March 24 - Member Update
SSA Annual General Meeting and Member Sessions
The SSA AGM weekend held on March 18 - 20, 2022 was a huge success.
Things kicked off Friday night with the RAMP Interactive, “Have a drink on us”, social. We are very grateful to RAMP Interactive for their generous support of this fun evening. It was night for old friends got together to socialize for the first time in two long years.
The SSA Annual General Meeting took place Saturday. The AGM resulted in 4 Directors renewing their commitments for two-year teams including SSA President, Lisa Bagonluri, Rattan Bahia, Andrew Kitchen and Nicole Tryhorn. We also welcome Gord Quinlan as our newest Director.
SSA presented un-qualified audit report for the 9th year in a row and membership confirmed Virtus group as auditors for the 2022 fiscal year. The AGM also resulted in important amendments to the SSA Bylaws which ensure our commitments to equity, diversity, and inclusion are ingrained as fundamental values within our bylaws, recruitment, and nomination processes. Finally, Membership approved Joan McEachern as a Life Member.
Joan McEachern, born April 12, 1963, in Leroy SK, began her soccer career in Lanigan. Joan was raised in Sinnett where she first learned to play soccer with her brothers and cousins. After winning the Provincial Championships with Lanigan Central High School, Joan McEachern went on to become a star player for the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon. From 1987 to 1995 Joan McEachern was an active player on the Canadian Women’s National Team typically playing as a right-side midfielder. She began with the National Team in only it’s second year of existence and played in the 1991, 1993 and 1994 CONCACAF Championships. In her final CONCACAF Championship in 1994, Joan McEachern helped Canada qualify for the 1995 Women’s World Cup where she represented Canada. Joan McEachern was inducted to the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame in 2009.
Recognition Lunch
Living Sky Sports and Entertainment sponsored the SSA Recognition Lunch. Lee Kormish, brand ambassador provided an update on progress on behalf of LSSE President Al Simpson. SSA Members in attendance were excited to show their support for the stadium.
#BuildthestadiumSK
Fireside Chat: Sarah McConaghy and Dave Nutt
Dave and Sarah sat down to discuss the concept of Quality Soccer Standards and Club Licensing that has been introduced and will be part of the registration process in 2023. Sara brought invaluable experience and information about the implementation of Club Licensing for her organization and the benefits that have come from that action and Dave brought his expertise to the conversation through his continued development of these programs nationally along with his experience within the Saskatchewan sport landscape.
Sarah McConaghy is the Executive Director of Guelph Soccer. A community sport advocate and avid supporter of the “Beautiful Game.”
Dave Nutt the Canada Soccer Manager of Development Operations.
Building towards Everybody’s Game: Kristina Kiss and Sara McConaghy
The Saturday afternoon’s member session was hosted by:
Kristina Kiss a former National team player, Technical Director, and Manager of Development-Programming with Canada Soccer.
Sarah McConaghy the Executive Director of Guelph Soccer, who is currently completing her Master’s with Queen’s Smith School of Business.
During this session members furthered their understanding of the value and purpose of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion within the soccer landscape. By looking at the most up to date data and the benefits of gender equity to the participant and the organization, Sara and Kristina provided details to promote gender equity within soccer organizations. The presentation consisted of practical how-to's, real life examples, and take-home resources.
SSA Banquet & Awards
Saturday evening consisted of SSA members coming together to celebrate all the award nominees and recipients for 2021. The players, coaches, referees, and volunteers once again showed us how amazing our community is. Everyone in attendance was excited to celebrate all of their accomplishments!
Sunday Workshop: Kristina Kiss and Sara McConaghy
On Sunday morning participants from the Female Mentorship Group and Member Organization Executives came together to review barriers females face in soccer. The group explored potential strategies and frameworks to improve in these areas.
AGM, Education Sessions, and Awards information will be uploaded and shared to Members at a later date, watch sasksoccer.com for the complete release coming next week.
2023 Annual General Meeting - Expression of Interest
SSA determines the location of the Annual General Meeting on a four-year rotational basis; Saskatoon, Regina, Saskatoon, and Rural Saskatchewan.
Currently, we are looking for an Expression of Interest from Members, other than Saskatoon and Regina, to support us in the hosting of the AGM. SSA covers all costs but would appreciate local support to ensure the event is a success.
If you are interested, please contact Steven Porter, ea@sasksoccer.com by April 21st. In your reply we would appreciate information on appropriate venues for the AGM meeting & education sessions, banquet and accommodations, along with any other information that may assist us with our decision.
2022 Important Member Deadlines
2022 Member Renewal: March 15
Member Organizations are required to renew each year to be eligible to receive the privileges of Membership.
How to renew:
Visit SSA Registration
Login and select Executive Registration
Submit payment
Need Assistance? View a video tutorial on how to renew your membership!
Indoor Final Registration Submission: March 31
Last Submission - March 31 (or 30 days after last game, if earlier): All fees and registrations received from Dec. 9 to Mar. 31 must be submitted or late fees will be applied.
REMINDER: Referee registrations will be collected by member organizations. This is done through your RAMP Official registration. Fees will be submitted through the Registrar Report by the annual registration deadlines. The first report is due March 31 for referees who registered Jan 1, up to March 31.
Registration fees, deadlines, and registrar reports can be found on our Registration and Fees webpage.
Member Assistance Program (MAP) Grant: April 15
MAP Grant Spending Plan applications will be open next Thursday and will remain open until April 15. Check your emails next week for your MAP eligibility letters which will indicate the minimum amount of Population Base Funding (PBF).
Once you receive your letter you can start preparing your MAP Grant Spending Plan application. For assistance with your applications please ensure you review the MAP Easy Guide and pre-recorded MAP webinar which can be found on the SSA MAP grant web page.
To support you better, we will be hosting two live webinars on Monday March 28 at noon, and Wednesday April 6 at 5:30 p.m. Pre-Registration is required.
NEW REQUIREMENT FOR MAP applications in 2022:
Canada Soccer Club Licensing - Quality Soccer Provider (QSP)
As part of this year’s MAP Grant process, member organizations are required to hold QSP status or declare their intent to achieve QSP. Please ensure you complete your Club Licence declaration of interest form. QSP status is a process, and we are here to support you. For more information on Club Licensing please visit Sask Soccer Club Licensing.
If you have any questions:
MAP Applications - Eden Senger, e.senger@sasksoccer.com
Club Licensing - Markus Reinkens, m.reinkens@sasksoccer.com
Rural Adult Grant - Soccer and Futsal: April 15
New to 2022, we are excited to announce the Rural Adult Grant - Soccer & Futsal. This offers an opportunity for Rural organizations to expand their engagement within the community to include adult participants.
For more information and to apply click here. Applications will be open until April 15!
Staff Restructuring
SSA is working through some staffing adjustments, and we appreciate your patience as we work out all the details over the coming months.
As noted in earlier communications SSA is working with a much smaller team coming out of COVID so membership cooperation is requested to ensure that we can meet all expectations. We ask that you respond to requests for information in a timely manner, meet deadlines and align with decisions and policy expectations. This will help us to serve all members better.
Please join us in welcoming Jamie McCulloch, who started this week in the role of Technical Administrator, Competitions and Excel (TACEx), to the staff team.
Jamie has a bachelor’s degree in Sport & Recreation Management from the University of Regina as well as a Diploma in Recreation and Tourism Management from Sask Polytechnic. She has worked as an independent fitness instructor, YMCA child and youth director and a recreation programmer for the City of Martensville. She brings with her a solid mix of education and experience that will be an asset in this position. Working out of our Saskatoon office, she will provide support to all technical areas but her primary focus will be REX, multi-sport events, competitions and referee development.
You may contact Jamie: j.mcculloch@sasksoccer.com
Coach Education Workshop - An evening with César Meylan
We are very excited to announce that Canada Soccer’s Head of Physical Performance César Meylan will be joining us on May 3rd to share some of his experiences and expertise on preparing our Men’s and Women’s teams for international success.
It is time to Register Your Referees!
Preparations for the outdoor season are under way. Match officials represent a vital part of the game. Please encourage all returning referees to head over to your Member Organization’s RAMP portal and register if they have not done so already. Referees have a very important role in sport and having a trained pool of referees is vital to the success of your local programming.
What if not enough match officials are returning?
The time to recruit more participants and book a referee clinic is now. Head over to the Saskatchewan Soccer Referee Courses page for more information. Future referees are required to complete The Entry Level Referee Online Theory Module (accessible through the individual Ramp account) before registering for the one day “In Classroom/Practical component”. If your Member Organization has any questions, please contact Octavian at ccd@sasksoccer.com.
Community Referee Education Sessions
SSA will be offering Laws of the Game Refresher online education sessions to all Saskatchewan Soccer referees. Sessions will be approximately 1-1.5 hours and will focus on several exciting topics spread over the course of four sessions. We will explore and learn together on challenges, offside, handball, tactical fouls, dissent, and even rare situations that may occur based on the Laws of the Game. You are welcome to attend all sessions or just the ones that fit your schedule.
Sessions take place, March 29, April 7, April 13, and April 25 with a 7:30 p.m. start time.
Registration is on a first come, first served basis. If you are interested, please register here. Upon registration, you will receive a confirmation email with details on how to access the session of your choice.
Referees are essential to the participant experience and advancement of the game. They deserve our respect and a supportive, abuse-free, environment. You can make a difference; always treat them well and thank them for their contributions every game!
The Female Referee Development Group online sessions remain open to all registered female referees. Register on Zoom.
Canadian Amateur Sport Health Check Survey
The Canadian Amateur Sport Health Check Survey, by Capitis Consulting, looks forward to gathering important data from SSA Member Organizations and compiling a series of industry reports throughout the year.
SSA invites our Member Organizations support in this research initiative aimed at gathering meaningful and impactful information on how the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted Canadian amateur sport at a grassroots level, particularly with respect to capacity levels in the forms of staff, volunteers, and balance sheet strength.
The survey can be accessed here: Canadian Amateur Sport Health Check Survey - EN
Deadline for survey responses is Sunday April 3 2022.
Canada Soccer Launches Enhanced Fan Membership Program
Canada Soccer has launched a new initiative - CanadaRED+ Fan Membership Program - that will create an engaging fan movement from coast to coast and build on the success of our National Teams as well as the four-year runway to hosting the FIFA World Cup 2026.
The guiding principle of the CanadaRED+ Program is to provide the opportunity for Canada Soccer fans to be part of the Canada Soccer Nation through four tiers of involvement by increasing the exclusivity and access as one progresses through the tiers based on their financial investment. Canada Soccer continues to offer FREE access through the existing CanadaRED tier which boasts 85,000+ members, and will be adding three additional tiers that will include:
CanadaRED+Gold
CanadaRED+Black
This redesigned program addresses key needs that will help support our National Teams and Development programs and empower Canadian soccer fans. In coming months, the organization will reveal a premium CanadaRED+GOLD tier, as well as an exclusive CanadaRED+BLACK tier. “The revamped CanadaRED program gives Canadian soccer fans enhanced access to support our National Teams including priority access to match tickets,” said Dr. Nick Bontis, Canada Soccer President. “When we play at home, CanadaRED will help to ensure that the stands in our house are filled with our fans. “The new tiered approach empowers fans to choose the level of support they’re comfortable with while contributing to our Women’s and Men’s National Teams continued rise to unprecedented heights.”
To read more about the program please visit the Canada Soccer website: CanadaRED Fan Membership Program - Canada Soccer
Visit Everyone’s Game Resource Centre in our bi-weekly communication to find informational and inspirational articles, member interviews, and developmental opportunities.
Educational Resource:
Take advantage of these two free resources, click the images below to learn more.
Keeping Girls in Sport is an interactive online course that was created to help coaches and leaders of the game understand how girls develop physically, mentally, socially, and emotionally, so that we can help every young athlete stay in sport, reach their potential, remain active long after the competitions end, and become the next generation of inspiring female coaches and role models.
The Gender Equity LENS e-learning module gives you the information and tools you need to act on your commitment to gender equity, helping you make policy and program decisions to better serve women and girls in your sport.
You’ll learn how to bring a gender lens to your decision-making and create the conditions to support women and girls to participate, lead and stay involved.
SSA Calendar of Events & Deadlines
Recordings of past webinars and COVID-19 member calls can be found on our YouTube Channel.
See our full Calendar of Events on our website.
March 22: SSA Female Referee Development Group
April 5: SSA Female Referee Development Group
April 11: Launch - Soccer Town in SK sponsored by Living Sky Sports and Entertainment
April 21: SSA Female Referee Development Group
BE SAFE! BE THE SOLUTION!
As a reminder, please continue to take care of yourself, your families, and others.
| We encourage everyone to be fully vaccinated and get a booster shot as soon as you are eligible. |
| Wash your hands frequently (it is the single most effective way of reducing infection spread). |
| Practice other good hygiene habits: do not touch your face/eyes/mouth with your hands and cover your mouth and nose when you sneeze or cough (ideally with a disposable tissue or the crease of your elbow). |
| Clean and disinfect frequently touched workspace surfaces. |
| Stay home if you are sick |
 | Our sport is underway during the pandemic. It's a challenging time, but support from our partners allows us to offer opportunities for kids to play. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada. Nous reconnaissons l'appui financier du gouvernement du Canada. |
