Practice Schedule
Practices are still Tuesdays and Wednesdays at Danielson Field - 6:30 to 8pm. There was a little confusion yesterday and I think it's because I mentioned, at our first practice, that we might be switching to Tuesdays & Thursdays. That hasn't happened yet but I'll let you know when there's going to be a change.
Practices
Yesterday (4/12), we worked on some of the basics. This was for our new players and a refresher for our returning players (which I found out was very much needed). It was an interesting practice with the windstorm that came through and with the rain. The boys were very distracted and talked a lot and I think the weather had some to do with it but, if you can please talk to your boys about not distracting the other players when the coaches are talking, I think that might help. The most important thing is that we all have fun but I do require the boys to work hard during practice, to pay attention, and to be respectful. Overall, I thought it was a good practice and we got some scrimmaging in, which we'll be doing again today, to try and get the boys ready for our first game. When we have such little practice time, before our first game, it seems to be easier to teach them a lot of what they need to know on the fly (in a game-like atmosphere). I'm hoping to get into more organized lessons/practices once we get through the first game or two.
Weather
Many of the boys weren't prepared for the weather yesterday and they were cold. We did a lot of extra (short) runs to try to keep them warm but they still had cold hands and ears. I was really close to calling the practice but then realized there were only a few parents there to take the boys home. Please make sure they dress for Spring weather, which can be pretty much anything. I'd rather have them bring too much clothing than not enough. It's always good to have practices in the rain, to prepare them for wet/cold games, but I feel bad when they get cold like a few of them did yesterday.
Pictures
Melissa Houston (Ben's mom) has volunteered to be our Team Photographer. Thank you so much for volunteering Melissa! She will be snapping some pictures at our games and practices and we'll put the pictures on our team blog (which I'll share below). Melissa is going to take an "unofficial" team picture for our blog today. The boys can wear their jersey (either color), if they want but it's not required. I'd like to encourage everyone to take their own pictures at our games, as well, and if you want to send some of them to me, I can add them to our blog.
Team Blog
Our team blog can be found at cwredbarons.blogspot.com. Please bookmark this URL or add a shortcut to your desktop. You can also sign up as a follower and receive updates in your email, if you'd like to know when something new has been posted. I've updated some of the links, including our game schedule, but the rest should be updated toward the end of the week or this weekend (including the main team picture). Please feel free to poke around when you get a minute.
This blog will be our central place for communication and, along with team pictures, we'll have links to the game schedule, field maps, game rules, etc.. This blog is also great for sharing with any aunts/uncles, grandparents, etc. Please let me know, ASAP, if there are any parents who'd prefer not to have their son's picture(s) on our team blog.
Game Schedule
Our game schedule can be found on our team blog, by clicking on the "Official League Schedule & Maps" link, under Important Links. You can print our game schedule but, if you do, please be sure to check back, before each game, to make sure there hasn't been a change. You'll want to relay this to any friends or family members you share the schedule or blog with as well. Speaking of changes, I think I mentioned that there is already going to be one on our first game. The team we're supposed to play (the Wookies) can't play on Saturday and we're trying to line another game up. This game could be on Saturday (time currently unknown) or it could be scheduled for a day during the week. I'll keep you posted on that. Most of our games are scheduled for around Noon on Saturdays.
Jerseys
I sent an email out to everyone, regarding the ordering of jerseys. If you didn't get this information or need me to resend it, please let me know. If there are any boys who don't have a jersey yet, you'll want to pick it up this week. Also, blue socks and shorts, to match the blue jersey, is suggested. I've compiled a list of jersey numbers, that should help us avoid duplicates, and emailed that to you. If you haven't given me a number yet, please do so, ASAP, so I can finish up the list. The old, reversible one-piece jerseys should still be ok to use but they must have a number on them (both sides).
Thanks everyone,
Coach Ben
