Parents & Players,
Lots going on starting in June when school gets out. Important information down below. Please read through all of it and put important dates on your calendar. Sign up for what you can, and reach out to Betty or me with questions. Camp Information Dates: 6/4/24 - 6/7/24 (Day Camp); 6/17/24 - 6/20/24 (Evening Camp) Times: 8:30am - 12:00pm (Day Camp); 6:00pm - 8:30pm (Evening Camp) Volunteering: Rising Juniors and Seniors are given the first choice to be camp counselors. If we need more volunteers we will reach out to underclassmen. Form Link: https://form.jotform.com/240277577009158 *We are trying to raise money to send 30 kids to soccer camps - both our day and evening camps and Dunbar's camp - free of charge. In order to do this we need donations. Please consider donating, and spread on your social media feeds. Link to Camp Scholarship Donation Site: https://givebutter.com/2024Camp Donations are 100% Tax Deductible. ** Also, please spread word of our camp to your friends with elementary and middle school-aged kids. Click here for a flyer that you can share in emails or on social media. Tryout Information Dates: 7/15/24 - 7/16/24 Times: 6:30am - 8:30am Important Information:
Kickarounds and Summer Schedule
Quick recap: Know the important dates listed on the calendar. Make sure you have all your paperwork prior to tryouts. Spread the word about the camp! Volunteer to work the camp. Help a young camper go to Young Devils Camp by making a small donation. Enjoy your Derby weekend! Coach Behler NOTE: To get these notices by email, join the mailing list. Form can be found on the JOIN EMAIL LIST page of this website. Parents and Players,
Happy 2024!!! I hope that everyone used the holidays as a break from work and school and soccer, and all were able to spend time with those that they care about, as I did. I always come away from breaks re-energized and re-focused. This year is no different. Like the varsity camping trip last year, we have some fun new ideas and initiatives that will be rolled out in 2024 to strengthen the program, our core values, and the overall experience of these young men. Here are a few things to put on your calendar and look out for as we get into the new year: Off Season Workouts We will begin our offseason strength and conditioning workouts next week (1/15-1/19/24). These workouts will be Tuesdays and Thursdays through the end of February (when club season starts to take over). The workouts will be from 3:30-4:30pm, outside when over 45 degrees, but in the gym or another indoor space if it is too cold. We will be adding in some ball work activities as well this year. All participants must have an updated physical to participate, but they are open to everyone. We are also looking to do some futsal in the gym on some Friday nights or Sunday afternoons when/if the gym is open. More details to come as availability allows. 3v3 Tournament at Transy Coach Ben Federici at Transy is hosting an all day 3v3 tournament next Saturday, January 20. The cost is $100, and more information is available here: https://www.federicisoccercamps.com/3v3-futsal-tournament.cfm 2024 Tryouts Tryouts will take place on July 15-17, 2024. Please mark your calendars. It is helpful when people are there for tryouts, so if you can plan any vacations and trips to take place prior to July 15 that would be helpful. Uniforms Multiple players have still not turned in kits despite mine and Betty's persistent reminders. Players will need to turn in their kit to participate in off-season workouts if they have not turned in their kit. We will also be sending out assessments for kits that are missing pieces so that we can purchase replacement pieces for next season. Please be mindful that the program pays for and owns these kits (players use them for a season and return them). You can drop them in Coach Behler's room (4). Some players have pieces missing others have full kits and bags still: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xw7zAwrhgSfat70jMqZK0bjVncgIKWgE/edit#gid=389005444 Full Missing Kits: Varsity - 7, 21, 23 JV A - 10, GK 97, GK 98, GK 99 JV B - 25, 14, 30 If players have questions or need anything please come by room 4 to discuss. If parents need anything or have questions email is the quickest way to get ahold of me. If you know anyone interested in the program, please send them to our website henryclaysoccer.weebly.com where they can fill out a form to get on the mailing list. It is going to be a fantastic and fun year for this program to find out how you can get more involved please contact me or Betty Harvey ([email protected]). Thanks for reading and happy 2024! Coach Behler This is always the most difficult email of the year to write, as we never want the season to come to an end. As a coach, I always want blame myself, second-guess my decisions, ask what could I have done in preparing these you men better to succeed. And it is that reflection takes me through the off-season, reinvigorating me to be better in helping prepare these young men for the next season. It is ever-changing and ever-evolving, both the game and the environment in which it operates.
I will paraphrase my post-game message to the boys last night: This is hard. This game is hard, this region is hard. Accepting defeat is hard. But the end is inevitable. We had wished it would end with us lifting a trophy, but the reality is that is a really, really hard thing to do. So hard that in almost 50 years of Henry Clay soccer it has only happened 3 times. I told you all during our varsity camping trip that if you only go on the hike to see the view from the summit then you have missed out on the real reason for the hike in the first place, which is all the little things obstacles, surprises, slips, laughs, mini views, details along the way. Lifting a trophy is the same, and if all we cared about was the trophy then we missed out on the joy and memories of the journey itself. And while I am as sad (devastated) as they are, as we all are, I don't regret one second of this year. The game is life: it is rarely easy, fair, or just, but if you pour everything into the process and the journey you will reap the rewards of it. And many times we don't realize what those rewards are for days, weeks, or even years. I stick by the way that we, as a coaching staff, ask the team to play, behave, and carry themselves, and while I will spend an off-season second-guessing every minute decision of in game decisions, I sleep well knowing that we do our best to make the journey positive, enjoyable, and productive for everyone involved. We will be delivering cookie dough in the upcoming week hopefully, still waiting on our delivery date. We will send out some info on JV A and Varsity uniform turn-in, end of season award voting, and scheduling of meetings for underclassmen players. And we still have our banquet to look forward to. In the meantime, please enjoy a little break from soccer and reflect on the journey. - Coach Behler All,
Both of our JV teams wrapped up their seasons this week. The JV B finished Friday night with a scintillating 5-5 inter squad scrimmage under the lights at HC. It was a great way to showcase and celebrate the growth and togetherness of this squad. JV A wrapped their season late last night, coming up just short of a heroic comeback after being down 3-0 at half to Bryan Station in the finals of the JV Regional Tournament. This marks the second year where the JV team has finished runners-up in the JV Tournament. Great job to the boys and coaches, and again this is a testament to the growth of this group, as well as the health and future of this program!! Finally, Varsity wrapped the season with a hotly contested affair in Louisville against St. Xavier. They went toe-to-toe with one of the favorites to win the State Championship, and showed very well, coming out on the losing side of a 2-1 fixture. Our brutal schedule seemed to catch us a bit at the end of the regular season, but 3 days off and a renewed sense of purpose bode well heading into the post season. Everyone is 0-0 right now. Let the fun begin!!! The week kicks off with a Varsity training meal tonight at 5:30 at the Polo Club. SCHEDULE THIS WEEK 10/1 (Su) 5:30pm Varsity Training Meal @ Polo Club 10/2 (Mo) Morning Game Prep 9:00am-10:15am (Turf) 10/2 (Mo) District 42 Semifinals vs. Scott Co. @ Bryan Station 8:00pm 10/3 (T) Varsity ONLY Training** 2:00-4:00pm (Turf) 10/4 (W) Game Prep** 4:00pm (Location TBD) UPDATED 10/4 10/4 (W) District 42 Finals** vs. Bryan Station/Frederick Douglass @ Station 8:00pm 10/5 (Th) OFF 10/6 (F) Varsity ONLY Training** 8:30am-10am (Turf) 10/7 (Sa) Varsity ONLY Training** 2:00-4:00pm (Turf) 10/8 (Su) OFF **Contingent on winning prior District games. Our Friday night game is here for the JV Regional Tournament at 6pm vs. Lexington Catholic.
Details are in the email below for the rest of the games on Saturday if we should win on Friday night. ------------------------- From Nick Maxwell at Great Crossing: We are excited to host the tournament this weekend and a big thank you to Jason for organizing all of this weekend! Just a bit of information for both days:
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