All:

Thank you for all of your efforts in getting things ready to start with this year’s Spring soccer season, attached to this email you will find brackets and schedules (in both excel and pdf format). Please review and let me know if you see any errors.  We ended up scheduling 493 games and typographical errors sometimes happen despite our best efforts. 

Brackets for Developmental are fairly self-explanatory.  One new thing for this season is that due to the large number of first and second grade teams registered there will be a north and a south bracket for those two age groups only. The other age groupings, including the combined first/second grade bracket, are not geographically divided either due to smaller sizes or not having an equal enough distribution of north and south teams to make it work.  For the developmental program our goal is to get each developmental team 7 games during the 7 week season.  In some brackets we had an odd number of teams so one team in each of those odd numbered brackets ended up with an eighth game inorder for everyone to play 7.  That team was chosen at random.

With respect to the JV and Varsity Brackets we had enough teams to do 4 divisions of five (or in some cases, six) teams each.   If your bracket has 5 teams in it, the top three of each bracket will advance to the post season with the first seed getting a bye into the championship game and seeds 2 and 3 playing a play-in game.  If your bracket has 6 teams in it, the top four of each bracket will advance to the postseason with seeds 1 and 4 playing and seeds 2 and 3 playing in the play-in matches.

At the JV/Varsity level brackets are determined in accordance with our league rules, largely based off of a formula that takes into account previous records for the combined JV/Varsity squad and their previous bracket strength.  Some deviations had to be made with respect to schools that field an uneven amount of JV and Varsity squads that need to be matched with as similar school as possible for referee scheduling purposes (i.e., School A has one JV squad but no Varsity, and school B has one Varsity squad, but no JV).  Also, please bear in mind that since we have added an additional bracket this Spring that was not there during the previous Fall, Schools may find themselves going up or down up to two brackets, depending on their composite placement score, but in no instances would a school go from the top bracket to the bottom, or vice versa. 

If you have any questions don't hesitate to reach out and I will be happy to explain why schools have been placed where they are, but please understand that this determination is final and as always, we will rebalance our brackets again for next Fall based upon the results of this Spring.

Additionally, attached to this email is a listing of contact information for head coaches and soccer coordinators for each school (in both excel and pdf format).  Please review and make sure that any necessary parties are listed and listed correctly.  Let me know if there are any corrections. Data entry is not a forte of mine, typos can occur, if something is off with your contact info let me know and I will correct it. 

I have also included a link to the DSL league rules, please familiarize yourself with them.  https://pittdsl.org/documents/Diocese%20of%20Pittsburgh%20Soccer%20League%20Coaches%20Rule%20Book.pdf

Also note the following:

1.      Jersey Colors – Home team is dark, Away team is light.  If the referee determines that the colors are too similar the home team is required to either change their jerseys or wear pinnies.  The coordination of jersey colors is something that should be discussed by the coaches in the email/phone/text change that occurs prior to the games and discussed below.

2.      Confirmation of Game Details – As we have done in the past, each home coach should reach out to the away coach on or before Wednesday (Tuesday if that particular game is to be played on Thursday) to confirm game times and locations, directions and jersey colors (see attached spreadsheet for coach contact information).  Please cc the soccer coordinator as well for that school.  The home coach should also share any COVID regulations, if any, that the home school or venue is requiring (such as spectator limits, mask requirements, etc.).   If the away team has not heard from the home team by Thursday (or Wednesday if that particular game is to be played on Thursday), they should reach out and initiate contact with the home team’s coach and soccer coordinator.  If no contact has been able to be made, please reach out to me.  Be a courteous and respectful guest and remember that whatever regulations and rules that your school employs may not be applicable at someone else’s fields.  If there are compliance issues here, please let me know as I prefer to get ahead of these issues than to let them get out of control.  

3.  Attendance at away games is not optional – I have heard reports of schools, mostly at the developmental level, opting not to play another school because the drive was too far.  That is not how this league works.  In order for schools to have home games, away games are part of the deal.  A lot of time and effort has been put into this league by me, by you, by our players and our parents; everyone is pulling their oars in the same direction so that the kids get a chance to have fun and learn the sport.  If I hear reports of schools unilaterally deciding to not show up because of travel times or other unapproved reasons, I will look into the situation and react accordingly.  As I mentioned last year, that could include, but not be limited to losing home games in the following season for either that particular team or possibly the school.  In extreme instances it could also result in schools being suspended for a season.  I am hopeful that we don't have any such issues this season though and we can continue to focus our efforts on making this league and our sport better.

4.  Scheduling Requests.  I did my best, there were a lot of requests this year.  In the aggregate some of them became incompatible with one another.  For those that turned in “clean sheets” with no requests, thank you, you are the unsung heros that give me the flexibility to maneuver and make a schedule that accommodates as many requests as we do.  As you review the schedules let me know if you have questions.  

Scheduling requests caused a few issues at the JV/Varsity level such as schools playing the same team in consecutive weeks.  In some instances schools requested entire blackout dates for track meets and I was not able to do so; instead I tried to schedule games later in the afternoon where players could do both.   These compromises are not ideal, but they were necessary in order to accommodate the scheduling requests and get the games in during our allotted season.  

We had more problems at the developmental level because we have 7 weeks to get 7 games in and we are working around conflicting schedules for track, musicals, First Communion, etc.  Similar to JV/Varsity, I was not always able to black out entire days for track, but instead I tried to schedule games later in the afternoon where players could do both.  Also, there are instances where schools with multiple teams in a bracket requested a black out date and I have them playing each other on that date with the understanding that the schools can make that game up with their two squads whenever it is best for them.  You will also note that there are more double header games than we typically have in a season.  This is a direct result of trying to accommodate all of the scheduling requests that we received.  

If additional requests come since the time that your registration was delivered you will need to work those out with the opposing team (see below for reschedule procedures).  All games should be played.  Schools have registered with the understanding that they will get to play at least 7 games at the developmental level and 8 games at the JV/Varsity level. At the JV/Varsity level, at best, unplayed games will put you at a disadvantage for league standings and depending on the circumstances, could result in forfeit wins (2 points instead of 3) and forfeit losses (-2 points instead of 0) being allocated.

5. Reschedule Requests– Games can only be cancelled and rescheduled due to weather and due to Diocesan and School events.   

i)                For Developmental Games, the coach/coordinator for the requesting school should reach out to the coach of the opposing team with the request and cc the opposing school's coordinator and me.  Both parties need to agree to the rescheduled day and time.  If one school is being uncooperative, let me know.

ii)                 For JV and Varsity Games, the coach/coordinator for the requesting school should reach out to the coach of the opposing team with the request and cc the opposing school's coordinator, me and Chuck Pruss (Chuck is cc’d on this email and his email is in the schedules).   Both parties need to agree to the rescheduled time.  No alternative time is final until Chuck can confirm that he is able to provide referee coverage for the alternative time. 

6. Webpage– With respect to the JV/Varsity games those schedules will be loaded onto the webpage.  Please refer to this schedule until such time as we have updated the webpage, please be patient, we are volunteers with day jobs so we are all doing this in our free time and will get it uploaded as soon as we are able.  As always, each coach should be making contact with the opposing team to verify game details in advance of the game.  Relying solely on either this schedule or the webpage can result in errors– in almost every instance of teams showing up on the wrong days/locations/times, it is directly attributable to coaches not confirming with one another game details in advance.

Finally, here are a few more points as we go into the season:

§  Registration Fees are overdue. Fees are $100 per team. The check is payable to Diocese of Pittsburgh and sent c/o Rob Glentzer at 116 Wickerham Drive, Mars, PA 16046

§  Rosters are due for all teams – Developmental JV, and Varsity – by March 26 via e-mail or US mail. If you use e-mail, please properly scan and/or attach the document. Improperly scanned documents or unreadable/partial pictures will not be accepted. Preferably a soccer coordinator can send all of the rosters for all of their teams. Jersey numbers for JV/Varsity should be listed on the roster.  Roster forms were emailed earlier this season and can be found online.  I've also attached the form and again to this email

§  Referee Fees for JV and Varsity are $45 per ref per game so with 2 referees it is $90 per game so for 4 home games, it would be $360 for the regular season.  Home teams pay for the JV/Varsity Referees.  For developmental games home teams supply and pay for the referees and the home team sets the pay scale, unless they are utilizing PIAA referees.

§  Two (2) Game Cards should be used for all JV and Varsity games – one is for the opposing coach and one is for the referee. Other documents will not be accepted. Call up players, e.g. JV playing up on varsity should be added to the game card for the game.  Results of the game are to be posted online using the webpage or QR code by the winning team (or, in the event of a tie, the home team).  A picture of the results, roster and yellow/red card information must be included or the results will not be official.  It is best to upload this information immediately following the game.  I have attached a sample game card and they can also be found online

§  Below is a quick summary of some division specific information, but please consult the rules for a more detailed listing

§  Let’s remember sportsmanship and not run up the score. If you are up on a team by 4 goals you should start to implement measures to make the game more competitive.  You could instruct your players to pass more, playback and practice your build up, have your players shoot with their non-dominant foot, pull off a player or two, or ask the team if they would like to add a player or two (if the ref consents).  It is ok to want to win, and the players that work hard and are the better team that day deserve the win.  But it is also important to teach them how to win (and lose) with grace. Teams that win by more than 8 goals will be flagged for review and the results for that game could be set aside by the commissioner, in my sole discretion.  Repeat violations of this rule may result in the offending school being sanctioned with the loss of home games in the current or future season.

§  We are a co-ed league, all coaches should be playing boys and girls in an equal manner and doing what they can to encourage the development of all players.

§  Last, but not least, please remember, we are doing this all for the kids.  Let’s keep and maintain a safe environment for them and set good examples for them throughout the season.  

That’s all, if you've read this far, congrats, hopefully this is the longest email I will send all season.  Play safe and I hope you all have a great season this year.

Rob Glentzer

DSL Commissioner

1. Registration – Thank you for getting back to me on registration.  Registration has been closed since last Friday, but I do appreciate that a few of you are still running things down and are doing your best to field the most accurate placements that you can.  At a certain point though we need to move onto scheduling, so that means that at a certain point things will need to be finalized.  That time is Thursday, March 3 at 11:59 pm.  After that no more additions or subtractions will be permitted and you will be required to pay the registration fees for all teams that are registered and will be expected to field teams for all registered teams.
2. Registration Fees – Speaking of registration fees, those were due last Friday as well.  Please get those to me ASAP, and no later than this Monday, March 7th.  They are $100 per team (4 teams would equal $400), are payable in check made out to the Diocese of Pittsburgh, and sent to DSL Soccer, c/o Rob Glentzer, 116 Wickerham Drive, Mars PA, 16046.  If you prefer to deliver in person that is fine too, just reach out to me to coordinate.
3. Schedules – We will be working on those shortly and they take a long time to put together.  The first games of the season will be the weekend starting Friday March 25th and we will have the schedules to you no later than the Monday prior to then, but hopefully sooner.  We have received over 350 scheduling requests so those take a lot of time to review and to try to accommodate as many as we can.  Please be patient, I could get you schedules as early as the evening, but you wouldn’t like them as no scheduling requests would be reflected in them.  That is what really slows this process down.  We are happy to do it, just understand it takes time.
4. Kickoff Email – I will get a kick off email out later this month with game day and other notes (probably closer to the game week).  In the meantime, feel free to familiarize yourself with our league rules at on our website.
5. Updated Email Contacts – I received your updated email contact lists in the registration forms and will update our distribution list as soon as we can.  I’d ask that the soccer coordinators and/or AD’s from each school please forward this email onto anyone that you think is missing/is new this year until I can get our distribution list current.  Also, if you’re no longer involved with DSL Soccer and would like me to delete you from the distribution list, just respond to this email letting me know that and I will delete you.  Normally emails will come from me, to me with a BCC to you all.  Until I get the email list updated though I will send it to you all so you can see if any key personnel are missing.
6. Dick’s Sporting Goods DSL Discount Coupon – Dick’s Sporting Goods is continuing its partnership with us and offering us a 20% off coupon good for most items in the soccer for Friday March 18 through Monday March 21.  See attached for the coupon and the list of stores that are participating (although I understand that some stores that don’t participate might (but are not required to) honor the coupon).  Please share this with your school families that are signed up for soccer and feel free to share with whoever else you’d like; it is not a requirement to play soccer for the DSL to use the coupon if you want to share it with friends and families.

             

1. Registration Form – You will need to fill this out and send it in to me, together with the registration fees ($100 per team)

2. Player Roster form – This is not needed until later, but it will ultimately need to be filled out for each registered team prior to the start of the first game.

3. Game Card Form (JV/Varsity Only) – This form is for your coaches, each game they are required to bring two of these with their player rosters of who is playing that game (Many coaches find it easiest to just type their players names and numbers in the word version of this and prior to each game delete any players that are missing).  One of these goes to the opposing coach and the other goes to the referees. This is only required at the JV and Varsity levels

4. Spring 2022 Timeline – This lays out key dates throughout our season

5. DSL Rulebook – This lays out the rules of our league, to the extent that they differ from the high school rules.

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions.

1. Spring Registration – Remember, league registration opens January 25th and closes February 25th.  Whatever teams you have registered as of February 25th will be expected to play and you will be responsible for their registration fees.  This is meant to avoid all the last minute changes that occurred last season which not only delay getting schedules out to the rest of the league, but inevitably result in unintended scheduling errors when we try to revise in a day what took over a week to create.

2. League Wide Call – Since things are starting to settle back into a routine (I’ll refrain from saying getting back to “normal” since I have no idea when and if normal ever comes back), we will go back to having annual league wide calls instead of seasonal.  I want to be respectful of everyone’s time and to the extent that something changes or needs reinforced you will see it in an email from me.  And of course, if there are any questions or concerns with anything prior to, during or after our season, feel free to call or email me.

3. Off Season Play – I wanted to take the league's temperature on the possibility of getting our players some more touches in the off season.  As a parent of a player and a coach, the single best thing I have ever done for my players’ development is to sign them up for an indoor soccer league or futsal league over the winter.  Not only do they get the continuity of play cutting back on the “rust” factor”, but both versions of soccer are extremely fast paced and emphasize quick decision making and quick passes and control.  Things that are critical to youth development.  We have two opportunities this season for some winter games that I wanted to gauge interest in, they are as follows:

a. Indoor League Play at Tri-County Soccer and Sports Center in Freedom, Pa.  This opportunity was brought to us by our friends at St. Peter’s and Paul.  Tri-County has an indoor league that plays very similar to outdoor soccer (with a few exceptions such as the field is smaller, the ball is heavier, the field is turf and fast and there are boards on the boundary (similar to ice hockey) where the ball can bounce off of and remain in play).  All three of my kids have played at Tri-County over the past 10 years (and my first grader is playing there now) and it's a great venue to get some touches.  Tri-County is willing to work with us and have a Diocese League Play where our teams will play one another which will allow us to play by grade instead of birth year.  They can carve some time out for us on Sundays to play.  This league plays 6v6 (including a keeper; recommended team size is between 8 and 11), starts January 21, last 12 weeks, and costs $1650 (all payments would go to Tri-County directly, they run the show, we are just helping put something together so our kids can get touches).  If you are interested in this opportunity I’d need to know by Friday, December 24 and I’d need you to tell me what grades are interested. Tentatively I am thinking we’d start with the following brackets:  Varsity League and JV, but if there is interest at the 1/2 and/or 3/4 grade levels I am happy to try to put those leagues together.  We’d need a minimum of 4 teams per bracket for such a bracket to be viable.  Also, our leagues would be co-ed, similar to how we do it in the fall and spring (but if this takes off and we have the numbers, I’m not opposed to doing a separate boys team and girls team in the future).

b. Futsal Tournament. While I enjoy indoor soccer, I really do love futsal.  For those not familiar, it is typically played on a basketball court with a smaller and heavier ball and even more so than indoor, speed, precision and passing are absolutely critical.  There are no “boards” like indoor soccer can have, so the ball can and will go out of bounds which results in a kick in (as opposed to a throw in).  We are working with Total Futsal to get a Catholic Schools League Tournament in place this year and hopefully by next season, having a winter league as well.  Game format would likely consist of at least three 18 minute games with opportunity to advance to semi-finals and/or finals.  Venue and date are still to be determined (but we are looking at PISA in Cheswick PA on January 15-16 as a possibility).  Cost is also to be determined but it would likely be in the $150-$250 range per team, which would cover court fees, ref fees, and medals and/or trophies).  This league would play 5v5 (including a keeper; recommended team size would be between 7 and 9).  If you are interested in this opportunity I’d need to know by Sunday, December 19 and I’d need you to tell me what grades are interested.  This opportunity would be available for teams in the following brackets – 1/2, 3/4, JV, Varsity.  We’d need a minimum of 4 teams per bracket for such a bracket to be viable.  Also, our leagues would be co-ed, similar to how we do it in the fall and spring (but if this takes off and we have the numbers, I’m not opposed to doing a separate boys team and girls team in the future).

Schools have the ability to do either or both of the above opportnities and if there is interest in both I’ll gladly coordinate getting our schools entered.  Also for both opportunities, I know different coaches have taken different positions on how to approach these off season opportunities.  I have seen teams have weekly or twice weekly practices and then a game each week.  I have seen teams have no practices and just roll in for games.  All are fine.  My personal recommendation is to have just one or two practices prior to your first game where you can get the kids used to the speed of play and to go over any differences in format from outdoor soccer.  My view is that this is the offseason and it should be an enjoyable opportunity to play the game and keep the rust off, plus many of our players have other winter sports commitments such as basketball, hockey, wrestling, club soccer, etc.  As a coach, I was less focussed on wins and losses and more concerned that the kids get touches and keep their skills sharp for the spring.  I’ll defer to each school on how they want to address their approach, but for those that are concerned with conflicts with other winter sports, sometimes less is more.

That's all I have, feel free to reach out to me with any questions and if I do not speak with you beforehand, have a merry Christmas.

Regards,

Rob Glentzer

Good afternoon everyone,

Coaches: