Thunder and Lightning Policy
thunder and lightning policy
If thunder is heard or lightning is seen, all outdoor activity should be suspended immediately, and players, coaches, and spectators should seek safe shelter. Of course, if the forecast is for continued thunder/lightning, a simple cancellation of practice or game and leaving the field is the easiest and safest method to provide safety to the players, coaches and spectators. A game or practice should not resume until 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder or flash of lightning has been seen or heard.
WYSA's recommendation is that if there is a severe weather advisory still in place later in the afternoon relating to thunder and lightning, and bad weather is already apparent, then practices or games should be cancelled by the team coach/manager as soon as possible.
Elaboration:
Immediate Suspension:
- When thunder is heard or lightning is seen, even if the storm appears distant, all outdoor activity, including games and practices, must be immediately suspended.
Safe Shelter:
- Players, coaches, and spectators should be directed to a safe location, such as a building with wiring and plumbing, or a metal-roofed vehicle.
30-Minute Rule:
- After the last flash of lightning or clap of thunder, a 30-minute waiting period is required before any outdoor activity can resume. This is because lightning can still strike even after the immediate thunderstorm has passed.
Decision-Making:
- Ultimately, the referee or designated field official (coach or team manager) should have the final say on suspending or restarting practices or games due to lightning.
"Flash-to-Bang" Rule:
- The "flash-to-bang" method (counting the seconds between a lightning flash and the thunder) can be used to estimate the distance of the lightning and assess the need to suspend activities.
Blue Sky Warning:
- Blue sky and absence of rain do not mean that lightning is safe. Lightning can strike even outside of the rain shaft.
Thunderstorms Return:
- Thunderstorms can reverse course and return over an area that they have just passed, so it's important to maintain a 30-minute waiting period after the final flash or clap.
Canada Soccer has a further document outlining the above, and you can find this here.
BRIEF HISTORY The WYSA Skill Centre was introduced in 2024 by previous club staff. This program was meant to create a higher level training program that fed into team placements for coysa league play. However, upon reviewing the program and its goals in early 2025, Matt (WYSA ED) and Jason (WYSA TD) determined that the program was too focused on creating teams, with a limited number of players benefiting overall, and didn’t accomplish the club’s goal of total player development. Quite frankly, it was excluding players and narrowing a “team” focus too much. Canada Soccer has a comprehensive Skill Centre structure and a mandate that clubs should follow, and one of the clear guiding principles is that “the underlying aim of Skill Centres is to provide the best environment possible to as many young players as possible for as long as possible.” (from the CSA’s document on Skill Centres across Canada) One of the struggles the club has had over many years was that many players drop out by 14 or 15 years of age, and without a larger base of players that have been developed and included, the club ends up not being able to field teams in the U15 or U16 age groups. This happened again last summer when we had to fold a planned U16 boys team and were required to combine a U14 and U15 girls team due to a lack of numbers overall in those age groups. We strongly felt that without addressing some of these structural issues with the next crop of 7 to 13 year olds in the Skill Centre, and to find a way to increase participation in those key age groups, we were destined to repeat those same issues year over year. WYSA decided the best course of action was that for the fall and winter (2025-26) program there would be no teams created until more players had an opportunity to join and train in an enhanced Skill Centre program. The philosophy was to encourage more players to experience better training over a 6+ month period. We made the adjustment to fully run the fall and winter program with staff coaches so that the training environment could be a monitored environment for all players. Our plan was to put development/select teams together again in the U7-U13 age groups by late winter (Feb/March), and we are on track to do this with the inclusion now of appointed coaches in the Skill Centre age groups. WHERE WE ARE AT We did accomplish the goal of getting more players into a regular training environment. In fact, we saw an increase in the Skill Centre registration in September by 30%. Some groups were bursting at the seems with double the number of players that joined, and some groups added a few more players to supplement the numbers and give more players these developmental opportunities. Yes we had some growing pains with larger groups, but we are now heading into 2026 with a head of steam to put together good development teams for spring play, with coaches that will be supported by our TD and staff coaches. TEAM FORMATION Now that the coaches are being put in place for each U10-U13 development team, those coaches will work with Jason to confirm the players selected for the development teams. Those players will be notified by February 20, and players not selected to a development team will be offered a spot on a recreational team for the spring season. For players NOT currently in the Skill Centre that wish to play on a development team in the spring, they should reach out to Jason ( td@wysa.ca ). Those players will be invited for 2 training sessions before February 20 to be considered for a spot on a spring Development team. For players in the U7-U9 age group, coysa and BC Soccer require clubs to balance those teams and they aren’t considered “select” teams. Jason will work with each of those age groups in lining up coaches and building teams before the end of this current development block. In the spring, U7-U13 Skill Centre teams will practice twice per week with a coysa or toysl game on weekends, whereas there will also be a recreational level at U7-U13 for players looking for less commitment than the Skill Centre program. WYSA will be entering U7-U9 teams in coysa’s regular balanced league, U10-U11 in coysa’s development league, and U12-U13 in the toysl league.
Westside Youth Soccer is excited to open registration for the 2026 spring outdoor recreational season for the U7-U18 age groups! Spring season starts early April through end of June. There will also be a secondary fall season in Sept/Oct for those interested, with details TBD. Check the PROGRAMS page for detailed information, and then head over to the REGISTRATION page to grab your spot for the spring season. Most age groups will fill quickly, so register ASAP! Information and registration for the U4 and U6 spring programs will be released on Feb 1!
