Explanation of Travel Team Structure

The Berkshire Hills Youth Soccer board is responsible for organizing players on rosters in each age division into appropriately placed teams within the Berkshire County Youth Soccer League each season.  There are often a variety of decisions that need to be made about team placement.  The many variables we face each season make it difficult to have a set structure to place teams appropriately.  The board takes considerable time each season in placing players while trying to accommodate many family requests.  None of the rostering decisions can be made until registration is complete, the board knows the total number of players in each age group, and the league determines how each division will be organized.  Additionally, the board needs to recruit volunteers to help with all aspects of club partially based on the number of teams that we will enter into the league.  Outlined below are some general guidelines that the board uses to make informed decisions on how teams are placed.

Grade 3/4 (U10) – If there are enough players to enter multiple teams at the U10 level, teams are most often divided evenly by grade level and ability.  The Berkshire Hills board is then responsible for entering the approximate ability of the team and submitting it to the league for proper placement within the U10 division.  This is an attempt by the league to avoid too many lopsided games.  Lopsided games will still occur but the frequency is intended to be reduced. 

Grade 5/6 (U12) – Historically this is the age group that has the most variables.  The league often has an ‘A’ division (or MTOC division) and a ‘B’ division (or BCup division).  If there is only one Berkshire Hills teams to enter into the age group, the decision is simply what division they are entered in.  With multiple teams at this age group several decisions need to be made on how they are entered.  There have been cases when Berkshire Hills has entered multiple ‘A’ teams or multiple ‘B’ teams.  Many seasons an ‘A’ team is entered as well as a ‘B’ team.  In some cases numbers work out to have 6th grade players together on the ‘A’ team and 5th grade players on the ‘B’ team.  In seasons where this does not work, board members and coaches from previous seasons evaluate the registered players and determine rosters for that season.  The majority of the time the board and coaches know the player pool well enough to make informed decision about the rosters for that season.  In some exceptions, a one-time tryout has been used to answer questions to help make decisions.  A one-time tryout in most cases is not an effective method for team determination. 

Grade 7/8 (U14) – Over the last couple of seasons the league only has one division for the U14 level.  With a couple of exceptions, Berkshire Hills has only had the player pool to enter one team into the division.  In the event that multiple teams are entered decisions are made similar to the U12 age group.