Youth soccer in Willits is back
On behalf of Mendocino County Soccer Academy (MCSA) players, families, and coaches, we’re excited to announce a return to onfield soccer with our Grassroots Academy in Ukiah, Willits, and Mendocino on June 22.
We’ve stayed in close contact with our families over the last three months, and an overwhelming majority of people want their kids to return to the field as soon as safely possible. We’re aware of the safety concerns, and we’re working closely with local officials to plan a comeback.
MCSA has self-certified with the county’s Safe Operations Business Protocol, and we’ve developed our own list of soccer-specific safety protocols.
A return to the filed is possible due to County of Mendocino orders issued on June 3, which allow for the creation of social bubbles. These are stable groups of 12 or fewer people who cannot change members for four weeks.
These bubbles can gather for educational or recreational purposes and include:
-a household support unit -a childcare unit -a children’s recreational activity unit, or a workgroup.
Individuals can participate in one of each of these groups. In our case, participants will create a “children’s
recreational activity” bubble and do not have to wear face coverings or practice social distancing from each other, but still must practice good hygiene and stay home if sick.
In the short-term, this means we’re able to make up Grassroots Academy sessions that were postponed in March in Willits, Ukiah, and Mendocino. We’re dividing our players and coaches into groups of 12 (10 or 11 players with 1 or 2 coaches).
The same coach and children will be in the same group for the duration of the session. Outside of internal scrimmage, there will not be any games. No one will be able to cross over between groups, and no new players will be added if someone needs to drop out.
The session will run three days a week starting on June 22 — July 31st. There will be two groups (one Under 8 and another Under 12) for the Willits session, and both are full. The Coast will also have two groups, and there are limited slots available.
Ukiah will have 3 or 4 groups with limited availability. The remaining spots will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis— by visiting Mendocinosoccer.com.
Additional health orders are expected on July 3. At that point, we hope to open up registration for our county-wide Developmental Soccer League that will kick-off this fall. Health orders permitting, this will be the second year of this successful program.
We’ve initiated a volunteer coaches-in-training program that we know will continue to create highquality experiences for players and families.
We’re hosting a brief Zoom on Tuesday, June 23, at 5:30 p.m. where you can get to know more about MCSA, our programs, and youth soccer plans this late summer and fall. Reserve your spot by visiting Mendocinosoccer.com/meetmcsa.
Please email Club Admin Director Ian Fitzpatrick with questions at Ian@ Mendocinosoccer.com.
We appreciate the patience and your of our continued community support as we navigate these unprecedented times. In the meantime, we can’t wait to be back on the field, smiling, laughing, and playing with these socially starved kiddos!