SUNDRE — Before the local soccer season even got a chance to start, organizers felt there was little choice but to cancel it in light of the circumstances.
Prior to the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases increasing again along with a surge in variants, ushering in the pandemic’s third and potentially worst wave in Alberta, restrictions were earlier in April widely anticipated to be relaxed, and the Sundre Soccer Club at the time remained reserved in the hope there might yet be a chance to salvage the season in some fashion, even if that meant delivering a different-than-usual approach.
However, under the current public health protocols, the board concluded that simply wouldn’t be possible and reluctantly decided to throw in the towel.
“We waited and waited, and we were going to do it,” Amber Jenkins, president of the board, said during an interview prior to last week's new restrictions coming into force.
“(But) with the restrictions not going in our favour in the near future…we’ve actually cancelled the season. We didn’t want to do it, but what do you do,” said Jenkins.
The local club is not the only organization with Fun Team Alberta to make the difficult decision, she said.
“It’s really hard — you’re basically just doing a practice. We’re not allowed games, the kids have to stay six feet away from each other,” she added.
“We would have had to have two coaches and only eight kids (out at any given time),” she said.
Additionally, she said coaches would be required to wear a mask during the whole practice despite being outdoors.
“I don’t think anybody wants to be out on the field with a mask on,” especially later in the summer when temperatures can get pretty hot even in the evenings, she said.
And while maintaining physical distancing might be feasible for sports such as golf or even baseball, staying sufficiently spaced apart at all times is an essentially impossible ask for soccer, a sport which frequently requires players to get a bit more up close and personal with others, she said.
“You’re always in in their bubble. The last thing you need is somebody to phone (Alberta Health Services) because the kids aren’t social distancing. How do you get a five-year-old to stay six feet away from their friends the whole time? Because once one finds a ladybug, they’re all there.” she said, with a laugh.
“And then the bigger kids, they like to horse around,” she added.
Basically the only way to ensure physical distancing was remotely achievable, would be to limit the hour-long practices to skills and drills, she said.
“That gets boring after about 10 minutes," she said.
Due to the uncertainty leading up to this season, as well as last year's experience, Jenkins said registrations had not yet been processed, and therefore no refunds would need to be offered.
“I learned that last year, just to wait,” she said, adding that individually writing several dozen refund cheques and letters had left an impression, prompting her to err on the side of caution this year.
“We tried hard to figure out what we could do for the kids. But in the long run, it just wouldn’t work,” she said.
That means looking ahead to 2022 and hoping for the best, she said.
“We better be able to do it next year," she said.
