It has been a cold, snowy winter here in the DC Metropolitan area. Who would have thought that it would ever end…at last… Spring! Sigh. Take a minute and breathe it in. It’s ok, I’ll wait. The cherry blossoms are beginning to bloom as the last of the snow is slowly begins melting away.

It’s time to let ‘em fly!

Burleys and Sherrins! (I like the way that sounds.)

Springtime means it’s time to knock off the rust, break out the boots and have a kick! It is a reminder to all of us who slacked off during the winter months, guilty right here, that we need to work on our fitness and get ready for the upcoming Saturday Morning Footy summer sessions. As always, I was happy to see so many familiar faces. It was great to see some new ones too, even if they are Tiger and Cats supporters, at least it’s not that other club.

This year’s spring Opening Day was excellent. Since tradition dictates, we started with Sharks and Minnows. This is Coach Chris’ way of reminding us… me specifically, that we may have slacked off during the winter but it’s time to get back in shape for the upcoming season.  We worked on various skills and progressed through some of the more advanced techniques such as sheparding to protect our teammates and ourselves. Strong emphasis on retrieving the ball without going to ground and passing it to a teammate that has a better opportunity to kick for goals or to someone who can mark it.

Special thanks to Rob, Jay, Scott, and Steve for helping with the U15s, AND John, Alex, Rick, Rohan and Dick who assisted the U9s. It is great to have the “bigger” Eagles come out and work with the kids. It is always good to have the Eagles work out and train with us because it inspires and motivates our kids and show them the path of progression for the older kids into the Seniors BWE programs or into the Metro Footy Comps.

Every year these kids grow, develop and mature. I know, watching my own kids, that they have come a long ways since we first started. One of the other coaches remarked that my middle son, “must have grown a foot since the last time he saw him.” So too does Saturday Morning Footy. This year we (MOSTLY Chris) are in the process of setting up the forming the 501C3 and organizing the Washington Junior Australian Football Club Inc. with officers and process and paperwork and stuff. With that said, there are always opportunities for people to assist, participate, promote or just get involved.  I personally started as a parent on the sidelines, saw a need and pitched in. You can too!

On a brief side note, I want to say good luck to Jay and Rob who are going to try out with the USA Revolution, the men’s national Australian football team as they prepare for the 2014 AFL International Cup.

Thanks for braving the good Melbourne weather and I look forward to seeing everyone for Sat Morning Footy! Oh by the way I actually do check to see if anyone liked my articles or commented.

Let ‘em fly!

Burleys and Sherrins!  (still like how that sounds)

Photos by Brenda Meade.