Welcome to the Fall/Winter 2023 edition of Nordic News! Nordic’s quarterly newsletter keeps all of our families informed as to what’s going on in the world of Nordic Soccer, including updates from our Directors - Cait, Craig and Jim.

 

TOP STORIES

 

Fall VSL League - SUCCESS!

We had teams from U8 through U14 boys and girls entered into the Fall Vermont Soccer League. Having the opportunity to play each weekend and showcase their talent, allowed these teams to grow and connect, setting them up for success for the remainder of the year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

UVM Men’s and Women’s Soccer VIPs!

Each fall, our teams get the opportunity to meet and greet the Men’s and Lady’s Catamounts on Game Days, as well as get a locker room tour, and perform at halftime. This was a great experience for all players involved, getting their first taste of playing on the “big field.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bailey Memorial Jamboree

 

This fall, we had our U10-U14 teams attend the annual Bailey Memorial Jamboree. Each team had the opportunity to play in three games, showcase their skills, and enjoy some time together off the pitch.

 

 

 

Cauldron Cup Fun!

On the weekend of October 21st, we sent a handful of teams down to Fort Ann, NY to compete in the annual Cauldron Cup, where teams had the chance to not only enter a pumpkin carving and costume contest, but play in a tournament as well! All teams fared well, with the majority making it to the finals of their bracket. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

High School All-State Awards

This past high school season was a success for MANY of our Nordic players. We had 40 players named to the Boys or Girls All-State and/or All-Division teams. We also had 28 State Champions, with many more having successful regular and postseasons.. Congrats to all athletes on amazing seasons! 

 

NISC - Another Season!

We opened our doors to the Nordic Indoor Soccer Center once again on November 1st - ready for trainings, leagues, rentals, and so much more. Big thanks to all volunteers for making this possible!

 

 

 

 

 

 

IFA Pre-Thanksgiving Invitational

 

On the weekend of November 18th-19th, we had three teams travel down to the IFA Pre-Thanksgiving Invitational down in Massachusetts. Each team competed at high levels, and found success over the course of the weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

FC Stars College Showcase

We had nine teams travel down to Massachusetts on the first weekend of December to attend the FC Stars College Showcase. This was an opportunity for teams to showcase their talent, as well as individual players to highlight their skills to pursue playing at the next level. Many teams competed well - round of applause to the 2008G for winning all three games and ending at the top of their bracket!

 

 

 

 

 

College Commits!

We are proud to announce that we have two college commits from our 2005-06G! First, Brooks DeShaw is set to play at Middlebury College next fall, a strong DIII team playing in the NESQAC Conference, recently winning the tournament title in 2021, and having qualified for the NCAA Tournament 13 times! Congrats Brooks, and go Panthers!

 

 

 

 

 

Secondly, Finley Barker is heading down to Massachusetts next fall to play for the Endicott College Gulls. Endicott is a powerhouse in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), winning the conference tournament this season - making it their 10th in the conference. They also attended the NCAA Tournament for the 11th time this fall. Round of applause for Finley, and best of luck to the Gulls next season!

 

 

 

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DIRECTOR UPDATES

 

Director Update

By Jim Goudie

Welcome back and what a crazy few months since our last Nordic News! Growth has been our theme for the last few months and figuring out ways to meet all our needs. 

Our biggest area of growth has been in our club membership - we currently have 387 players enrolled on our 28 teams from 2015’s to 2005’s. This compares to 314 at the end of last season in June (23% growth) and 292 players from 1 year ago (33% growth). This means more teams, more coaches, more field space (both outdoors and indoors) and the challenges that come with that and we’re continuing to work to find ways to offer all our players the best opportunities.

The Indoor Center continues to be jammed with programs running from 3pm to 11pm Mon through Friday and then 7am to 10am on both Saturdays and Sundays. In addition, we are communicating with Montreal clubs to find our teams' games up north. We are currently working on the first 6 months of 2024.

Nordic Cup ’24 registration will open in early January as we look to build on the success of last year's event which saw 215 teams come to VT for our Annual event.

March will see the start of our early Spring season with many of our teams heading south for tournaments before all our teams head to Needham/Wellesley over Memorial Day weekend. We are working on a couple of hotel options for our teams that weekend, so we can have a club feel for our families to enjoy. 

In the April school break, 3 of our teams will be traveling to Europe. Our 2009 and 2010 Girls teams are off to Italy and our 2010 Boys to England. All 3 teams will be hosting fundraising events at the Indoor Center over the winter and we appreciate your support with these.

In the early New Year we will be starting our process of finding a new shirt sponsor for our team's three uniforms. Many thanks to Green Castle and Bruce Baker for their continued support of Nordic over the last 6 years. We are looking for front and back sponsors for a 2 (or more) year deal – contact Jim Goudie if you’re interested.

At our Annual General Meeting in February we will be presenting our new uniforms for the next two cycles and there will be more exciting news with that – you will need to attend!

Lastly, our board of directors are in the process of looking into new turf within the next couple of years. We are in Year 10 of our current turf and it’s time to get a new surface. We are working with a local vendor to offer our players the best surface we may have ever had – again stay tuned!

Onwards and upwards. Happy Holidays and best wishes in the New Year!

Cheers

Jim

 

 

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Director of Programming Update

By Craig Stone

 

Hello Nordic Families,

Firstly, a huge thank you for your support and effort in this first Winter session.  As well as teams training and playing indoor games, we took over half of the teams in the club on the road to Massachusetts in early December to FC Stars for tournament play.  It was great to get back on the larger fields and to face unfamiliar competition.  Our teams equipped themselves well, and I know our staff were eager to exercise their coaching chops.  

For me, watching our groups ‘on the road’ provides a good assessment of the work we’re doing with our teams, staff and member families on and off the pitch.  It’s rewarding to see the results.  We’re competitive across the board (though there’s still much work to do), and the attitude and behavior of our groups is top notch.  

Over the past 2.5 years we’ve doubled-down on building and implementing a culture of competitiveness AND joy at the club. This looks and sounds different at every age group, of course, but the camaraderie, competitiveness, and work ethic on display show me we’re trending in the right direction.  As Jim reports, this is also showing in the number of people interested in being a part of our club.  We’ve increased membership by a third in that 2.5 year period.  Yes, players want to come to Nordic to play - but I believe families also want to join Nordic to be part of “something”, to come along on our journey. As I never tire of saying, It simply has to be fun. 

Your membership support of this culture (both on and away from the sidelines) is really appreciated, and vital to this club’s success.  Players + staff + member families are the 3 legs of the stool.  Without one, we fall.  Though you see coaches on the front lines at Nordic, we have to acknowledge the work being done away from the pitch that contributes to our ongoing success and expansion.  Our club administrator Debbie Knakal, our Board of Directors, our bookkeeper Joyce Curry, and our Team Managers all tackle a huge amount of work that keeps us on track.  

Our club sponsors also deserve a mention.  Their flags (banners!) fly at the indoor center, and if you know of one, please thank them.  Their financial contributions enable players to access the game who may not otherwise. That’s a big deal. 

With the holidays upon us, I wish you all some quality family time.  Session 2 is just around the bend, and with it more indoor play, practices, Montreal trips, and some tournament play.  We need you well rested for the banner year ahead! 

Season’s greetings to all, and GO Nordic!

Coach Stone

Director of Coaching

craig@nordicsoccer.org

703-624-6734

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Director of Operations Update

By Cait Fogel

 

Long time, no see! I hope everyone is doing well and getting prepared for the holiday season. Since we last wrote, a BUNCH has happened. We hosted a handful of camps/programs over the summer which were a hit - the newest being our MS/HS/College Preseason Prep Program. Players attended twice a week, for 7 weeks, and prepared for their upcoming seasons with touches on the ball and some fitness. It was a ton of fun, and I can’t wait to do it again next summer! In the meantime, make sure to get registered for our Holiday Break Camp, and mark down an upcoming camp on MLK Day. We will also be hosting a 3v3 Street Soccer and 5v5 Adult Holiday Tournament on Wednesday, December 27th. Get registered ASAP!

At the beginning of November, we officially opened Nordic Indoor Soccer Center (NISC) for yet another season. With such growth in our club, the schedule is PACKED. We have team training, league games and rentals running every weekday from 3:00pm to 11:00pm, and on the weekends from 7:00am to 11:00pm. Thank you to all of our fantastic sponsors - if you don’t see them on the back of your league shirts, take a look up on the net across the field! Playoffs for Session I have started this week - best of luck to all teams, and don’t miss out on registering for Session II!

This season, I am the head coach of both the 2012-13G and 2010G, who both had successful fall seasons, and are remaining strong through the first session at NISC. During the fall season, both teams attended the Bailey Memorial Jamboree, and the 2012-13G attended the Cauldron Cup down in Fort Ann, NY. Since then, the 2012-13G had a select team travel down to the IFA Pre-Thanksgiving Invitational, and the 2010G recently traveled down to MA for the FC Stars College Showcase. All were great experiences and helped the teams grow in strength and chemistry. The 2010G are heading to Italy this upcoming April, so make sure to support them in the fundraisers they will be doing between now and then to help make it a great experience. The 2010G are also still on the lookout for a permanent goalkeeper - if you know of one, send her my way!

I am also the co-head coach of the 2005-06G, who have started off their season well. After coming out of such strong fall seasons, having 12/25 of our players be State Champions, we hit the ground running. We have set the tone for the season, with many of our players aspiring to play at the collegiate level, holding high level training and setting the bar high . This is a great group of players - I’m very excited to work with them and help them achieve their goals. 

I hope you all follow us on social media - if not, go click that “follow” button now to stay updated. We update all of our followers on our latest news, player/team successes, and all of the fun in between. You don’t want to miss out!

I hope you all enjoy your holidays, and are excited for the New Year!

Cait

 

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OTHER NEWS

 

• NISC Session II - Register Here!

• Holiday 3v3 and 5v5 Tournaments - Register Here! 

• Nordic Soccer Club’s Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, February 13th at 7:00pm at NISC. Open to all players, parents and coaches!

• Three of our teams will be traveling to Europe this April! Make sure to check out all of their fundraisers to help them out!