Pinelanders
Pinelanders Youth Soccer Club, Howell NJ
Pinelanders/

Season Plans (Fall 2020)

Important Note

All dates and activities are subject to change based on Covid-19 restrictions and precautions.

Key Dates

The Fall 2020 season will open on Friday September 11th. Week-by-week details of the season’s game dates will be on the Season Calendar. Here are some other important dates:

  • Friday November 8th. Winter Indoor and Spring season registration opens.
  • Friday January 3rd. Indoor season starts.
  • Sunday February 9th. Late-fee deadline #1.
    • After this date we’ll begin planning the season and all new registrations will be charged an additional $10 per player late fee.
    • The late fee will increase on later dates – see below.
    • Registration in some divisions will close, depending on how many coach and player registrations we have. Note that we cannot continue to accept player registrations if we don’t have enough volunteers to coach.
  • Thursday February 27th. Coaches’ safety status must be at least yellow (safety documents uploaded and fingerprinting appointment made if needed) by this date to qualify for a $20 future-season registration credit that can be used for either of the next two seasons.
  • Sunday March 8th. Coaches’ safety status must be at least blue (fingerprints completed and receipt uploaded) by this date to qualify for the $20 future-season registration credit.
  • Sunday March 15th. Withdrawal deadline and late-fee deadline #2.
    • Withdrawals after this date and before assignment will be subject to a $10 charge per player.
    • Incomplete registrations will be voided.
    • The registration late-fee increases to $15 per player for all registrations received after this date.
  • Monday March 16th. Coach assignments published.
  • Thursday March 19th.
    • Last day for registration before assignments are made. 
    • Registration will close temporarily after this date.
  • Thursday March 19th.
    • Pre-season Coaches’ Meeting 7-9 PM at PAL Building (old Southard School) [Map].
  • Saturday March 21st.
    • All registrations must be completed (including payment) by noon on Saturday.
    • Player assignments start.
  • Monday March 23rd. Player assignments should be available on your My Teams page late this evening.
  • Tuesday March 24th. Registration re-opens for waiting list placement only. Most players registering on or after this date will not be placed until after the start of the season.
  • Thursday March 26th. Game schedules available late evening.
  • Saturday March 28th 9AM – noon. Grounds Preparation Day. If you can help with getting the fields ready to play please sign up when we open the volunteer activity.
  • Wednesday April 1st. Registration in all divisions suspended until after the start of the season.
  • Friday April 3rd. Season starts.
  • Monday April 6th.
    • Registration re-opens in selected divisions.
  • Tuesday April 7th. Waiting list assignments begin.
    • Assignment depends on feedback from coaches that they are able to take additional players.
  • April 29th & 30th. Team pictures at Memorial School.
  • Saturday June 20th. Trophy Day.
  • July 20-24. Summer Soccer Camp.

– Jem Treadwell
Pinelanders Registrar

Interested in Coaching?

We always need coaching help, especially in the younger divisions – if we don’t have enough coaches we can’t field teams. If you’re interested in helping and you’d like to know more please see our Coaching Q&A page. If you have more questions after that please contact Jeff Cooper.

To sign up please complete the Coaching page in the Registration Center, and be sure to save your registration in the “Review & Save” step.

Team Assignments and Game Schedules

Team assignments, game schedules and volunteer schedules will be published through your My Pinelanders page. Please see the list of dates above for information about when you can expect to see these.

What Do I Need & Where Can I Buy It? – and other Q&A

You’ll find answers to many of your questions, including details of the equipment you need, on our Q & A and Program Information pages.

All-Girl & Co-Ed Divisions

  • Girls who will be aged 5-14 on April 1st (Spring season) or October 1st (Fall season) can choose to play all-girl or co-ed.
  • Our teams in the 4-year-old age-group (U5) are all co-ed. The U4 Introductory division is also co-ed.
  • We will not have an all-girl option for girls who will be aged 15 or older on April 1st (Spring) or October 1st (Fall) – they will play in the co-ed U19 division.
  • Very few girls choose to play co-ed soccer in the younger divisions.  This means that if you choose co-ed, your daughter is likely to be on a team where she is the only girl, or there may be only one other girl.  Please think carefully before making this choice, as our policy is to avoid moving players between teams once assignments have been made.

Withdrawals & Refund Policy

You can withdraw your child and receive a full refund any time until the date shown in the Key Dates section above.  Once your child has been assigned to a team you will not receive a refund if you withdraw him/her.  If you voluntarily withdraw your child after the withdrawal deadline and before he/she has been assigned you will incur a charge of $10 per player withdrawn. For more information see our Fees & Refunds Policy.

If your child is on the waiting list and we can’t place him/her, then you will receive a full refund.

Ear Piercing

Please don’t have your daughter’s ears pierced less than six weeks before the start of the season if she plans to play with us this season.  For safety reasons, the rules of soccer prohibit players from playing with jewelry at games or practices, and our referees and coaches do enforce this.  So if your child begins the season unable to remove a stud, she will not be allowed to play.

Volunteering

Every family must volunteer for something during the season. Please check our Volunteering page for policy information and other details of the voluntary activity program. We’ll have a few pre-season activities, but if you aren’t able to help with those don’t worry – we’ll need most help during the season, and there will be something to do every week.

Incomplete Registrations & Volunteer Status

A registration is complete if you have registered, paid, and (first season only) provided a copy of your child’s birth certificate, or other proof-of-age. No player will be assigned if his/her registration is incomplete.

If you have an outstanding “red” or “blue” volunteer status from a prior season you will not be able to register your child until you have completed a makeup volunteer activity. During the Indoor soccer season (January through early March) we often need help with setting up the gym.  In July we may be able to use some help with our soccer camp.  The only other activity that will be available before the start of the season is Grounds Preparation day.

Please check your main My Pinelanders page for your registration status and volunteer history.  If you have questions please contact the Registrar.