Our Programs

We periodically get travel soccer questions & inquiries, usually from parents of younger players or for players trying out for the first time. We also periodically get misperceptions about our travel program from a minority of people. Some pertinent info below regarding some of the repetitive inquiries & misperceptions that crop up.

What is Travel Soccer ? – Travel soccer is competitive soccer. Our teams compete in the Morris County Youth Soccer Association. Standings are kept by age group. While we want travel participants to have fun, it is a competitive venue much different than our recreation program. We expect players to attend all practices & games, plus have a good attitude & effort to learn & enhance soccer skills. Our main purpose in supporting a travel program is to prepare those players interested in playing high school soccer with the skills to make the high school team & successfully compete at that level.

Try Outs – Each May players have to try out for the team in their age group. HUB Soccer pays independent soccer professionals to evaluate & rate those trying out. Coaches do not rate & evaluate their teams. Any evaluator who may happen to train a particular team does not evaluate it. The evaluators only know participants by their assigned try out #.

This process, while $$$ costly, has made the try out process objective & has eliminated any conflict of interest, which occasionally cropped up when coaches &/or parents did the evaluations.

Try Out Results & Who Plays – While there is usually agreement & consistency in identifying top players, the list also has those players that do not score well in the tryouts. At this point, we consult with the coaches & let them make the final choice. Their observations for those that may have played for them for an extended period would outweigh the final ratings for those that did not score well.

Playing Up – Our by laws permit a player to play up (in the next age group) if they do not have a team to play on or if they are a Select Player (on MCYSA Select Team). If a player is allowed to play up & there is a team in their “correct’ age group the following year, they are required to try out for that team &, barring any extenuating circumstances, be on the team for their applicable age.

If I Didn’t Make The Cut, What Do I Do ? – We’ve all heard the well worn cliché that you can’t have success without failure. Don’t get discouraged….go to soccer camps, improve skills, get in better shape & work hard. There are kids who did not make the team 1 year, but did the following year. There are kids who made the team, didn’t the following year or two, & then made it.

Out of Town Players – While our preference is to have our travel teams be 100% Denville players, the harsh reality is that we have teams with out of town players because not enough Denville kids were interested. As a current example, there will be no U9 girls team this fall as only 5 girls tried out. To get a roster of 12 to 14 U9 girls for a possible spring 2006 team, we may need a few out of town players to form a team. This is a better option than having them leave town to find a team (this has happened in the past) or not offering them a travel soccer opportunity. As a contingency our by laws allow for up to 4 out of town players on travel teams. Our preference for out of town players is a RockawayTownship residency as ultimately the will play with the Denville kids @ MKHS. Utilizing out of town players has also provided a travel soccer opportunity to more Denville players as we have been able to field more than 1 team. It is better to have 2 teams with all Denville kids making it team than having to cut players.

Playing Time – Coaches need to have a balance between player development & fielding a competitive team. To that end HUB Soccer adopted playing time guidelines: U9 & U10 players should have equal playing time &/or play at least 50% of each game. For U11 – U14 players, a 25% minimum is recommended; playing time will be influenced by practice attendance, practice performance & attitude.

Professional Training – your travel fees include paid professional trainers. These are professional soccer people, who work with the team’s parent coach-manager to advance player skill levels. Professional trainers provide diversity & objectivity to the process of training travel players.

Costs – Our costs to support travel soccer continue to increase each year. We have improved our venue dramatically over the last 5 years with professional training, goalie clinics & lighting Veterans Field to extend practice time in the fall. To offset the financial burden to parents, we have the annual Fall Classic Soccer Tournament. Net proceeds go back to our travel teams to defray costs. Parent participation in this event is essential to make it a success, keep the teams coming back & making a profit.

Leaving a Team – Once a player pays their registration fee and thereafter opts to leave a HUB Soccer travel team to go to another team, they will not get a refund. Whether they attend a practice and or game after paying the fee is a moot point. Once they pay, the club expects them to fulfill their commitment to play for that HUB Soccer travel team.

Challenger Division

The Challenger Division is specially designed for children with special needs.