Welcome to the East Windsor Travel Soccer League Tryout Webpage. Before registering, please read the Mission, Philosophy and Commitment Level information to make sure Travel Soccer is right for you. Following these three sections is more information about the tryouts including preregistration, what to expect during tryouts and what happens after tryouts.
Mission: The mission of East Windsor PAL Travel Soccer is to provide an environment allowing each participating child to develop and excel within the sport of soccer. As a sport, soccer provides the youth of our community with the opportunity to learn and develop a healthy life style that will bode them well in their future endeavors. We will provide leadership and learning to the children of our community on a competitive level.
Philosophy: Our goal is to continue to grow, expand and improve the soccer program to provide an ongoing support structure to all interested athletes.
Commitment level for Travel Soccer:
Travel Soccer Athletes are expected to attend all practices and games. Players are expected to prioritize their commitment to soccer above other sports. Team league play will be in the MOSA Travel League, EDP, MAPS or JAGS leagues. There are about 10 games per season with half the games at the opponent's location. Most opponents are within a one-hour drive, but some may be more. Players will likely attend several tournaments during a season where some may be out of state depending on the level of play and the coaches desire to attend nationally ranked tournaments. Travel teams have Spring and Fall seasons and most participate in a Winter league. Annual fees for travel soccer are team dependent but usually range from $300 to $1000 per year depending on the number of tournaments entered, uniform needs, trainer costs etc. which can be partially offset by the amount of team fundraising.
Tryout Pre-Registration:
All participants are highly encouraged to preregister on the website. There will be on-site registration however this may delay the participant's arrival time at the designated field and reduce the amount of time he/she can be evaluated. Pre-registered players will receive an e-mail with instructions for the days of the tryouts. Registration numbers will be pre-printed for you to make registration easier. No athletes are allowed to wear travel jerseys to try-outs. We understand that scheduling conflicts may occur, but we can't change dates to accommodate a select few as this usually impacts someone else. The tryout schedule will be posted on this website 1 month prior to the tryout date indicating start and end times for each age group.
Day of the Try-Outs
Please arrive before the designated start time for your tryout session to allow for check-in, walking to the field and stretching / warm-up before the tryout starts. If you are registering the day of the tryout, please arrive about 15 min early so that all pertinent information can be collected, and a tryout number assigned. Depending on the number of unregistered participants, you still may be late to your tryout session.
Try-Out Evaluation:
Try outs will consist of drills or match play of 3v3 and up to 5v5 teams depending on the age group being evaluated. Each player will be evaluated on ball control, dribbling, passing, receiving, speed and agility. To ensure objectivity, all evaluations will be completed by trainers and experienced coaches who have no vested interest in that age group. All evaluators will agree on the criteria and evaluation scales. Parents and Coaches may or may not be present during the sessions but are not allowed to interact with the evaluators, players, including their own children, or parents. An area away from the field of play will be identified for visitors to watch.
Roster Decisions:
Once the try-outs are complete, the Travel Director and/or Selection Committee will gather all the rankings from all the evaluators. Tryout ratings/results will determine the team placement of players on each of the teams. The coach may seek independent evaluations in the selection of players from the tryout committee; however, the final decision is that of the coach.
Earning a position on a team, DOES NOT guarantee placement in years to come. All teams are formed new each year based on the results from tryouts.
The coaches must contact and invite each player on the roster within 10 days, and athletes will have 24 hours to make a commitment to the team. If a participant declines, the next person on the list will be invited until a full roster is achieved. All other participants who did not make the team will be contacted by a team coach with feedback for improvement opportunities and contact information for the Recreation program. Under no circumstances will the coaches share exact rankings with players and/or parents. They may pass on information as to why they were or were not selected based on feedback provided.