Youth soccer league struggling to find volunteers, but won't blame COVID

The soccer season is in jeopardy for about 200 children in central P.E.I. because the local association can't find volunteers to coordinate the leagues.

The Central Queens Clippers Soccer Club in Hunter River will start taking registrations this week, but at this point can't guarantee play will go ahead for children under nine.

The club calls that age group house league, and there are three divisions: under five, under seven and under nine. The clubdoes not have a coordinator for any of those three divisions, and also needs a house league coordinator.

"This is a struggle every year that I've been with the club, now for 12 years. Every year we do struggle to get volunteers," said club secretary Lisa Langdale.

No excuses

But this year is a little worse that usual, said Langdale.

She said she has had no response to her pleas for volunteers on Facebook. She does not, however, think it is because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"A lot of people were concerned last year, I know, about what soccer was going to look like," said Langdale.

"Really at the end of the day, it didn't look that different from any other year. So I don't really think that we can use COVID as an excuse to not get people involved."

These are coordination positions, she said, and no knowledge of soccer is required, just an ability to communicate.

The club will register under-nine children, she said, but the only way play can go ahead is if parents step up to volunteer.

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