Travel Team Program: U8 – U19

Lightning Soccer Club offers Travel Teams for ages U8– U19. The teams are comprised of the top players per respective age group (18 players for 11 v 11 teams, 14 players for 8v8 teams, 12 players for 6v6 teams).

Travel Teams compete in the Granite State Youth Soccer League in New Hampshire or another premier regional league. They also participate in one regional tournament in the fall and one in the spring. Highly competitive teams U12 and older are entered in State Cup to determine the top club team in the state who will then represent New Hampshire at the US Youth Soccer Region 1 Championships.

All teams practice at least 2x per week in the fall and spring seasons, have games on the weekend (usually 8 games per season – 4 home and 4 away), participate in at least 1 tournament per season, and, if they qualify, in post-season championship matches.

Fall season begins in late August and runs to early November. Older teams participate in an annual Columbus Day Tournament in October. Winter Training (new for 2010) is an additional training opportunity for Lightning players. It will run January – February with weekly sessions. The spring season begins with early season training in March (indoors). Games in the spring season begin in mid-April and run through June. All teams U11 and older also participate in a regional tournament over Memorial Day weekend.

Home games for U13 - U18 teams take place at Kimball Union Academy or Plainfield School in Meriden, NH (see Field Directions). Home games for U8-U12 teams take place in Hanover, NH at Fullington Farm fields, Sachem Fields (see Field Directions), or possibly KUA beginning spring 2010. Away games in the Granite State League are typically in southeast NH, up to 1-2 hours away.  Away games for teams enrolled in the New England Premiership league may require further travel to neighboring states (VT, MA, ME).

Tryouts are held in early June for U8-U14 teams, and in early November for U8-U19 teams. After tryouts, the Lightning Administration and Lightning Board of Directors decide for which age groups the club will sponsor teams. This is dependent on the number and quality of players at tryouts for each age group. To learn more about the selection process, go to our FAQ page.

Player Pool is a training-only option offered to motivated players whose wish to improve their skills to compete at the travel level. Pool players participate in training, as do travel players, but they do not compete in games. Many of our older players started their Lightning careers on the Player Pool and through their hard work and effort earned a spot on a travel team.

A player designated as an "Alternate" for a team participates in training and may be invited to compete in games as space permits (if another player is sick or can not make a game). 

Please refer to the FAQ section for answers to many other questions parents have asked over the years!

Fees: 
Please see our Pricing Page for current season costs.

NEW U8 and U9 Travel Teams: Spring 2010 

After a very successful fall 2009 season with the U8-U9 Development Team, Lightning Soccer Club has entered U8 and U9 teams into the Early Development Program for spring 2010, a program that is run by Granite State Youth Soccer League. 

The Early Development Program schedule for spring will include a series of home and away games (4 to 8) which will begin in mid-April and run through early June. Games take place on weekends; practices will be on two mid-week days. The game format is structured for a lot of play. Each match consists of a 30-minute game of 4v4, followed by a 30-minute game of 6v6, ensuring many touches on the ball for every player.

Players who do not fit the age brackets (see below), or for whom a competitive travel program might be too rigorous, we recommend Dartmouth Soccer’s spring clinic, which you can find at www.biggreenclinics.com

Age Brackets:

U8 team  - born between August 1, 2001 and July 31, 2002

U9 team - born between August 1, 2000 and July 31, 2001

Fees: 
Please see our Pricing Page for current season costs.