US Soccer - 2016 Changes

Heinie Wagner

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"Next year, the world of youth soccer will continue its evolution as all members of U.S. Soccer will begin to transition on two key factors to encourage further youth development. The first change will be the nationwide adoption of Small-Sided Games and the second will be a shift from school-year to calendar year for the age grouping of teams."
 
http://www.usyouthsoccer.org/changes_coming_to_youth_soccer_in_2016/
 
 
I'm not sure if all states have to follow this, but this will make a HUGE change for kids like my youngest son.  A November B-day, he's in 2nd grade, would tryout for U-9 travel soccer (3rd grade - first year of travel in our town - I know, crazy they start it that young)  this spring under the current rules. If I understand this correctly, he would have to try out for U-10 travel under the new rules with some players (in 3rd grade now) who have already played a year of travel.
 
The small sided games changes make a lot of sense from a player development standpoint, but in many cases are NOT what parents want.
 

robssecondjob

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From my last board meeting it sounds like Massachusetts and Connecticut may not be adopting the age changes.  Or at least they are fighting against it.
 
For our league the small sided games actually add a player to the pitch!  We would go from 6v6 to 7v7 and 8v8 to 9v9.  The field size shrinks dramatically as well.  The changes at the U8 level (yep we have competitive travel at 8) are massive.  4v4 on a small pitch with tiny goals and three periods.
 

Cumberland Blues

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The 9v9 for U-12 would actually add a player for our kids too (northern VT), and the age changes would mean 6th graders born in the fall have no team to play on at the rec league level.   There is no U13 or U14 rec league here - it's all school teams or club teams from 7th grade on.  So if the 6th grader is too old for U-12, he/she has no place to play unless their parents can afford one of the expensive clubs (and get them there - most kids in our league live 30-40 minutes from where the club teams practice).
 

Heinie Wagner

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Cumberland Blues said:
The 9v9 for U-12 would actually add a player for our kids too (northern VT), and the age changes would mean 6th graders born in the fall have no team to play on at the rec league level.   There is no U13 or U14 rec league here - it's all school teams or club teams from 7th grade on.  So if the 6th grader is too old for U-12, he/she has no place to play unless their parents can afford one of the expensive clubs (and get them there - most kids in our league live 30-40 minutes from where the club teams practice).
 
That makes me think of a similar point here (CT), older 8th graders would have no place to play unless U-15 were added to Clubs, which would be difficult to do as about half the U-15's would be in high school.
 

DJnVa

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My son is aging out (U18 this year), but my daughter just started with a U13 team, but 8 of the girls are playing an age group up as it is. When this changes to a calendar year system, then only 2 of them will be playing in the correct age group (including my daughter and the best player on the team), and 13 will be playing one year up, and 2 will be playing 2 years up.
 
They can keep the team together but they are going to be very young.
 
I have to talk to her coach and see what they are planning on, because she's going to be disappointed if this team decides to play in the 2003 age group and not 2002.
 

robssecondjob

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They also just changed the coaching license progression as well.  Now there are national licenses at each level (G up to A).  I am in the process of getting my E license and now I have been informed that I need to retake the national F class.  Event though I passed that well over a year ago.
 

Rancho Relaxo

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While I understand the reasons for this (and agree with them), it's going to cause some turmoil for my daughter (and us). She plays U12 8v8 now, having just joined this new team/club in autumn. She loves the coach and has absolutely flourished. Thing is, when this all shakes out, she'll be on a U14 team next year, and only two other kids on her team fall in the same age group. The coach talked about the possibility of playing up a year with the other girls, but that's a call left to the parents. My kid could be left out in the cold.

Compounding matters, the club is going to an academy structure. Team placement will be at the discretion of club directors, not the coaches. Coaches may not stick with the same team year after year. Our current coach doesn't agree with this and is going to take her teams independent. I want to be loyal and stick with her (she's great for my daughter), but there's a good chance she won't have enough kids to field a U14 team. I don't want my kid left without a team, but I also want her to be with the right kind of coach (encouraging, motivational, focused on long-term development over short-term winning).

It's doubly unsettling because after a rough team/coaching situation last year, we thought we'd settled on a good long-term team. I bristle at having to go through all that rigmarole again (and am paranoid that my overall ignorance will lead to a crummy situation for my kid). And selfishly, I really like the parents on this team.

Anyone else in a similar boat? I'm honestly at a bit of a loss.
 

Heinie Wagner

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My 8 year old son, Nov b-day in 2nd grade now, would have been trying out for U9/3rd grade travel this spring, the first year of travel with our club. He'll be trying out for U10/4th grade travel now with kids who already have a year of travel under their belts. Those teams will be losing players so he likely won't have a problem making a team, but he'll be joining a team where a lot of relationships already have been formed, coach/player and among players.

My 11 year old son will be on the same team (U12 this year, U13 next year), but they'll lose their coach - his kid, along with 3 other kids on the team (4 out of 16) will be U14

There will be chaos this spring for tryouts - I feel sorry for our soccer club directors (which is rare for me because I think they're douches) who are going to have people irate and blaming them for this. I'm sure they'll handle it really poorly which will make me feel less sorry for them. Any decent club should be informing its members of this already.
 

Rancho Relaxo

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Yeah, we got the heads up last week. That gives us some time. Hopefully, we can work out a few guest-playing options and build some new relationships over next season.

And I definitely feel for the club leadership. They know what they're doing in terms of development (it's part of the Kansas City women's pro team). They're just going through so much -- absorbing a number of clubs last season and implement this academy approach chief among them. And now we have this, before those clubs have been fully assimilated. That's a lot to navigate. I can only imagine how heavily they'll be bombarded with questions...

I just wish there were some sort of transition map. If your kid is getting displaced/bumped up, it'd be nice to have a comparable team available as a landing spot (especially in the same club), even if it's just a placeholder until things settle.
 

Heinie Wagner

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Our coaching director told me nothing is for sure yet, but it looks like clubs can put it off for a year - he said our club will likely phase it in for u9/u10 this year and let the other age groups stay together this year. If I understood him correctly, teams may have to play up to make this work but they'd rather do that than break up existing teams. We were talking in between pickup basketball games, so I didn't have time to ask about the details.

Our town club did send out a memo: "The US Soccer Federation recently released new birth year registration requirements and small sided game standards. The Club is actively reviewing the new rules and is working with the Connecticut Junior SoccerAssociation (“CJSA”) and the North Central District to determine how to best implement them. Although a final implementation plan has not been developed, there will be a spot for every player that wants to play."
 

DJnVa

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Most of the big clubs here in SE Virginia are going to it for the coming fall.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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Anyone else get today's Statement from Youth Council Technical Working Group to U.S. Soccer? Sounds like it's not going as smoothly as they had hoped:

(logos of multiple youth soccer organizations)

The Youth Council Technical Working Group unanimously agreed that there has been generally insufficient dialogue between the U.S. Soccer Federation technical staff and the technical leadership of the various youth membership organizations.

Substantial questions remain about the impact of the new calendar-year registration model, and the interpretation that a player’s eligible competition year is determined by his/her age in the year in which the competition ends.

http://usclubsoccer.org/2016/02/05/statement-from-youth-council-technical-working-group-to-u-s-soccer/
 

robssecondjob

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Rancho Relaxo

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We had a team meeting about this again last week. Our club's regional director fielded a lot of questions (some annoyingly repetitive), but I did find some things he said interesting/reassuring:

-No coach or club in our area is happy about it.
-In general, the club wants kids to play at their age level (and not up a year or two). Exceptions will be made, but that's the guiding philosophy. It seems the wiggle room is on the less competitive teams.
-U15 teams and older will be grandfathered in that they'll keep the teams together as much as possible (i.e., letting younger kids play up to keep the team intact).
-The club will find a place to play for high-school seniors not on a school team.
-Coaches are having many conversations with each other about specific players and where they'll end up. This club is huge (three Kansas City metro regions, about 150 teams), so I can't imagine the level of coordination underway.
-Initially, some coaches were threatening to leave the club (including ours) to go independent, but that seems to have subsided. I take that as a good sign that the club has worked through a lot of things.
-The club will also host weekly age-specific, team-independent practices so that kids can meet other kids and coaches in their new age groups. There will also be social events and opportunities to guest play on other teams.
-Unless your kid wants to play for an academy team, tryouts are optional.

Anyway, I feel a little better knowing that the club is spending so much energy on figuring this out. I just want my daughter to play for a good coach with a good bunch of kids. Bonus if the other parents are cool (selfishly). She'll probably try out for other clubs just to keep options open and get some experience, but I'm pretty sure she'll stick it out here.

I know Kansas City is a long way from New England, but I thought it might be useful to see how a larger club was dealing with this.
 

Heinie Wagner

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Our local Travel Club is allowing players to stick with their existing team (grade based) - in effect playing up if they are on the younger side. WIth U9 and U10 being age based only. Our middle son (July b-day, 7th grade this fall) will get to pick if he wants to tryout for the team he's been on or the team a grade younger. It could be chaotic, I know the club is hoping most kids stick with the team they were on last year. The bold below gives a lot of discretion to the Club.

  • In order to minimize the impact on existing teams, and in an effort to keep existing teams together, the Simsbury Soccer Club will be “grandfathering” existing U9 – U14 teams.
  • Existing Travel players will be “grandfathered” which means a current U10 player can tryout for U12 or U11 if age eligible (players can play up, but they can’t play down in a younger age group. Some players, based on their birth year, will have only one option. The “grandfathering” allows existing Travel players to play up an age bracket to remain with their current teammates.
  • Tryouts for new players to the Travel Program (includes players who just moved to Town, or players who are in the Recreational or Farmington Valley leagues) will be based on birth year only.
  • The Simsbury Soccer Club reserves the option to move a player up or down based on ability or need. For example, if the U12 tryouts had 40 players tryout, the Club will most likely form 2 teams of 18 players. The Club will then have the option to move the “extra” 4 players up or down based on age, ability or need.
 

Humphrey

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Mass. BAYS also has one less player on the field: U9 and 10 are 6v6; 11 and 12 are 8 v 8. Other thing I noticed is that these changes include offside for u9 and u10; pretty sure there is no offside in BAYS until U11.
 

robssecondjob

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SCSL (South Coast MA) has come up with a transition year program that allow a hybrid of grade year and birth year. It is way too complicated. At our board meeting last night we decided to just bite the bullet and go to straight birth year based starting with the fall season.
 

DJnVa

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I'm seeing the local clubs start to post about fall tryouts in May/June and they are fully embracing the change. My daughter essentially jumps from being an older U13 player (October birthday) to a younger U15 player. What's going to stink is that when she's a HS senior she'd have to play U19 and not many clubs have a viable U19 bracket. That may change, but a lot of the kids born early in the birth year that will be U19 will be off at college.

U15-8th grade
U16-9th grade
U17-10th grade
U18-11th grade
U19-12th grade (half the cohort will likely not be around)
 

Heinie Wagner

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SCSL (South Coast MA) has come up with a transition year program that allow a hybrid of grade year and birth year. It is way too complicated. At our board meeting last night we decided to just bite the bullet and go to straight birth year based starting with the fall season.
I think that is the best decision. The way our club is doing it is going to be chaos.
 

robssecondjob

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I'm seeing the local clubs start to post about fall tryouts in May/June and they are fully embracing the change. My daughter essentially jumps from being an older U13 player (October birthday) to a younger U15 player.
My younger son jumps from being an older U11 to the youngest U13 in the club.
 

robssecondjob

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Just when I thought we had everything set for tryouts I just got the new MYSA (Massachusetts) age grouping chart for MTOC eligible teams. That translates into all town travel teams that would eventually compete for a state title at the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions.

They have come up with a hybrid with grade and age that doesn't match the national rules. It goes by age year, but it adds a grade component in as well that basically keeps all existing teams together.
 

Heinie Wagner

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Just when I thought we had everything set for tryouts I just got the new MYSA (Massachusetts) age grouping chart for MTOC eligible teams. That translates into all town travel teams that would eventually compete for a state title at the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions.

They have come up with a hybrid with grade and age that doesn't match the national rules. It goes by age year, but it adds a grade component in as well that basically keeps all existing teams together.
This sounds like what our local club is doing as well, but it complies with the national rules by playing up. In other words, the team that was the 6th grade team last year is staying together and playing in the division that matches the age of the older players, so about half the players are playing up.

Lots of chirping about this already, tryouts are underway. They compounded the issue by having boys 7th and 8th grade tryouts together, so a huge age and developmental range together, with only 90 minutes to select 4 teams (A and B for both grades). Lots of people leaving the local travel club for premier teams.

Unfortunately at the local travel club level, so many of these decisions are made by boards because the influential board members are trying to help their own children without taking into account the best interests of all the families involved. Our club prohibits double rostering (can't play travel and premier) but they're changing the rules because our club's Director of Coaching has a son who wants to do both.
 

DJnVa

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This sounds like what our local club is doing as well, but it complies with the national rules by playing up. In other words, the team that was the 6th grade team last year is staying together and playing in the division that matches the age of the older players, so about half the players are playing up.
That's happening here--my daughter is moving to travel, jumping from U13 to U15 level because of restructuring, but team decided to stay together and will be playing U16. So, we're going from U13 to U16. Awesome.
 

Doug Beerabelli

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Interesting situation here. We are switching, no official talk of any playing up scenarios, but I expect there will be kids who do play up. 2004 was a strong birthday year from what I understand, with lots of strong players both on U11 and U12 from last year. My kid is 2005, but played on the U11 team below premier last season. It'll all come out in the wash, I guess.
 

Heinie Wagner

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That's happening here--my daughter is moving to travel, jumping from U13 to U15 level because of restructuring, but team decided to stay together and will be playing U16. So, we're going from U13 to U16. Awesome.
Similar situation here, some of the neighboring towns went with birth year teams, seems like the smart thing to do to me. My son's 6th grade team already wasn't very good, playing up they're not going to be competitive. They dropped down a division and went 5-0 this spring against much smaller towns or other towns B teams in 6th grade/U12, they'll jump to U14 in the fall and probably go up a division too.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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GotSoccer.com updated overnight to the new birth year standard, and also advanced to the fall season (maybe had had a timer set to June 1). My frosh son jumped from a U15 yesterday, to a U17 this morning.

Our plan of attack: after the HS season ends in the fall, we'll play U17 Nov-July EXCEPT for single elimination state cup style tournaments, when we'll play U16/2001, and have our true U17s/2000s as a cheering section.
 
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robssecondjob

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At practice today I got to announce to a couple of teams that with the new MYSA age chart they will get to stay together. I was a hero. When we enter tournaments will will play up to the next age bracket. Shouldn't be a big deal as we usually only play open tournaments twice a year with the remainder of our league play (both fall and spring) withing the rules of MYSA.
 

DJnVa

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I have to image that a lot of teams will be playing up, so, in the end, it might not matter all that much.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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I have to image that a lot of teams will be playing up, so, in the end, it might not matter all that much.
Exactly. Everyone's in the same boat. But that's what some parents cant understand, or wont even try to understand, especially the families with players with Aug and Sept birthdays who've essentially been playing down a school grade for years now. At recent tryouts, you'd have thought it was our club alone that came up with the new age guidelines just for the hell of it. Trying to tell them that it's pretty much the same in every club/league/state is useless, as they're seeing only now that playing down a grade wasnt an advantage, it was a tremendous disservice to their child.

[rant] Some years back, the question was "How do I make my child a better player?". The question more recently had become "How do I get my child a bigger advantage?" All the while failing to consider that middle school and high school soccer go strictly by grade (since none of the players in question will ever sniff an academy or ODP or similar DoB opportunity), and NOT by DoB, so many of these players are woefully ill equipped to play at any legit level of competition. [/rant].
 
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DJnVa

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Yeah--this will be the year my daughter figures out if she wants to keep playing. With an October birthday and being "old" to now moving to "young" AND playing up a year, she's going to see what she needs to do to get better.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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So we have a local 8 town rec league, total pop. of each town is ~4500. We have a 3/4 grade division, 5/6 division, 7/8 division x2 for separate boys and girls teams.

Three years ago, we introduced a higher level of competition we call World Cup, with each town entering a single U10 coed team (essentially 3/4 grade) and a single U12 coed team (essentially 5/6 grade); no 7/8 grade, as those are the kids already playing for their middle school teams. We used the old USSF Aug 1 DoB for eligibility.

With the new Jan 1 DoB cutoff, a few of us suggested we scrap the DoB and just go by school grade, like in the rec division. But then our commish hits on the idea that, so we dont have a held-back 7th grade boy (we also have a lot of Korean nationals in the area, who hold their sons back a school year when they enroll them in school) competing vs a 5th grade girl, we go with a June 1 DoB cutoff. Since no one in the room could recall of more than a single outlieing instance of a DoB prior to June 15, we all settled on the June 1 cutoff.

Local rules of competition...........
 

DJnVa

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Heard tonight that the team my daughter was moving to fell apart. With the age group changes they lost too many girls.

So now we're scrambling. There are other clubs, and I think one is welcoming the "orphans" but until I talk to the coach we're a little nervous.
 

robssecondjob

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Local rules of competition...........
MYSA decided that they would not adopt the field and goal size changes for the 2016/2017 season, but they would adopt the number of players on the pitch changes. That makes the U10 teams, which currently play 8 v 8, go down to 7 v 7. So that age group will go from playing on a small field 6 v 6 (as U9s), to adding only one more player on a field that is MUCH larger. So much for "more touches" on the ball.

U11/U12 group play on the same pitch as the U10s, but they play 9 v 9 under the new rules.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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If anyone else still has to take Sideline Sports Doc, it's takes a bit longer than you'd expect it to. Timewise, I was figuring it to be 20-30 minutes like BSA YPT or HeadsUp conc cert, but total video run time is closer to 90 minutes, then you have to take a quiz for each of the six sections.
 

NomarsFool

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Joining the conversation late, but I hate it. Our fields and goals stayed the same size (because what youth soccer program is going to invest 100s of thousands of dollars to change their goals and fields) and simply added another player (going from 8 v 8 to 9 v 9). Now, I'm finding it impossible to score. Every team is now going to 3 backs, so every time there is a shot on goal there's that stupid extra back just hanging out there. Lots of 0-0 games or the odd 1-0 game where you can feel like you outplayed the other team for most of the game but still lose. That is soccer's greatest weakness as a sport, I think, is that it can be so difficult to score.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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w/r/t new style ref shirts: there seems to be some confusion as to when the old style shirts are no longer allowed in sanctioned games. I was at a meeting for one of the largest youth leagues in NJ, and we were told the cutoff date is 12/31/2017: new style only after that point. So I called OSI and they confirmed that it's 12/31/2018.(I've seen both dates listed all over the web; I wonder if the confusion arose because the wording in the initial releases was "through 2018", which admittedly can be open to interpretation)
 
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robssecondjob

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We had been instructed to switch the new shirts by the end of this calendar year. I was already wearing them so it didn't hurt my feelings too much. Although I hate just tossing the old shirts.

In the spirit of "it's a new season", I got an assignor call asking if I am fit enough to center four games on the first day of the season. All 11 v 11 games.
 

DJnVa

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This was our guidance (bolding is mine):

USSF has recently added a new referee uniform to the list of approved match wear for referees. The new uniform features a redesigned stripe pattern on the shirt, embroidered socks, as well as a new color option of green being added to the array of gold, red, blue and the traditional black. Also featured on the sleeve of the shirt and on the shorts is the updated U.S. Soccer Referee Program logo.

In introducing this new uniform, the Federation has made it clear that the older style striped referee shirts and three striped and Federation logo socks are still valid and remain approved match wear for referees. In addition, referees are permitted to wear a combination of the new and old style shirt patterns of the same color in youth and adult amateur games. The emphasis is on uniformity of shirt colors and socks style worn by all the officials in matches and not on the style stripe of the shirt or shorts.

It is therefore not necessary or mandatory for referees to purchase the new style striped shirts, socks or shorts immediately, if their current gear is still in acceptable condition.

Referees are also reminded that the basic primary color shirt is still gold which every referee must have as part of their referee gear. The new color green shirt has been added as an additional color option.

State Referee Committee DCV
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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If anyone is able to find an official statement from USSoccer with a specific date for retiring the old style, I surely would appreciate it. I called OSI again, and another rep confirmed 'the last day of 2018" and cited a USSF statement to that effect. (I have yet to find that statement from USSF anywhere online.)

EDIT: just called USSF national in Chicago, and spoke with Gavin in the ref dept/office. He confirmed 12/31/18, says it was conveyed multiple times to leagues in official emails, and that he has no idea where the 12/31/17 is coming from. I have no clue why they won't put up a statement on their website stating it.

(whole reason it's sand in my shoe, is that they're forcing kids still in HS, who are just reffing in their spare time to make gas and pizza money, to buy all new uniforms)
 
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Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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So what happens if they just use the old uniform?
Could be (wrongfully) sent home without pay. But we won't know until the spring (unless it's the rare HSer who refs a sanctioned indoor game over the winter)

Assignors around here have a papal infallibility thing going: it's 2017 because I SAID it's 2017.

And now I'm hearing that the CR is supposed to coordinate 2 stripe vs 3 stripe socks with his ARs, which also goes against stated USSF policy.

EDIT: just accidentally found on two state ref pages (CT, and maybe RI?) specifically that the old style are legal until 12/31/2018. So some are catching on.

CT: You may still wear the current "Thick Stripe" style jerseys through the end of 2018. It is OK for crew members to have different style jerseys during this transition period as necessary.
 
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Humphrey

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Mass High Schools are in agreement with Omar's Wacky Neighbor- Through 2018 thick stripes are ok or combo of new and old....
Based on what I've seen so far in this brief season, I think you'll see a relatively quick use of the new yellow shirt. It's much lighter and cooler and we have a lot of hot days in September (like yesterday).
The ones I find are a complete ripoff are the long sleeves. I think if two people on a cold day are wearing black underneath short sleeve shirts it's perfectly fine. Would much rather pay for alternative colors (green is the best one to have IMHO) than buy long sleeve shirts.
 

Omar's Wacky Neighbor

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Wonder of wonders: an assignor who said at a meeting on Labor Day that old style expires at the end of 2017, said at a meeting last night it's at the end of 2018. He made a big deal of it too, telling our new youth refs to scoop up the old style (in extra colors/lengths) if they can find them uber cheap.

Progress!