Another Rainout

Well, another rainout. And we thought that was only in baseball. Not true - when you have thunder and lightning with kids wearing metal shoulder pads and helmets, it's a no-brainer to cancel practice. We hope you all made it through the bad weather with no issues.

I often wonder how we can get you info quicker. I'll be trying to with a twitter account. Be patient with me as I work througfh the technology to get you more real time info. Follow me on Twitter, and I'll try to update you when we have to cancel, or give you real-time info if I can during the season.

We'll see you at Germantown tomorrow for scrimmages.

Until then,

Coach Whitemore

Parent Support Is Great

I'd like to thank the parents who were able to make it to our scrimmages this past weekend. The best part was the positive support you all gave the kids. Scrimmages are not about winning, they are about learning where we are, and what we can improve on. For more on that, check Coach Mike's blog on 6th Grade Orange. Thanks 6th Grade Orange parents; it was great to hear the cheers and support you gave everyone. It is also appreciated that you showed great sportsmanship.

I thought our kids did well to begin with. We struggled a little bit, but no more than I expected. If you watch us in practice this week, you will see us run a little more at the end of practice. The kids need more stamina to play for 4 quarters. We'll get there -we do every year.

The most important question I posed to them I held until the very end - "did you have fun?" We heard a resounding "Yes!" from all of them. THAT is what it's about at our level - having fun and learning the game. Winning is great, but teaching is more important, and the chance to play, and the kids having a positive experience. With our team size, everyone got good playing time on Saturday. I'm looking forward to that all season.

Hopefully, your son's team had fun, too, at the other grade levels. And, I hope all the parents had fun as well!

Until next time,

Coach Whitemore

Scrimmage Update

Well, sometimes you have to call an audible. Through some unfortunate miscommunication between organizations, we had the incorrect date for the Grafton scrimmages. They are actually next Saturday, August 22, 2009. A Grafton offical on site confirmed it for us this morning.

We all headed back to Hartford, some of us to practice, others released with some extra free time today.

We managed to roll with the punches at 6th grade, and the Orange team actually had a good practice on our home game field at Town Hall. We added some new plays, and looked good generally.

So apologies to all for the extra ride today, but thanks for your understanding. It's great to see how flexible and forgiving all of you are. The only bonus is that now you know how to get to Grafton next week!

Reminder that practices for teams will be at Town Hall fields this week, unless you have heard different from your coach.

Thanks,

Coach Whitemore

It's Scrimmage Season

It is that time of year. Scrimmages begin tomorrow (Saturday) for some of the teams at Grafton High School (you can find details on our Schedules or Calendar page). Make sure your player is there by 8:00 AM if your team is participating.

We were able to put in a basic offense at 6th grade, so it will be fun to watch the kids execute the plays. This is a full contact scrimmage, so there will be hitting, and some dings and bruises as there always are. Team managers will be there to help out.

If this is your first experience, there is nothing like the thundering sound of cleats approaching you on the sideline as a play goes by (make sure you sit far enough back from the sideline!). It sounds like wild horses on the run - very cool.

More importantly, now all the lower grades (5th through 7th) team coaches are posting to their blogs. Follow your team on our website, so you know what the coaches are talking about each week.

I'll be more focused now on coaching the 6th grade Orange team offense, but will still blog on other club news. Read the website regularly, we'll keep it updated - even in the offseason.

Enjoy the season!

Coach Whitemore

Cancelled Practices

You may have noticed we cancelled practice this morning. Not a common thing for us to do, but with this heavy rain that came with thunder and lightning, it was an easy decision. While 6th & 8th grade teams cancelled practices outright, 5th & 7th grade coaches met with their players in the eqipment shed. They did this to share information with their players, then released them early.

Head coaches at each grade level have this prerogative to keep the kids for a meeting if they want to, or to wait out the rain and practice when it ends (as long as it is safe and lightning has left the area), and will and should let parents know when to pick up players early.

We hope to not have many of these situations, but when they do occur, the kids' safety comes first. As a parent, you have the final decision on whether your son will be at practice. Please check with your coach if you have any doubts or questions. It is what we are here for.

As a reminder, chedk the website and our blogs for current information. In the future, we'll try to give you advance notice here and on the website if we know we are going to cancel.

Thanks, and stay dry today!

Coach Whitemore

Practices Are Fun To Watch

The kids are now in pads, and the real hitting will start on Saturday, after the required 10 hours are met by the kids. If they do not have 10 hours in, they will not be able to hit. So, if it looks like your son is not participating in some drills, keep that in mind.

Also, some of the teams have Varsity help. The 5th grade team will have Damien Van Altena, a varsity lineman (and former AAYFL player), helping out on a semi-regular basis. The 6th grade team had Tyler Whitemore, a varsity tight end (and former AAYFL wide receiver) helping out with receivers last night; he will be helping on a semi-regular basis. The 7th grade is scheduling a varsity quarterback to help out with QB drills.

And, occasionally, we may have a varsity coach help out as well.

So keep your eyes out as practices evolve over the next week into hitting with pads on. Also, since we will be able to hit, you will see some new drills we have not run yet!

Coach Whitemore

The fun has started!

Thanks to all the players and parents that attended our first practice. It was a busy morning with equipment handout, new registrations (it's not too late), equipment fixes, 6 teams practicing on the fields, and the parent/player picnic.

The rain made us all feel like it was football weather - we are looking forward to the hot days, too. Remember, we practice rain or shine!

Now that we are in full swing, parents should check the News page and the Team Pages section of our website. Coaches will update the Team Pages on a regular basis. You will see a few coaches have already started to post to their blogs. More will follow.

Also, we appreciate the effort all of you are making in helping us with the fundraiser. The goal is to reduce fees for players so as many kids as possible can join/play. Your efforts to get sponsorships will help us to reach our goal.

A final reminder from coaches that players on all teams should get to practice at least 15 minutes early, if possible. We will start on time, and we do not want any players to miss any part of practice.

We hope you enjoy the season as much as we do!

Later,

Coach Whitemore