Strathmore football training camp underway
By Lorenzo Gavilan Vargas Times Reporter
The Strathmore Community Football Association training camp started on June 7, after it was postponed in April.
The beginning of the training camp marks the first time the Badgers have been on the field in a year and a half, according to Peewee Head Coach Doug Thiessen.
“It’s been a long time. I’m looking forward to getting back on the field with the kids,” he said.
Preparation for the upcoming season will pose unique challenges for Thiessen and the staff of the association.
“You’re not going to have the carryover of experience from the year before. There’s going to be a lot more basics and groundwork that has to be built right from scratch,” he said. “I think it’ll be a little more challenging initially as we train up and work people up to what they can do, but once we get going – two or three weeks in – I think we’ll be back to normal.”
Parental volunteers and coaches also face the same problem as the kids, according to Thiessen.
“I’m going to have very few coaches that are going to return to working with us, because their kids have moved up two years worth of time.”
Not only will the lack of experience on the field pose an obstacle, but off the field matters have also been affected by restrictions.
“Our sales of our biggest fundraiser, the Badger Cards, are way down because we didn’t have the kids to help sell them,” noted Thiessen. “People were in lockdown so you couldn’t sell them as easily if they weren’t going out, which is when they have their biggest benefit.”
Despite all of this, Thiessen is still optimistic about the future of the association.
“We have a good group of people and we’ve got a good core. We’ll get it done,” he said.
The training camp will run from June 7 to June 30, and players can register for the camp at any time.
“We’ve always had good teams, we have a lot of fun, the kids build a lot of camaraderie, and there’s lots of opportunities for the parents to help participate,” said Thiessen.