their placement on the team for which they were chosen. If a player needs more time to decide on whether to accept or reject a placement he/she technically must be given up to five days to decide. (This is per WYSA guidelines.) If a child needs to know sooner than the 72 hour time period they may call the head coach of the try-out within 24 hours. This need may occur if the player is trying out in another area.

Who actually judges the players and how are the players eventually selected?
What are some of the criteria for being chosen? The U-11 try-outs will be run by the select coordinator, the staff coach and the head coach chosen for that age group. All the U-10 coaches from the previous season may or may not be invited to help out at the try-outs. In addition to these coaches, there will be coaches from other select levels within Tosa Soccer and other coaches from outside of Tosa. After the try-outs the coaches will get together and compare their evaluations and come to a consensus as to the make up of the teams. Players are chosen based on their individual skills, tactical awareness, athletic ability, sportsmanship and over-all attitude.

May my child try-out at a higher age level?
For the first time, Tosa Kickers will allow players to play up - this will only occur at the U11 tryouts - allowing U9 players to tryout. See special note at the end of this document regarding this new policy. One exception to the "playing up" policy is the child who has an August birthday and thus may have started school sooner making him/her younger than most of his/her school peers; in this case the individual would be allowed to chose to play with their proper soccer age or their school age. Age levels may be combined at the U15 and above ages.

How are the coaches chosen?
Applications are sent out to all the U-10 coaches in addition to the current select coaches at the older age levels. The criteria for selecting a coach are character, coaching experience and level of coaching license. The coaching candidates will be interviewed by a "select committee" comprised of approximately 5 members and then the decision will be presented to the Tosa Board for approval.

When does the team begin training?
Most teams have a team meeting in late June or early July and then the team begins practice in late July or very early August.

How many times a week does the team practice?
Most teams practice twice per week while others go three times per week. Each coach and team set up their own schedule based on needs and desires.

Where are the practices held?
How many and where are the games played? The practices are held at the local fields in Tosa. There are usually eight league games in the fall and eight in the spring. Home games for Tosa teams have been played at Uihlein Soccer Complex but some may be held in Tosa in the future. Away games are based on the league that your select team is in. At U-11 the teams play in Kicker select leagues thus your away games are generally in the Milwaukee area. At older age levels, when state-wide select leagues become available, away games may be farther away (Madison, Green Bay etc...).

How many and how far away are the tournaments?
This is a team decision but at the younger select levels the tournaments are usually local. Many popular tournaments are held in the Chicago area as well as the Madison area. On the average, select teams seem to enter between 2-4 tournaments in the fall and 3-5 tournaments in the spring.

What about indoor soccer and the conflicts with other winter sports?
Select teams are encouraged to use the indoor facility at Uihlein. Some teams enter one session (8 weeks per session) while other teams enter all three sessions. There are also tournaments during the winter. These are individual team decisions but some type of indoor soccer is vital to the development of the player. If a player participates in other winter sports such as hockey or basketball he/she should discuss this with their coach. Especially at the younger select levels, participation in other activities is encouraged; players just need to be ready to make choices when conflicts occur.

In general-what are the costs?
Tosa Select Soccer is relatively inexpensive when compared to other advanced programs. The following costs can be anticipated: Kicker registration fee; tournament fees (the average tournament is about $350.00 per team and this would be divided by the players on the team-also remember that a team might enter 6 tournaments in one year); one session of indoor-about $50.00/player; possible indoor tournament; hotel costs at an out of town tournament; some teams may decide to purchase special apparel (sweat suit or sweat shirt, etc...); there is usually no coaching fee because Tosa Select Soccer tries to make use of qualified parent coaches-sometimes at the older levels a non-parent coach is utilized and paid.

What are some of the intangibles?
When a family decides on select soccer they should realize that the progress of the player is primarily determined by the dedication of that player and family. The quality of coaching, the level of competition and soccer camps are all factors but the most important variable is the amount of time that the athlete spends working on his/her own skills. The select soccer player is expected to attend some type of soccer camp over the summer. Remember that select soccer is a commitment that requires support from the entire family.

What happens if my child is not selected for one of the select teams?
If a child is not chosen for a select team he/she is then put back into the pool of rec players. The regional directors then get together and form the rec teams. It is not a guarantee that these players will be placed with players they used to be with at the U-10 level. The regional directors make every attempt to keep kids together but it simply does not always work due to the numbers of kids and teams. If a child is not chosen he/she may also attempt to play select in another area.

What is the playing time policy?
All rec players U-6 to U-19, and all select players U-11 to U-14 must participate in at least 50% of each game, if they have participated and cooperated in practice. This holds true for Kicker league games and all Kicker tournaments. The 50% playing time rule does not apply to U-13 and U-14 Select teams playing in non-Kicker leagues or non-Kicker tournaments, nor does it apply to U-15 through U-19 Select teams in any games. The rule does not apply in State Cup competition at any age level for any Kicker team. Individual coaches and regions may, and are encouraged, to adopt a higher standard for minimum playing time, which would enhance player development for all Kicker players.

Select Committee Proposal for Allowing U9 Players to Tryout for U11 Select
It is the recommendation of the select committee to open up the U11 tryouts for 2008/2009 to U9 players as well as the U10 players. The purpose for this change in policy is to provide an opportunity for players to participate at the level that will help develop their talent better and allow them to be in a more challenging environment. This "playing up" will only be applied to the U11 age level this year. It is being viewed as an experiment and will be evaluated throughout the year and revisited before the tryouts in June of 2009. The number of U9 players along with the quality of players will determine how the U9 players are placed after the tryouts. If there are enough players to form a complete team (12-14 players), the U9 players will be kept together and play in the Milwaukee Kicker U11 league. There is also the possibility of a few players playing with other U10 kids if there are a few too many for one complete underage group. If there are not enough players to form an underage team, then the players will be put into the pool of the U10 kids and placed on U11 teams with the other U10 kids. In this last scenario, of less than 12 underage players, it is the opinion of the board that the goal should be to only keep those underage players that can compete at the A level. If a player is deemed to be not qualified enough to compete at the A level, he/she will be sent back to their existing U10 team for the fall. The Tosa Kickers reserves the right to make adjustments to this policy that will be in the best interest of the club and the players.

Example of Shielding

Fun Night 2010