SSSC fall season set to begin August 24th
The Sandy Spring Soccer Club’s fall 2022 season is set to begin August 24th and this season will be the best one yet in the club’s short history. The spring of 2022 was the club’s inaugural season and featured one boys team who played in the first year league, the Maryland Developmental Soccer League. That team consisted of players between 2013 – 2016 so there was a wide range in ages.
As the club enters its second season, it has expanded to what will turn out to be at least four teams of players born between 2016/17’s and 2014/15’s. Meaning that the club is set to have four times more teams then when the spring season ended 2 months ago in its Junior Academy and Academy programs.
With the club playing in the MDSL where 2016/17s will play 3 v 3 and the 2014/15s will play 5 v 5 including Goalkeepers, it may seem a bit easier to field teams since each age group includes a minimum roster of four for the 2016/17s and six for the 2014/15s, but after speaking to Junior Academy Director Justin Reid, he is most excited about the quality of the players in the club. “We really have a good number of returning and new talented boys and girls players in the club and we are excited to see how they develop their skills and incorporate themselves into the culture of the club. Many of them have been playing since they could walk, some play with grown-ups, and many of them have an absolute passion for the game so we are excited for the fall season to begin.” The SSSC was able to use several programs to help to continuously develop the returning players during the summer. One program that the club has utilized has been the Wednesday Free Play program hosted at Sandy Spring Friends School, the club’s home base in conjunction with the Maryland Developmental Soccer League. Add to it the summer soccer camp that concluded last week and the SSSC’s players will be ready to go this fall.
The Wednesday Free Play program consists of players mostly from SSSC and Elite Soccer Youth Development Academy (ESYDA). This program provides players with the playing option of their summer as many might just be playing with the ball at home by themselves or a neighbor. All of the players are encouraged to work on their technical skills and to play with the ball during the summer, but the reality is that in the U.S. free play is something that doesn’t happen unless it is organized by a club. SSSC has found a way to take full advantage of this program to help advance its players. Reid mentioned, “The summer free play program has really given us the opportunity to keep the players engaged in the sport without the commitment that they need to make during the spring and falls seasons. It is a once a week program as opposed to the season which is 3 times a week. So the kids get to stay sharp. The games are set up as 4 v 4 and we have multiple fields. The kids are playing the entire time. So it is really great.”
SSSC will begin training August 24th and there is a pre-season scrimmagefest tentatively set for August 28th. The MDSL season kicks off on September 10th and there is still time to register to join the club.