The desired outcome of the GSC’s travel team player and team placement process is to provide each player with the opportunity to be challenged, to succeed as a soccer player and to have fun.  The best way to accomplish this is to place similarly skilled players together and to play against teams of similar skill level. If exceptional circumstance arises that these objectives cannot be met with the player playing in his/her present age group, requests for players to move up will be considered.

Requests to move players (U8 – U14) to a higher age group than their age allows will be considered on an exception basis only and will be in compliance with MYSA and MAYSL policies and bylaws for Players Playing Up in Age.

All move up requests will be reviewed by the GSC Board of Directors (BOD).  A simple majority vote will prevail.  Under no circumstance will the decision be grandfathered or be valid for more than one season.  The GSC BOD will rely on the recommendation of past coaches as applicable to reach a decision.

It should be understood that any move up request will only be granted on an exception basis and in the best interest of the player and the age group as a whole.  The exceptionally skilled player that is being considered for a skill level exception will need to have played in division D1 the prior season (for U10-U14 moves) or be one of the top players on a U8 team (2nd year only) and will need to have been considered dominant in relation to other players from the entire league, not just their respective team. The GSC BOD will consider a variety of factors in rendering their decision, the recommendation of the coach from the prior season, along with the parent’s feedback are only two of those factors.

The player’s coach or a GSC Board Member are the only people that can initiate move up requests.  If parents want to request a player move, they must get the past season coach to sponsor the move request. A request will only be considered if the player is registered for the season for which the move is requested.

Upon receipt of a move up request, the GSC BOD will request the player’s coach to provide input on the player’s ability and ask for their recommendation.  The GSC BOD will notify the player’s parents no less than three weeks prior to the start of the upcoming season with their decision. All decisions are final.

Requests to play in a younger age group are only allowed for In-Town teams (U10 can play down if requested) with the approval of the GSC and are considered only under special circumstances.  The same process will be followed for move down requests as move up requests.