End-of-season tournaments

Dear Managers,

Soccer Alaska is very excited to be able to combine our end of the season tournament with the Alaska Adult Invitational Tournament held on August 13, 14 & 15 at the Dela Vega complex for Men's A & B as well as Women's B & C. Merging these two events will provide additional games to those teams that would like to play more, against a variety of teams at the same competitive levels from Fairbanks, the Valley, the Kenai Peninsula, Whitehorse and possibly SE Alaska. Unlike previous years, when the league event was made up of single elimination games, the AAIT provides a three game guarantee. Additionally our event was limited to the top 4 teams in each division that chose to compete, while we are opening this tournament to all Men's A & B and Women's B & C teams (the Alaska Adult Soccer Association currently doesn't hold a coed tournament, so we will continue to offer an end of the season contest for that group as well as Men's C). Teams which register for the AAIT must comply with all tournament rules, including the restriction that players are not allowed to play on more than one team. More information on the tournament: http://www.aasa-alaska.com/2010_Alaska_Invitational.html

To account for the end of the season games that were included in the summer fee, we will pay $175 towards the AAIT registration fee of $350 per team. A link has been created to commit your team and pay the $175 for entry into the Adult Invitational Tournament here: http://socceralaska.com/regV3/team_login.php. The deadline to register is Monday, August 2, 2010. Payments will only be accepted via credit card.

For Coed divisions as well as Men's C, we will continue to offer our in-house playoff for the top four teams in each division. These games will take place August 9-14. We operate this playoff on an "opt-in" system, as some teams do not wish to play or have players headed back to school in this time frame. Please check with your team to make sure they are available, as games may be any day this week. To opt-in, reply to this email with your team name and division by August 2, 2010 (there is no additional charge for this option).

As this is a new arrangement, more details will be available in the coming weeks. Please look for additional emails, but in the meantime please start to poll your team to see if they are interested in the appropriate event for your division. Let us know what questions you have!

Take care,

Soccer Alaska Staff

The 30 Referees of World Cup 2010

When FIFA announced it’s final list of 30 referees for World Cup 2010 in South Africa, the big story was the inclusion Martin Hansson, the Swedish ref who somehow missed Thierry Henry’s handball vs Ireland.

There were 29 other referees on the list though, some of whom are very much aware that for 20 of the 22 men on the pitch, football is a feet only sport. Your full list of 30 World Cup 2010 referees is as follows:

Europe
Olegario Benquerenca, Portugal
Massimo Busacca, Switzerland
Frank De Bleekere, Belgium
Martin Hansson, Sweden
Viktor Kassai, Hungary
Stephane Lannoy, France
Roberto Rosetti, Italy
Wolfgang Stark, Germany
Alberto Undiano Mallenco
Howard Webb, England

South America
Carlos Amarilla, Paraguay
Hector Baldassi, Argentina
Jorge Larrionda, Uruguay
Pablo Pozo, Chile
Oscar Ruiz, Colombia
Carlos Simon, Brazil

Asia
Khalil Al Ghamdi, Saudi Arabia
Ravshan Irmatov, Uzbekistan
Subkhiddin Mohd Salleh, Malaysia
Yuichi Nishimura, Japan

Africa
Mohamed Benouza, Algeria
Koman Coulibaly, Mali
Jerome Damon, South Africa
Eddy Maillet, Seychelles

North, Central America and Caribbean
Joel Aguilar, El Salvador
Benito Archundia, Mexico
Carlos Batres, Guatemala
Marco Rodriguez, Mexico
Australia and South Pacific
Michael Hester, New Zealand
Peter O’Leary, New Zealand

Article from the NY Times about new challenges for turf fields

Disagreeing About Fields
By CAROL POGASH
The shortage of athletic fields in many Bay Area communities affects the number of children who can play Saturday soccer and has led to nasty turf wars.

In bucolic communities, people protest and sign petitions about the state of the fields. Politicians campaign for solutions. The wealthy donate millions for artificial turf, while critics warn of dire consequences from “grass” that never needs mowing.

Synthetic turf can increase the amount of time a field can be in use because it is impervious to gophers and rain. Proponents, who prefer “synthetic turf” to “artificial turf,” say manufactured fields are costly to buy but cheaper to maintain. Critics argue that artificial grass, especially the type filled with ground-up tires, is potentially harmful. CAROL POGASH

PIEDMONT The number of soccer players has doubled in the past 15 years, and philanthropic soccer parents have promised $8 million to carve two athletic fields, complete with synthetic turf, out of an open hillside. A parking lot, bridge, elevator and a snack bar would also be built.

But opponents say plans are too grand and threaten the health of children and wildlife. They would rather share a field in neighboring Oakland.

Taken aback by the vehemence of the opposition, Eric Havian, president of the Piedmont Soccer Club, said: “We’re not proposing to put a coal <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/c/coal/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier> mine here. We’re talking about a playing field for children.”

Al Peters, a critic and former mayor, is not hopeful. “Money,” he said, “influences decisions.”

SAN CARLOS Only about a dozen people attended a recent City Council <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/c/city_council_new_york_city/index.html?inline=nyt-org> meeting on city finances. But 200 may show up to talk about synthetic turf. The plan to build two athletic fields with artificial turf has been fought for nine years.

Opponents filed suit last spring insisting on an environmental impact report. “We live in beautiful California where the grass grows green,” said Greg Harris, an opposition leader. He called synthetic grass, with its tendency to heat up in the summertime, “environmentally repulsive.”

But Doug Long, the director of parks and recreation, sees a less-noble motive. “They are using fear of toxicity to hide the fact they don’t want more people driving in their neighborhood,” he said.

The town is proceeding with its plans for artificial turf but has promised that the infill will be made of environmentally friendly coconut husks.

GOLDEN GATE PARK The late Don Fisher, a founder of the Gap, tried to give San Francisco an art museum but gave up because of a development battle. His three sons want to spend $20 million converting existing play fields to artificial turf.

But the Audubon Society <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/a/audubon_society/index.html?inline=nyt-org> , the Sierra Club <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/s/sierra_club/index.html?inline=nyt-org> and other organizations argue that the conversion of four grass fields would threaten wildlife and the natural landscape. They seek greater public involvement and an environmental impact report, and they question Mayor Gavin Newsom <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/n/gavin_newsom/index.html?inline=nyt-per> ’s commitment to a green city.

“We are committed to the environmental stewardship of Golden Gate Park,” said Phil Ginsburg, general manager of the Recreation and Parks Department.

2009-10 Season Opening Letter

Hello players, managers and fans of the game;

We recently explored acquiring private medical and liability insurance for our participants and discontinuing our affiliation with the United States Adult Soccer Association. After much debate, consideration and negotiation, we are pleased to announce our intent to continue our membership with the local board of the (USASA). In addition to re-confirming this relationship, we are also implementing a $5 increase in the Soccer Alaska player fee, to $30 annually. This modest increase will allow Soccer Alaska the autonomy and budget to continue and expand existing in-house programs as well as develop and implement new ones.

We have been diligent in our efforts to not pass along growing operating costs to our membership and yet we are challenged to continually improve the quality of our offering. We have been successful in doing so, especially as it relates to our outdoor playing venues. I’m not sure how many of you remember the moon landscape we called the South Anchorage Soccer Fields, but I believe the various turf venues and Balto Seppala are a pronounced improvement. However, our cost in those days was $30 for each field per day, while our fees now range from $25 to $100 for each venue per hour, depending on the location. Additionally we implemented across the board wage increases for the game officials in 2008 and the Dome has announced a second rate increase since opening its doors, beginning this fall. At the same time we continually upgrade and improve the website and its associated programs to make it more interactive and user friendly. So far we have been able to do more with less. This spring we began offering referee certification courses to Soccer Alaska registered players for free in an attempt to tap into our player pool and increase the number of adult game officials. We will continue this program 2-3 times per year. In addition to placing a greater emphasis on recruitment, we also want to provide referee training opportunities, especially as they relate to adult game management.

Other value added benefits being developed are increased social opportunities, adult skill training and travel assistance for adult teams wanting to attend tournaments outside of Anchorage and Alaska. We are also exploring a telephone answering service and the possibility of leasing office space. There is much we have done and more we will do, but if the $5 per year does nothing more than make you want to scream at an official a few less times, then it is money well spent.

As always, we look forward to your feedback and suggestions, and no, we cannot spend a portion of the funds to renovate the AT&T bathrooms.

Take care,

Klaus
President
Soccer Alaska