ABGC Field Use Policy

ANNANDALE SOCCER

1959

2009

Mason District Turf Field

Annandale Boys and Girls Club, 7236A Columbia Pike, Annandale, VA. 22003 = 703-941-4411 = abgc@abgc.org

Need Help On

Field Issues

Have questions?

Please contact the ABGC Club Office

3-7 PM M-F or

9AM-Noon Saturday

7236 Columbia Pike Annandale, VA 22003

703-941-4411

abgc@abgc.org

The office is on Columbia Pike across the street from Fuddruckers in Annandale.

You may also contact

your commissioner or

your ABGC Travel Team Club Rep.

ABGC FIELD USE POLICY

The Fairfax County Park Authority, Fairfax County Public Schools, and private school fields used by the club all have strict rules and regulations which must be followed or ABGC will loss the right to use these fields. In addition, U.S. Youth Soccer and Virginia Youth Soccer have strict guidelines on goal and field safety. For the safety of all children in the community all provisions of the ABGC Field Policy must be adhered to at all times. Failure to follow all provisions may result in forfeiture of field use.

Field Use

Field use is privilege and we want to set the example for and teach all of our participants, especially our children, to respect and care for our fields and facilities which we share with our local community. Please set the example for our children and follow the guidelines set forth in the ABGC Fields Policy.

Field Use Agreement

No practice field slots will be awarded to any team that has not read and agreed to the ABGC Field Use Policy. If a team violates Fairfax County, Private School and / or ABGC Rules, practice privileges may be taken away. Appeals will be handled by the Fields Committee.

Field Allocation and Practice Field Assignment Policy

Regular practice slots will be allocated at the beginning of each season. Travel and SFL teams will be allocated two practice slots weekly, House League teams will be allocated one practice slot each week. Teams requesting extra practice slots will not have those slots allocated until all teams have their practice field assignment.

All practice requests made by the practice request deadline for that season will be processed based on the following priorities:

ABGC Soccer Program Clinics and Programs including APSA

Coaches of Multiple Travel Teams (by descending age order)

Travel Teams (by descending age order)

Coaches of Multiple House Leage Teams (by descending age order)

House Leage Teams (by descending age order)

Although these are guidelines, the field co-coordinator reserves the right to adjust these policies based on the fields allocated by the county or as needs change.

Field Scheduling Calendar

Season / Activity

Winter Turf Practices

Spring Practices

Travel Tryouts

Summer

Fall Practices

For

Travel / APSA

SFL

House League

All Stars

Travel

All

Travel / APSA

SFL

House League

All Stars

Approximate Dates

Dec - Feb

March - June

Mid March - June

April – June

Mid May – Mid June

Mid May – June

Mid June – July

Aug – mid Nov

Mid Aug – Nov

Sept – November

Mid Oct. – Mid Nov.

Allocation Date (approximate)

November 15th

February 15th

February 28th

March 15th

May 10th

May 1st

June 1st

July 15th

July 31st

August 15th

October 10th

After initial allocation additional requests will be processed on a first come first serve basis.

Available Practice Times

Practice times are allocated for Monday through Friday based on age group (see below). In addition, a limited number of weekday and weekend practice / scrimmage slots may be available on a space available basis. See Field Requests below.

Practice Safety and Ages

Older children require larger fields and space than younger children. Due to the limited number of fields available, more than one team will be scheduled on a particular field. Whenever possible the age guidelines below will be used in practice field assignments. Coaches are to work out the specific areas of each field that each team will use keeping in mind that older children need a larger area than the smaller children. If conflicts arise that cannot be resolved please email your concerns to abgc@abgc.org.

For safety reasons, all attempts will be made to make sure that there is not a great age discrepancy between teams sharing a single field at the same time. The following table is provided as a guideline.

Field Requests On-Line (starting Fall, 2009)

All field use requests are requested through the web site or a Field Request Form must by turned into the office. Please go to http://www.abgc.org/requests/ Requests must include the following information:

Name of Team (e.g. United 93)

Age/Gender of Team (Pick from drop down U13B, U9G, etc.)

League Team Plays In (Pick from drop down House, SFL, NCSL, WAGS, ODSL)

Two contact names, phone numbers, and email addresses

Two emergency contact phone numbers (for last minute field closures, etc.)

Request is for: full season practices or one time usage (one time use can be a make-up practice, scrimmage, training session, etc. Preference is given to full season practice schedule requests.)

Date and time field is needed (e.g. Tuesday Thursday late practices or a one time request for Tuesday, September 21 from 5:30-7:00)

Purpose of request (e.g. practice, game, scrimmage, tryout, practice for State Cup)

Do you need a full field? If yes, justify with number of players and reason.

Field Permits

You may only use fields that have been scheduled for your use, and for which you have a field permit. You must bring your permit to every practice and game. The Permit is the only official document that grants you the right to use a field, and ABGC, FCPA (Park Authority), FCPS (Public Schools) or the Police cannot enforce your rights without it.

If you have a conflict with "walk-on" users try to resolve it in a non confrontational way. If the walk-ons won't leave or you feel very uncomfortable talking with walk-ons please contact

your commissioner or travel league club rep,

FCPA / CRS personnel at 703-999-9999, or as a last resort

call Fairfax County Police non-emergency line at 703-691-2131.

Participant safety is a risk management liability for both Fairfax County and ABGC. Mixed field use by other sports, especially those that use hard balls, is an unnecessary risk to youth soccer players. Mixed field use by older teams and adults who are physically stronger and kick harder is also an unnecessary risk to youth soccer players. To protect the safety of youth participants, Fairfax County Park Authority policy is that permitted users of a field have exclusive use of the field.

Practice slots are assigned as carefully as possible, considering your request, the ages of all teams on a field at the same time and the physical condition of each field and the number of practices the field can safely handle without suffering unnecessary damage. Use only your assigned practice slots. If a conflict arises work with each other and, if necessary, send an email abgc@abgc.org. If a significantly bigger / older age group or a group practicing another sport attempts to share your practice field please report this by email to abgc@abgc.org.

Please be gracious in resolving any conflicts in field allocation and be completely off of the field on time if another team has a practice or game after yours. Please report trespassers or issues by email abgc@abgc.org.

Release of Unused Practice / Game Time

If you will not use your practice slot or a game slot, please email abgc@abgc.org. The club handles hundreds of requests so please turn unused slots back in to allow others to use the time.

Priority Use of Fields

Games always take priority over practices. On occasion State Cup, NCSL, WAGS, ODSL and SFL games, as well as house league games may need to be re-scheduled due to weather, field availability, SAT exams, high school game conflicts and other reasons. If a make-up game must be played during a team’s scheduled practice time, every effort will be made to find time on another field for that team to practice. The ABGC field coordinator has the final decision on field use priorities.

Rescheduling Practices

Teams that miss a practice due to a field closure can request a make-up practice assignment. If an alternative practice assignment can be made it will be scheduled. Do not schedule practices on your own as conflicts could arise and priority must go to those who follow the rules and have an assigned permit. Fairfax County Regulations require that you only practice on a field and at the time assigned to your team for practices and for which you have been issued the field permit.

Suspension of a Teams Field Permit

Team Managers and coaches are responsible for complying with all field guidelines and policies as set by ABGC. Teams that do not follow these guidelines will have their field privileges suspended as follows:

first offense: suspension of the next regularly-scheduled practice,

second offense: suspension of next three allocated field slots,

third offense: loss of all non-game field allocations and privileges for the remainder of the season.

Turf Fields Used For Practices

To keep turf fields in the best possible condition for games and other field users the following practice rules apply to all teams.

Fairfax County Regulations require you anchor all goals, including kick back goals, prior to use,

Fairfax Regulations require that you move portable goals off the field and lock them when not in use,

Fairfax County regulations prohibit kicking balls against fences,

Report any field or goal issues to abgc@abgc.org,

Remind and teach all other coaches to do the same.

Natural Grass Fields Used For Practices

To keep natural grass fields in the best possible condition for games and other field users the following practice rules apply to all teams.

Do not wear out the field by running drills in the same spot at every practice,

Do not practice inside the penalty area (Limit use of the Penalty area to practicing corner and goal kicks only. Move the goal outside of the penalty area to practice shooting.),

Do not practice down the center of any field,

Do not practice on any worn areas,

Do not practice on any areas of the field that are wet or muddy,

Fairfax County Regulations require that you always anchor goals prior to use,

In practices, only use goals in areas of the field that show no signs of wear,

Fairfax Regulations require you to move goals off the field and lock them when not in use,

FCPS no longer allows kick-back goals with big anchor spikes on school fields,

Practice cross-field (sideline to sideline) to spread wear over the entire field,

Fairfax County regulations prohibit kicking balls against fences,

Report any field or goal issues to abgc@abgc.org,

Remind and teach all other coaches to do the same.

Field Closures

Field closures are

Announced by email to primary team contacts

Announced using a one call voice mail system that calls primary team contacts

Will in the future be posted on the ABGC web site at http://www.abgc.org

Available for team contacts only on the ABGC field closure hotline at 703-nnn-nnnn

If a field is closed, NO USE IS PERMITTED at all. The field status web page, emails and hotline are for informational purposes only; field signage and/or FCPA/FCPS personnel take precedence.

Natural grass fields are automatically closed if the field is wet, it is muddy, there is standing water, you hear a squish when walking, or your footprint has standing water. Playing on a muddy field will move earth away on a player’s shoes from the wet areas. When the soil dries it creates ridges and more standing water will appear at the next rainfall. Your decision to play in a wet area does long term damage to fields, cost the club and / or county thousands to repair and most importantly teaches our children that it is not important to respect the property of others. Please do your part in teaching our children to respect the property of others.

All teams (coaches and managers) are responsible for checking earlier in the day of a practice, game or field event to determine if a field is closed. Please note fields can be closed even when the weather appears good at the time because of standing water, previous damage, conflicting events, or other reasons. Different fields handle rain very differently. It is common for one or more fields to be closed while others remain open. It is Fairfax County and ABGC policy that the user is responsible for any damage to the field that results when a field that is closed is used and damage results. In the past Fairfax County presented a bill for over $70,000.00 to another local club for damage to fields caused when games were played in the rain on muddy fields. Use of a closed field that results in damage to the field will result in loss of the privilege of using any field for practices and / or games in accordance with Fairfax County and ABGC policy.

If fields are open, but inclement weather develops, the coach and/or referees must decide if a practice or game can continue safely and without any damage to the field.

Goal Safety

Fairfax County regulations requires that every goal be anchored when in use. It is the coach's and/or trainer's responsibility to check goals prior to the start of a practice or game and periodically during use. Do not use any goal on Fairfax County property unless it is anchored. If goals are not anchored before practice, please anchor them. Immediately report unsafe equipment or field conditions to abgc@abgc.org.

Fairfax County Regulations REQUIRE that all portable goals must be anchored with sand bags, weight bars and / or minimum 10” spikes hammered into the ground. All ABGC portable goals should have sand bags attached to them. DO NOT EVER DETACH SAND BAGS FROM GOALS. They are required safety equipment. Every year in the United States, children are injured or killed by goals that are not correctly anchored and tip over. If a goal is not anchored you must anchor it before use. For safety reasons, canvas bags with anchoring and net spikes must be attached to fences at least 5 feet off the ground. This keeps young children from removing and playing with the spikes. If any sand bags are missing or there are other equipment issues, immediately email the location, goal size, number of bags present and any other information to abgc@abgc.org.

Goal Safety When Not In Use: Fairfax County regulations require goals to be moved off fields and locked when not in use. This prevents damage, theft, and is for the safety of the school kids. The lock combination is 6728. The combination at Beech Tree is 8326.

Age Groups

U6 through U8

U9 through U19

U13 through U19 Turf Field

Practice Days

Monday - Friday

Practice Times

4:30-5:30, 5:30-6:30, 6:30-7:30

4:30-6:00, 6:00-7:30

TBA

Minimum Age

U10

U11

U12

U13+

Maximum Age

U10

U11

U12

U13

U14

U15

FIELD POLICY FOR

VISITING TEAMS, PARENTS AND SPECTATORS

Parking

Only park in legal designated parking spaces. Do not park in reserved parking spaces, grassy areas, or fire lanes . . . even on Saturdays and/or Sundays. Do not double park, block driveways, gates or other vehicles. Please do not unlawfully use DMV designated handicapped parking spots.Doing so irritates FCPS (park authority), FCPS (public schools) and others.

Please ask everyone to respect the sites we use and all of the other individuals who use these sites.

Caution all children to watch out for vehicles in parking lots. Caution all drivers to watch out for children in and around all fields.

Pets

No pets are ever allowed on school grounds. In Fairfax Parks, unless otherwise posted, dogs are allowed but must stay at least 15 feet away from athletic fields and must be on a leash. No pets are ever allowed at ABGC sanctioned games or practices.

Clean Up Policy

Please pick up trash when you leave the field even if it is not yours. Our children need to learn to care for our fields and community. Our children need to learn that ABGC respects our community and cleans up after itself. Please bring a trash bag with you to all games and practices. Please pick up all plastic bottles. The last team to use a field is responsible for a final spit and polish cleaning of the field.

If you consistently find trash when you arrive at the field email abgc@abgc.org and we will attempt to identify the culprits who might be leaving the field in such condition.

All teams are responsible for picking up any trash on the field at the end of their practice or game session whether this trash was left by others. Failure to pick up trash can result in your teams REVOCATION OF FUTURE FIELD PRIVILIGES!

Recycling Policy

ABGC policy is to actively encourage the reduction of trash which harms our environment and to encourage the use of reusable / refillable beverage containers only.

We generate a large amount of non degradable plastic bottles and plastic caps that litter, fill trash cans to overflowing, cost thousands to remove in the trash and result in complaints from neighbors, county park staff, public school staff, and other field facility users. Please use refillable beverage containers.

Weather Issues

Fairfax County and ABGC Policy dictate that if thunder and lightning is seen or heard you MUST leave the field area and wait for 30 minutes after the last thunder or lightning before returning to use the field. Seek shelter in a safe building if at all possible. Do not wait under a tree, in a baseball dugout or under a metal open structure that will attract lightning.

Player Safety

Player safety is our primary concern. Climbing, swinging, or hanging from goals by players, siblings or others is strictly prohibited. It is the responsibility of every ABGC member to ensure that players are safe. Any player(s) caught climbing or playing on a goal may be subject to suspension form the program for part of or all of the remainder of the season, with no refund.