Details on location, itinerary and meet times will be available from the respective coaches at least 1 week in advance. Could all parents please ensure that each coach knows the availability of every player whether they are able to play or not.

The cost is £5.00 per player. Payable ASAP to the respective team coach

First and most importantly, please make sure you attend the correct day.
Saturday 27th May: Under 7, 9, 11, 13
Sunday 28th May: Under 6, 8, 10, 12, 14
(If you are bringing teams on both days, you will get 2 emails less than 48 hours apart, but don’t feel obliged to read it all over again)

As our tournament is held over a Bank Holiday weekend, now is a very good time to double-check with your parents that your players are still available. Nobody wants any nasty surprises in the week leading up to the event, least of all me!

The venue is on the A151 Bourne to Spalding Road, about ¾ mile from the eastern edge of Bourne, on the junction with the tiny ‘Milking Nook Drove’. The postcode is PE10 0AX (Not our Recreation Road ground)

If the weather forecast gives any cause for concern, then please keep a close check on your emails both the night before and before leaving on the morning, as I will fire a group email out to everybody immediately after any decision is taken and then put it straight on the website homepage in the hope that some parents may be able to find it too. I will then begin backing that up with individual calls, starting with those coming from furthest away – it obviously takes time to get round everybody that has not responded to the email but I will not stop until everyone has been contacted.

Car parking plus a programme is £2 per car. Buses and Mini-Buses are free. Having the right change ready would be a big help in assisting with the flow of traffic. The turning into the ground is off a long straight road, where cars are often travelling far quicker than they should be. It is therefore very important to relay to your parents that we have a FREE dedicated drop-off zone in the car park before the pay lanes. Attempting to drop kids off on the main road is both extremely dangerous and totally unnecessary.

Standard car park disclaimer: No liability accepted for loss or damage to vehicles. All vehicles are parked at owners risk.

Remember to bring a set of bibs in case of colour clashes!
Also note that the first named team on the fixture sheet is asked to provide the match ball for that game.

Please make sure at least one adult member of your club is on site to bring the attached, already completed Registration Form to the Blue Clubhouse (still not bettered a 50% success rate so far, although some have progressed to filling it out, but leaving it in their car). This must be done between 9am and 9.50am for registration. Do allow yourself enough time as we are expecting a record number of teams and the car parks obviously get very busy. Not letting us know you are there can cause chaos and delays as our computer operators scramble to re-program the fixtures only to find you have been hiding in the corner of the field all along and have to re-program yet again – all in 20 minutes!! If for any reason you are running a few minutes late, please ring me on 07752 046549 before 9.50am and hope that I am in a good mood! This will be of great help to other teams and managers, organisers, scorers, refs awaiting their confirmed schedules etc etc.

The managers meeting will take place at approximately 10.05am outside the clubhouse, where any late changes will be stated and clarification of rules can be made. I’ll answer the main one now…Goalkeepers: They can kick it in or out of their area, but once they have elected to pick the ball up, they must release it with an under arm throw (not to themselves), which may rise above head height. Goal kicks also become goalkeeper throws. This is to help prevent a game of baseline tennis developing between goalkeepers and has been very well received in previous years. The standard FA backpass rule is used following feedback from previous years. This rule is implemented across all age groups to prevent confusion amongst referees, but common sense should prevail in the youngest age groups. Rules are in an attachment above.

First matches kick-off at 10.30am and all age groups play 10 minute games except the Under 6s, who will play 8 minutes each due to recommended FA playing times & to allow a little more organisation time between matches and to ensure that it is not too long a day for them. Age groups up to and including Under 10s will adopt the Retreat Rule that has been employed with great success throughout Mini-soccer leagues.

The schedule is very tight, so please make sure your players are warmed up and ready to play as soon as the previous game has finished, so we can keep as close to time as practically possible. We have adjusted the timings of matches very slightly to try and hit more of the time markers even more accurately than in previous years but it does rely on your preparation and co-operation too.

In and around the clubhouse on the rugby field can be found a licensed bar, bbq, tombola, refreshments, photo stall, inflatables and an ice cream van (although he does have a tendency to wander). With the amount of fuel-filled cars and children running around and between mini-camps, I’m sure you will understand that for safety reasons, we cannot allow private barbecues dotted around the site.

The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight have asked if they can join the fun with a Dakota triple flypast at 2.30pm on the Saturday and the Spitfire at 1.10pm on the Sunday. Unfortunately, this cannot be 100% guaranteed but apart from a bit of flexibility on timings, they haven’t let us down yet. We have also had a single flypast from the Red Arrows on one day of each of the past two years and are hoping for a call from them again nearer the time.

With 125 teams about to descend on our little town, you will understand that everything gets very hectic from here on in, so please forgive me if responses get shorter & less personalised, particularly to non life threatening questions (I only have one finger that knows how to type).

DE Photo have been appointed as the Professional Sports and Event Photographers for this event. This event, by its very nature, is in the public arena and when entering for the event the participant and their parents acknowledges this fact, which may result in the recording and publication of his/her image. All DE Photo photographers and staff have been DBS checked and the company operates a strict Child Protection Policy and Code of Ethics which can be viewed on their website at www.dephoto.biz/cpp

Our affiliation number is: S-LIN0056

Have a good trip – drive responsibly and we look forward to seeing you on the day.

Regards

Andy Hammond
Bourne Town Juniors FC
Tournament coordinator