Training the next generation

By Robert Sisk

Published: August 13, 2008

While most of the Valley has turned its attention to the upcoming football season, members of the Waynesboro varsity boys soccer team are looking ahead not to March 2009, but to long after they hang up their purple jerseys.
On Wednesday, the Little Giants began a four-day soccer camp for fifth through ninth grade players, in an attempt to offer guidance to the school’s future stars and raise money for a permanent concession stand at the Little Giants pitch. The camp was completely organized and run by the varsity team. 
“We were just thinking about how we would have felt when we were younger,” said Kyle Wright. “We would have loved to [have] had a camp because of how much we looked up to the older guys, growing up and playing at Eastside and starting travel. We thought these guys would enjoy it and we wanted to give back to them for supporting us the last two seasons.”
In the last two years since the new soccer and track complex was completed, Waynesboro has used a small trailer to sell snacks as well as for operating the public address system and scoreboard. Over the summer the Little Giants were searching for ways to raise money and opted to open a camp run by the players.
“We enjoy doing it,” said Storm Burks. “It’s a good kickoff to the school year.”
Several players showed up for the camp, along with a couple of coaches, to guide less than 20 campers during drills.
Burks and Wright worked with the rest of their team to put the camp together, spending about three hours a week developing lessons and working out the small details.
“We had some pretty intense discussions because there was a lot to go through,” Burks said.
The experience of the defending Southern Valley champions helped develop the lessons.
“They are some great guys,” Burks said. “They know the game and have been playing the game for eight or nine years now.” On Saturday, the last day of the camp, the campers split up for a friendly exhibition.
Wright said that he hopes the camp becomes a tradition and attracts more students, not only from the River City but from outside areas as well.
“We wanted to see how this went and see how much money we raised. We’ve got close to 20 kids and that’s about $1,000,” he said. “We thought it would be a good idea … for the future of Waynesboro soccer. We opened it to the other cities as well, but got mostly Waynesboro guys.”