East Hudson Youth Soccer League

There are many wonderful volunteer coaches in the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) and today we celebrate Emmanuel Nneji of the Kingston Area Soccer League. Manny first became involved in soccer as a boy growing up in Nigeria. He explained, Playing soccer was the only thing kids my age did and wanted to do. All the boys swamped the field at recess to play, and then it was the thing to do after school when chores were completed. Manny came to the United Sta...tes in 1980 to attend college at SUNY New Paltz. He got into coaching after moving back to New Paltz in 1989 after law school as a former college teammate asked him to help a group of kids who wanted to play soccer but did not make any of the existing recreational teams. The kids got a hold of my soul and I have not let go more than 30 years later. The now Kingston resident is currently coaching the Girls-Under-16 Kingston Warrior Eagles in the East Hudson Youth Soccer League (EHYSL). This is the first time in over two decades that Manny is coaching only one team as he coached both a boys team and a girls squad until the pandemic. The other most recent teams he coached were the Kingston Warriors (girls) and the Kingston Cannons (boys). Manny was honored as the 2009 EHYSL Girls Coach of the Year. The Warriors were exceptional for me. Their team had been abandoned with their ‘top’ players joining another club across the river. They cried for a mistake when we started out; they did not want to play certain positions because they did not want to make any mistakes. They were afraid to play the game that made them happy and brought them together with their friends. They started to come around as our first season progressed and, instead of losing 7-0 each game it became 5-2 or less. Celebrated a tie in the last game of the first season and never looked back from there, they won East Hudson’s Division 1, the Metro League and back-to-back Challenge Cup championships. The Warriors were a great group of girls, athletes, students and human beingsthe ultimate accomplishments of any youth sport. About his current team, Manny says that the Warrior Eagles are catching their stride in the love, fun and enjoyment of the game. Their individual and team confidence continues to grow, and I have to do all I can enable them to reach as far as their individual and collective vision will take them in soccer and its fun, as well as in life. And all this love of soccer and his players is in addition to his position as a prosecutor in Ulster County. My job as a volunteer soccer coach is also a real job for me, and I dare say it’s even more serious in the grand scheme of things, because of the direct interaction and impact a coach can have on a kid, especially during such impressionable stages in their lives, Manny concluded.

Congratulations to former EHYSL player Curtis Ofori from Wappinger United Soccer Club! Curtis is the youngest player ever signed to a New York Red Bulls professional contract, beating out Tyler Adams who also came out of EHYSL! Good luck Curtis! Everyone at EHYSL will be cheering for you!

Due to several requests, the East Hudson T3 Developmental Training Program will be offering a session at The Net on Friday, March 19th from 7 to 8pm. It is for 2010 and 2011 girls and boys at this time. Coach Rivera is currently working on a schedule to offer program in a few locations in the Hudson Valley area for more age groups. To register, please click on the link below. Spots are filling up quickly.... https://system.gotsport.com/programs/9G2207324 The link below is the article about the program from ENY Soccer. https://www.enysoccer.com/east-hudson-youth-soccer-league-/

T3 has been a HUGE success as a pilot program, and EHYSL is looking forward to bringing more opportunties to the Hudson Valley youth soccer community!

Well done, Coach Rene!

To all Clubs, First thank you to everyone for making this season possible. As we approach week eight, we had hoped to extend the season post-Thanksgiving, but with the recent increase in COVID cases across the Mid-Hudson Region we are putting the safety of our players, coaches, and families first and will end the EHYSL Fall 2020 Season when the final games are played Sunday Nov 22nd. We need all clubs to help us make these final games happen. With the Governor's new guidance/...restrictions around towns and cities in yellow zones - we need clubs that have teams and players that reside in the yellow zones to reach out to their opposing teams to see if the games can be played under the following guidelines: -If a team is in a yellow zone and has a home game and chooses to play that game in the yellow zone - that game will be restricted to a maximum of 25 people. This may mean an 11v11 game has one coach for each team and one referee with no subs and no spectators. -If the home game is in a yellow zone - the home team can work with the away team to see if they can schedule the game at a non-yellow zone location (home field of the away team). -If the opposing team chooses to not play a team that is in a yellow zone or the team has players that reside in a yellow zone, the match can be cancelled and listed as an unplayed match. The EHYSL BOD understands that we are asking for a quick turnaround to see if we can get these matches played and end a season that looked like it may never have happened on a high note. Please coordinate with your respective Age Group Coordinators so that we can make any necessary changes as soon as possible. Again - thank you to all for making this soccer season happen, we appreciate everything that the Clubs, players, parents, and volunteers have done to make it a success. Thank you The EHYSL BOD

The final day of tryouts for East Hudson Academy is coming up on Saturday, November 14. To register, please visit: ehysl.net/east-hudson-academy-2/

Due to field conditions, tryouts scheduled for October 31 have been postponed.

East Hudson Academy tryouts are set for U15-18. Become a part of East Hudson’s Premier Program while continuing to play for your local club. For more information, please visit EHYSL.net Register Here: https://system.gotsport.com/programs/69607844H

EHYSL has recieved multiple questions regarding travel soccer. As things stand now, our neighbors in PA, NJ, and CT are NOT on the NYS quarantine list and ENYYSA’s guidelines remain the same. For League Play (all EHYSL games), restrictions have not changed at all. Travel to PA, NJ, and CT is not restricted for single match games that do not require an overnight stay. We ask that all clubs and teams continue to follow the USSF, ENYYSA, EHYSL/HVSRA, and all CDC, state, and local guidlines and protocols.