Main photo: Community coach Chris Occhiuzzi (third from right) and Andrew Duke (right), a high school student giving back as a volunteer coach, instruct their young players.
Just because there’s snow on the ground, it doesn’t mean young local soccer enthusiasts aren’t dreaming of summer days spent on the pitch. To provide them a fun opportunity to stay active as well as time to work on their skills, the Huntsville Soccer Club (HSC) has been running successful indoor youth soccer skills nights at Huntsville High School (HHS). The annual program is for children aged 4 to 13 and runs from January to March.
“Our indoor skills development is a great way for kids to keep improving existing skills while learning new ones,” says community coach Chris Occhiuzzi, who also coaches the U10 Rep Boys Soccer team and is the Huntsville Soccer Club’s Adult Coordinator. “We get a good mix of kids from beginners up to very experienced rep players. This program has been successful engaging our keener soccer youth, while creating a passion among those trying the sport for the first time.”
The program also allows high school students and experienced elementary players to help give back by being assistant coaches.
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- Mike Hill (right) is the indoor program facilitator.
But the kids don’t get to have all the fun. The club also offers an indoor adult intermediate/beginners program at HHS. It is pick-up soccer and all about having fun. “It’s a very social group. This is the first year for the program that I started based on the interest and success of the summer intermediate/beginners program,” said Occhiuzzi. “When we get outdoors for the summer season, the improvement in footwork and ball control is even more evident among those who trained with us in the winter.”
And for the rep players, weekly indoor training is available, too. Occhiuzzi and Dave Caplan coach a co-ed group of players from U8 through U10, while Ted Maduri and Dave Caplan coach the U11 and U12 Rep Boys team.
While it’s too late to get involved in winter skills development, registration is open for the summer season. For more information and links to register, visit www.huntsvillesoccer.ca.
Rep evaluations for the Huntsville Strikers summer program will be taking place this coming weekend. The schedule is as follows:
U9/U10 boys and girls, Friday, March 2 from 6-7:30 p.m. at HHS
U11/U12 boys, Friday, March 2 from 7:30-9 p.m. at HHS
U13/14 boys and U15/U16 boys, Friday, March 2 from 7:30-9 p.m. at Riverside Public School
U13/U14 girls, Sunday, March 4 from 10:30-11:30 a.m. at HHS
U15/U16 girls, Sunday, March 4 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at HHS
U17/U18 girls, Sunday, March 4 from 12:30-1:30 p.m. at HHS
U12 girls, Sunday, March 4 from 1:30-3 p.m. at HHS
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