Palisades Pirates Youth Football and Cheerleading




	FAQ's When is registration? When does the season start? Where are practices held? When are tackle football practices? When are cheerleading practices? When are flag football practices? How long are practices? When are games held? How long are flag football games? How long are tackle football games? Will my child play in every game? What happens if we are going on vacation in August? What happens if my child misses practices because he/she attends CCD? What happens if my child misses games or practices because he/she is playing soccer or fall baseball? How do you set your registration fees? Why do I need to volunteer? Can I "buy my way out" of volunteering? Who coaches the teams? How can I be a head coach? Can you give me more information about becoming a flag football head coach? My child is 7. Should he/she participate in the tackle or flag football program? How do you determine the age levels for the cheerleaders? When is registration? Registration is usually held in late March at Palisades Middle School, Route 412, Kintnersville, PA 18930. We try to hold it on one Saturday morning and one mid-week evening. We will determine the dates by the end of February and post them on our web site. Additionally, we try to distribute flyers (approximately 1,000) to every Palisades School District elementary student two weeks prior to the registration dates. We also try to distribute them at local private schools (St. John's, River Valley School and Plumstead Christian allow our flyers). We will also be enlisting online registration. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- When does the season start? The season usually starts on the first Monday of August. Pop Warner and the Bux-Mont League set a "start date" each year that is determined by the first Monday in August. If the first Monday is "later" in August (i.e. 6th or 7th), there is a chance that practices could begin on the last Monday in July (i.e. 30th or 31st). Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- Where are practices held? Practices are primarily held at the following locations: Palisades High School Field (our main field) - primarily for the older tackle football Palisades Middle School - Cheerleading, some tackle football and the flag football teams Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- When are tackle football practices? Tackle football practices Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights during the month of August. The practice times are dependent upon day light. The practices generally run 90 to 120 minutes depending on the age of the child and the availability of daylight. The start time is at 6 p.m. The child should be ready to start practicing at 6 p.m. sharp. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- When are cheerleading practices? Competitive-level cheerleaders, age 10 and up, practice 4 nights per week (Monday - Thursday) in August and then 2 or 3 nights after Labor Day. Non-competitive level cheerleaders, ages 5 to 9, practice 4 nights per week (Monday - Thursday) in August and then 2 nights after Labor Day. The practice times are dependent upon daylight and space availability. The practices generally run 90 to 120 minutes depending on the age of the child. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- When are flag football practices? Flag football teams practice 4 nights per week (Monday - Thursday) in August and then 2 nights (Tuesday and Thursday) after Labor Day. Practice starts at 6 p.m. sharp. The practices generally run 90 to 120 minutes long. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- How long are practices? Practices generally run 90 minutes for the younger children (5-8) and 120 minutes for children ages 9-13. Overall the time period can range from 90 to 120 minutes. This is left up to the coaches' discretion. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- When are games held? Regular season games usually begin on the weekend before Labor Day or the weekend of Labor Day as decided by the BuxMont League. They continue for at least 8 weekends depending on the level of play (i.e. flag is usually only 8 games, tackle is 10-12 games). Games may be played on Friday nights, and/or anytime on Saturdays or Sundays. Each team will only play one game per weekend. Rain makeups and playoff situations may alter the game day and time. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- How long are flag football games? Flag football games are approximately 60 minutes long. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- How long are tackle football games? Tackle football games are approximately 105-120 minutes long. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- Will my child play in every game? Yes, Pop Warner has "minimum play requirements" for all levels of football. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- What happens if we are going on vacation in August? We have families every year that miss some practices in August. We understand that this may occur and can work around a child's absence if we know in advance and if the absence is limited to one week for a competitive-level player (ages 10 and up) and to no more than 2 weeks for a child ages 5-8. Please note that our August practices are very similar to "school" (a lot of instruction) and missing August practices can result in your child being "behind" some of the other players (students) on the team. The families should keep the head coach informed of any vacation plans. Communication between the coach and the parent is the best thing. Please keep in mind though that this is a very intense instructional time for all teams and any time missed may hinder your child's performance. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- What happens if my child misses practices because he/she attends CCD? CCD conflicts occur every year. Please inform and discuss this with your coach as soon as possible so he/she can be aware of the situation. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- What happens if my child misses games or practices because he/she is playing soccer or fall baseball? Although Pop Warner has "minimum play requirements", we are still able to sit a child for missing practices and/or games due to other sport conflicts (i.e. soccer or Fall baseball). If the practices do not overlap entirely that day, we suggest the child attend as much of the practice as they can. We strongly discourage participating in a "second sport" during football season and your child will likely suffer from not getting valuable playing time and experience with the team. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- How do you set your registration fees? Our registration fees in comparison to the other teams in the league are the least expensive. We try to maintain this fee at the minimum cost to the family. Fees can be found on our "Registration" page Registration fees are based on three primary factors: Value of participation based on number of practice hours and game hours (as compared to their youth sports programs). Football players and Cheerleaders will practice between 30 and 80 hours in a season. Our base registration fee is comparable to all other youth sports (despite the fact that our facility maintenance costs and uniform costs are considerably higher). "Personal" uniform costs. Tackle and flag football players who complete the season will be awarded their game jersey. This cost is added to our base registration fee for tackle and flag football. Cheerleaders who complete the season will be awarded a complimentary piece of apparel. To keep the registration at a minimum, the cheerleader is expected to purchase additional equipment needed such as their sneakers, body suit, bloomers and socks. The football player purchases any additional equipment he/she may need such as, cleats, mouth piece, athletic supporter & cup. Fundraising. We add a "raffle fee" to our registration fee that involves every participant. This is the mandatory fundraiser of the organization. The raffle fee can be recouped by selling the raffle tickets provided at our registration. We opt for the "raffle" as our main fundraiser to enable children all summer to sell the tickets to not interfere with any schoolwork in the spring (after registration) or fall (during the season). We believe that it is far more important for the children to concentrate on school work first, then football or cheerleading second, and not be interrupted by fundraising efforts during the school year. We do not endorse any child going door to door to sell any type of fundraising items. The parents and the children should work together to accomplish the fundraising goal. A Trophy is given to each child that completes the season at the "End of Year" banquet which is usually held early in January of the following year. The association also pays for the child's meal at the banquet. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- Why do I need to volunteer? Can I "buy my way out" of volunteering? All families must volunteer. Due to the numerous tasks required to run our league, we do not allow families to "buy out" their volunteer commitment. Please keep in mind that there are numerous volunteers (at least 20) who spend at least 200 hours per year volunteering their time. A monetary value cannot be placed on the hours of volunteering. The "hands" are needed in every aspect of running practices and games. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- Who coaches the teams? All Pop Warner coaches, administration, board members (even the webmaster of this site) are VOLUNTEERS. The volunteer head coaches apply for a coaching position every year to our Football Commisioner (no one has "tenure"). They are then approved by the Palisades Football & Cheerleading Board of Directors. Each coach, head or assistant, must obtain a background check through the Pennsylvania State Police web site, complete an online coach's certification course (level's 1) through USA Football & observe the Pop Warner Risk Managment Program, then submit all certificates to our Associaton President. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- How can I be a head coach? If you are interested in coaching football or cheerleading and would like more information, please contact the Cheer or Football Commissioners of Palisades Youth Football on our "Contacts Us" page. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- Can you give me more information about becoming a flag football head coach? The season starts on August 1st. Flag teams generally practice four times per week in August (Monday - Thursday). The practices start at 6 p.m. During the summer, flag usually practices until 8 p.m. like the other teams. When school starts it is up to the coaches and parents on whether to have practices for 1 1/2 hours or 2 hours. We don't encourage weekend practices (because many families go away on Summer weekends), but they are permitted. During the regular season (after Labor Day), practices usually drop down to two nights per week. In addition to coaching practices and games, the head coach is also responsible to attend monthly meetings (last Wednesday in each month), a mandatory league meeting in early August (a Friday night) and compile his team's "paperwork" (birth certificates, photos, doctor's form and parent form) or assign that task to the "Team Mom/Dad", maintain the team roster and playing counting sheets for all the games. The forms need to be submitted after each game to the Football Commissioner. Games are scheduled on 8 weekends in September and October (possibly the first weekend of November). Our goal is to schedule the flag games on Saturdays (morning to early afternoon). However, we have no control over when the opposing teams requested time slots or rain make-ups. There is also a chance that one game could be played on a Sunday afternoon. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- My child is 7. Should he/she participate in the tackle or flag football program? Parents of any child in football or cheerleading should consider providing input regarding their child on the specific child's athletic ability, maturity and experience participating in football or cheerleading. We strongly encourage children to "play down" to the lowest tackle level in which they are eligible. However, a 7 year old may be considered for participating in our flag program (with mostly 5 and 6 year olds), or our 70 pound tackle program (with mostly 7 year olds). A 5 year old may participate in our flag only. We encourage children to play at a level in which they will feel successful and will gain the most confidence. However, PPYF reserves the right to make final decisions player placement. Back to top --------------------------------------------------------------------- How do you determine the age levels for the cheerleaders? 5,6, and 7 year olds are placed in our flag cheer program. They will cheer at 8 flag games and will participate in the Bux-Mont "Fun Day" for non-competitive cheerleaders. 8 year olds will be placed on our 80 lb. cheer squad. They will cheer at 10 or 11 games. The games will be home and away and the child must travel to the away games. The child will participate in the Bux-Mont "Fun Day' for non-competitive cheerleaders. 9 year olds will be placed on our 90 lb. cheer squad. They will cheer at 10 or 11 games and will participate in the Bux-Mont "Fun Day" for non-competitive cheerleaders. 10 through 13 year olds will be placed on a "competitive level" squad that will cheer for a 100, 115 or 130 lb. tackle football team. They will cheer at 10-13 games and will participate in our league Cheer competition. The top finishers (in some cases, the top 3 finishers) advance to the Pop Warner Regional competitions with the ultimate goal of advancing to the Pop Warner National championships in Orlando, FL. Back to top ---------------------------------------------------------------------