Soccer returns to the Eastern Townships
Soccer Estrie expected a registration spike this summer, but they were not prepared for the amount of people seeking to get their children into the sport.
After almost an entire year without team sports in Quebec, soccer, among several other outdoor sports, is slated to return this summer, and Soccer Estrie aims to get the ball rolling at the end of June.
The Eastern Townships organization plans to start its regular season June 26 and 27. However, according to Soccer Estrie Director General André Cabana, the region needs to wait for the colour to change from orange to yellow.
“The season will be similar to a normal season in terms of the quantity of matches, but we’re just going to condense them a little bit in the summer and then extend a bit into September to offer a more complete season,” said Cabana.
Soccer Estrie governs nine clubs in the region, including the Mistral de Sherbrooke, Memphré de Magog, Dribbleurs du Haut-st-françois, and L’éclipse de Coaticook-compton. Cabana and his team poured hours into creating a suitable schedule for each club.
It takes a lot of preparation to schedule matches, he explained, adding that they needed to organize around every field, and consider the safety of nearly 5,000 soccer players, as teams will be required to follow standard COVID-19 protocols.
Cabana told The Record that they have reached 90 per cent of their registration numbers, compared to two years ago. They already have 4,849 players this summer. The numbers were lower last year due to COVID-19, he continued, but they had 5,570 players in 2019.
“The teams are full, they’ll be able to compete with a full team, I don’t like using the term, but it’s like everything will be normal,” said Cabana. “The only constraints are wearing masks, they don’t need to wear it on the field, disinfecting hands, and avoiding prolonged contact.”
But the director has run into one problem this summer, and it has to do with registration. Quebecers want to be outside, after spending months inside due to the pandemic, he said, but there is limited space within each club, which has forced them to turn people away.
“We have a lot of young players between 4 years old and 8 years old,” said Cabana. “There was a large boom. After the year that we had, parents want their kids to move a little.”
Soccer Estrie expected a registration spike this summer, but they were not prepared for the amount of people seeking to get their children into the sport. And it isn’t as simple as an adding an extra team or two, Cabana said, it would mean rejigging the entire schedule.
“We try to accommodate as many people as possible, but in certain categories, unfortunately, we needed to refuse people who wanted to sign up,” he said.
L’éclipse de Coaticook-compton President Richard Hébert said the club has also surpassed its registration goal for the summer. They have 316 soccer players this season, ranging from four years old to 50 years old. The younger teams are mostly maxed out.
“In the last few years, we’ve seen a decrease [in registrations] because there were less births, but over the past three years we’re always around 300 players,” said Hébert.
There is a thirst to get outside, he continued, and people want to play soccer. However, he realizes the club’s registration pattern is not sustainable, with kids getting older, there will be less children filling the void in the younger age groups.
Hébert said the format for this season will look very similar to last summer. The sanitary measures are still in place, he explained, so players, coaches, referees, and spectators will need to disinfect their hands, equipment, and wear a mask on the sidelines.
He noted that all of this is subject to change. It depends on what the rules are in Quebec come August. One issue that continues to bog down the Coaticook-compton club, though, is a lack of volunteers. They are struggling to find people committed to running teams and events.
“We’re always looking for volunteers to become members of the administration and take responsibility for certain groups. There is a volunteer shortage. It’s normal, we usually have difficulty finding volunteers for our activities,” Hébert said.