Cancellation of Play

Soccer is an outdoor sport played in the rain, cold, and sometimes in the snow. Still, the safety of players and coaches is a prime concern for Haverhill Youth Soccer. Due to rapidly changing weather conditions in New England and in keeping with HYS's desire to minimize the total number of weather related cancellations, advance notice of cancellations may not always be possible. It is recommended that players always show up to the field unless they have received notification from their coach or program director.

Development and In-Town

Development and In-Town cancellations will be communicated to parents via email, updated on the HYS website and posted on social media accounts. Even if there is no cancellation, we believe that parents should be the ultimate decision makers as to whether or not their child should be outside playing soccer. Due to seasonable weather constraints, cancelled training sessions or games may not be rescheduled.

Travel

Travel operates under the cancellation guidelines set forth by Essex County Youth Soccer Association (ECYSA). Each town evaluates their home field conditions by 7:00 AM on each Saturday of play to make a decision for that day. Field statuses are available on the ECYSA website.

Criteria

Due to Field Conditions or Safety Concerns

If the Director of Fields decides to declare fields unplayable this decision will be made by 3:00 pm on weeknights and by 7:00 am on Saturdays. The Director of Fields will call or email the directors of all impacted programs.

Advanced Due to Severe Weather

If the Director of Fields is able to declare a weather cancellation in advance, this determination will be made no later than one hour before the scheduled play time.

  • Coaches are not allowed to declare advance weather cancellations.

On-Field Due to Severe Weather

If a weather cancellation is not made more than one hour before scheduled play time an on-field cancellation may be needed due to changing weather conditions. On-field cancellations can be declared by the Director of Fields, program directors, or individual referees.

Updated April 18, 2024