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Fall 2010 Rosters Announced
Fall 2010 Rosters Available!

Fall 2010 Rosters are now available.  You can check what team your child is on by clicking HERE.  Coaches were given these rosters on 9/2/2010.  Please give them 2-3 days to reach out to you. If you do not hear from them by 9/7, please reach out to them!

Here's to a great Fall Season!
Fall Skills Training with Quality Touch Soccer Academy Announced
SYSL Presents Fall Skills Training for House Division

Once again, SYSL is sponsoring Fall Skills Training sessions with Quality Touch Soccer Academy.  This skills training is great for kids between 5-14 who are in the House Division who want to accelerate their capabilities. In order to learn more about this program, please download the registration form and flyer by
clicking here.
Fall 2010 Game Times for HOUSE Available
Fall 2010 Game Times/Locations Are Available for HOUSE

For those of you who want to know when and where your kids will be playing for House Division this fall, please click here.

The Fall Season will commense on September 25, 2010.  The late start is to avoid conflicts for players who observe Yom Kippor (on September 18). 

More information will follow.  Actual division schedules will be posted once they are available - some time in early September.

SYSL Night at the Red Bulls - August 14, 2010
SYSL Night at the Red Bulls Returns!

SYSL is pleased to announce that tickets for the September 11, 2010 Red Bulls' game against the Colorado Rapids are now available to order.  Please click here to download the order form.  You will need to have your form into SYSL HQ for your request by the Friday before the game - in this case Septemeber 3.  Send a request form (
get that form by clicking here) with a self addressed stamped envelope.

See you at the game!

Current SYSL News
Coaches Needed for Fall Season - Friday, August 20, 2010
Coaches; Commissioners Still Needed for Fall Season

With a about a month to go before the House Fall Season, SYSL is still in need of volunteer coaches, assistant coaches and commissioners at all levels for all divisions.  It turns out that coaching experience is not necessarily a prerequisite!
 
SYSL will be providing coaching clinics for new and intermediate coaches in early September.  These clinics will provide you with suggestions on drills, games and , practice management tips and tricks.  What you need most to be a successful coach is a desire to work with our kids and help them learn to play as a team and have fun.

If you or someone you know has an interest in working with our kids, please send an email to Kate DeSimone.  Please indicate the age group you are interested in and be sure to indicate if your child is already registered for the fall season so we can match you up with your child.

Coaching is an extremely rewarding activity and a great way to donate time to improving your community. We hope to see a fresh crop of new coaches (especially at the younger age groups) in early September.

Regards,

SYSL
 

CT DEP Study Released on Turf Safety
Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection + four other agencies Release Study on Artificial Turf Safety

One more study confirms the safety of artificial turf fields for soccer players. But this one isn’t just one of the hundreds done over the last few years here and in Europe that reached the same conclusion….and it wasn’t an industry sponsored study which in some quarters is considered tainted. It was funded by the State of Ct and administered by four state agencies: The Connecticut Agricultural Experimental Station, The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, The Connecticut Department of Health and The University of Connecticut Health Center.

Called “Artificial Turf Field Investigation in Connecticut Final Report” the report is the culmination of two years of study.
The peer review (an important part of the scientific process) was conducted by the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. The study’s final report risk assessment summary said “Based upon these findings, outdoor and indoor artificial turf fields are not associated with elevated health risks from the inhalation of volatile or particle-bound chemicals. It would be prudent for building operators to provide adequate ventilation….at indoor fields”.

Unrelated to the safety of playing on the fields themselves the study identified in a minority of field samples a potential risk to surface waters and aquatic organisms from surface runoff of zinc. The Department of Environmental Protection “recommends that, where feasible, stormwater runoff from artificial turf fields that is discharged to surface
waters, be handled in a manner that incorporates best management practices, such as stormwater treatment wetlands, wet ponds, infiltration structures, compost filter, sand filters or biofiltration structures”.

One strong criticism by the peer review committee of the methodology used in the study was that in several places the Department of Public Health used criteria that created a “systematic overstatement of exposure and risk in conducting the risk assessment” which lead to conclusions “that overstates the risk” and is “unsupported by the actual data”. This, of course, is good news for users of artificial turf fields. Despite its unnecessarily conservative criteria the study still shows no health risk to players who use artificial turf fields.

On July 30, the report was released.  You can read the constituant studies at the links provided below. 

Agency Activity Methods
UCHC
Human exposure field investigation
 
Measured air concentrations of approximately 200 chemicals at five fields during active play.
DPH
Human health risk assessment
 
Convert air concentrations measured by UCHC to the level of health risk to users of the fields from inhaling emitted chemicals.
CAES
Laboratory study
 
Measured offgasing and leaching of chemicals from crumb rubber under defined laboratory conditions.
DEP
Environmental field investigation
 
Measured leaching of metals from fields during rain events.
CASE
Document review
 
Report
Assembled nine member expert panel to review all aspects of the State of CT reports on artificial turf fields.


Several local newspapers ran stories about the turf issue about two weeks ago. You can get their take on the studies at these links:

Stamford Advocate

Wilton Bulletin

Reading Pilot

House Keeper Training Announced
Calling all Keepers! Calling all Keepers!
Fall House Division Keeper Training Announced


As in previous years, SYSL will once again offer Keeper (Goalie if you are an American Soccer fan) training with Kirk Taylor, a professional keeper trainer. If your child has an interest in the keeper position, SYSL will sponsor them to go to this training. Here's how it works:

You sign your child up for keeper training, which runs 5 weeks. If your child attends to 4 of the 5 sessions, you will get your registration fee for the keeper training reimbursed by SYSL. It's that simple!

Training begins Friday afternoon, September 17 at 5:15-6:30PM at Turn of River School Fields

We need keepers in both the House and Travel Divisions (Travel Keeper Training will be announced separately). This is a great way to get your child trained for this critical position. If you are interested in this training for your child, please click here to download the form and sign up.

Click HERE for the registration form.
Red Bulls Calendar
SYSL at the Red Bulls 2010 - Thursday, April 08, 2010
SYSL Dates for Red Bull Games Announced for 2010

The schedule for SYSL at the Red Bulls is now posted on the website under "Announcements".  SYSL has free tickets for children registered to any team in the league, House, Travel or Premier.  Tickets are on a first come, first served basis.  Tickets are also available at a discounted rate for siblings, parents, and friends through SYSL.  Please check back on this website for details closer to the games.

You can download the order form for all games from this link.


All games
at Red Bulls
Arena, Harrison, NJ
 
5/15 Seattle Sounders FC   
7:30 PM
Loss - 0-1


6/5/2010
Chivas USA
7:30PM
WIN - 1-0


7/10/2010
DC United
7:30 PM
Tie - 0-0

8/14/2010
LA Galaxy
6:00 PM
Loss 0-1

9/11/2010
Colorado Rapids
4:00 PM

10/2/2010
Kansas City Wizards
7:30 PM

10/9/2010
Real Salt Lake
4:30 PM