President’s Notes

September 2008

As the President of the Richmond Strikers please let me take a moment to welcome both new and returning members to our fall season.  It’s a great time to be a Richmond Striker and I am very pleased to be representing and serving you as President.  Our fall season is punctuated with two significant events (hiring Bob Jenkins as our Director of Coaching and the opening of our West Creek Fields at the Markel property) which move our club forward in creating a high quality and rewarding experience for both our children and parents.  I think it is important for our organization to truly be a club “a group of people organized for a common purpose (American Heritage Dictionary)” and not simply a place to go play soccer.  We on the Board of Directors aspire for the truly great game of soccer to be the means to better the personal development and fulfillment of all members of our club, both adults and children.

With that in mind, I want to begin a continuing dialog with you about two very important themes regarding our “common purpose”.  They are safety and character development / sportsmanship.  I believe them to be the cornerstone principles upon which our club’s foundation must be built.  A wide range of soccer proficiency development will transpire over time in our players.  We hope that all will transition from our program to go on and continue throughout their lifetime playing the game as collegians, amateurs, coaches and parents of future players.  However, that can never occur to its maximum potential if we lose focus and compromise our player’s physical safety or their development into respectful and fair minded individuals.

I am soliciting your thoughts, ideas and active participation in improving and ensuring uncompromising attention to detail with regard to player and member safety at all of our facilities.  This will require great vigilance and a willingness to speak up and ensure corrective action is taken for any safety issues.  Of current paramount importance to me is ensuring that no practice or game occurs without ensuring that our soccer goals are securely in place.  I will admit that after watching my seven children play many hundreds of games over the years I have been complacent about this issue.  As a referee I have carefully inspected goal nets to ensure there were no holes but omitted checking to verify the goal was secure.  Over 27 documented fatalities and many serious injuries have occurred in the United States over the last 20 years due to goals tipping over and striking players or parents.  I need you active involvement to create multiple layers of protection to ensure this never occurs at a Striker facility.  Anytime you are at our fields delivering your child to a practice or game, take a quick look to ensure the goal is secure (anchoring mechanism or anti-tip weighted bag).  Our coaches and game officials are receiving similar instructions to ensure this occurs.  Although a bright white soccer goal on first appearance appears very stable and monolithic, without proper securing mechanisms it can tilt forward and deliver a very severe striking blow with tremendous momentum to a person in front of the goal.  Likewise, please intervene immediately should you see anyone climbing the goal net or hanging on the goal crossbar.  Those activities should be as shocking to you as watching someone playing with a live electrical wire conductor.  One of our members, Don McLear is heading up a committee to more formally address this safety issue.  If you are willing to join him in this endeavor please contact me and I will forward your contact information to him.  Please forward any suggestions you may have to my email address on the website (or any other Executive Committee member you are comfortable with) regard the goal safety, traffic safety, child protection, etc.  Suggested solutions are always most welcome.

On the issue of sportsmanship, I very much need your active participation.  In watching my children’s matches and officiating club and scholastic matches (a sum total of over a 1000) I have seen much to admire and also to regret with regard to player, coach and spectator behavior.  I urge all who read this message to improve their involvement in striving to improve the process in which we impart lessons of good sportsmanship and character to our players.  We will never graduate every Striker player to play college or professional soccer.  We absolutely can graduate them to a life where they are equipped with a better foundation of respect for others and personal self-discipline.  They may not captain a Division 1 team but they can be respected leaders in our communities.  Please take the time to do the little things that reinforce this concept: gently encourage your fellow parent to avoid yelling negative comments to players or officials, let your child know that every game is an opportunity to learn and not a life and death experience, respecting the rights of the neighbors in proximity to our facilities, congratulating opposing teams’ players and parents after a match (yes they are only our opponents, not our enemies).  Help make us proud of our club and our players.  Expect exemplary behavior by all who wear Orange and Black.  Be positive and excited, we are building our future leaders one game at a time.

Thanks for your time and your thoughts.

Yours in soccer,

Bill Standley

President, Richmond Strikers Soccer Club

Bill.Standley@dom.com

804-543-6455