Thoughts on Sand Soccer?

It is barely soccer. But it is a blast. My team looks forward to the 1 sand soccer tournament we do every year. We have done it for 4 years and no injuries yet.
It is kickball at it's finest and your keepers have to be resilient because a lot of weird goals get scored and/or she'll get a face full of sand a few times per game.
 
My daughter is playing in a sand tournament this weekend. Between my two girls I've been to 4 sand tournaments. Never seen an injury worse than a jammed toe from toe poking the ball without a shoe. It's a fun experience for the kids and a nice change of pace for the parents.
I would not say it's a huge help, but it does give them a nice workout. Definitely not a hindrance.
 
Sand Soccer is a blast, the tournaments are at the best locations!, the games are short, a great work out and despite all the naysayers, it does help your player learn soccer. Futsal teaches Agility, Sand Soccer teaches Mobility. Two important parts of playing on the short green stuff.

We have played in at least 3 beach tournaments a year for the past 4 years, and have not sustained any significant injuries.
 
My daughter is a GK. She wears her dirt bike goggles for sand tournaments. Huge help. Refs never have a problem with it.
A few minor injuries. Nothing to keep anyone from training the next week. Bring plenty of sunscreen. Girls have a blast.
Biggest problem now is that in between games when they want to jump in the waves. Too many Great Whites out there. :eek:
 
The big one in HB is coming up in a few weeks. We've done that one the last 3 years.
This year, we did their May tournament. It was considerably smaller, but I think it was better. Competition was good. Weather was a bit cool (but the weekend before was a scorcher, so you never know). It was much less crowded. You had room to set up your stuff on the sand. You could actually park close to the courts. The hotel rates were a little bit more reasonable (if you booked in advance. The week of they were really expensive).
 
timbuck said:
The big one in HB is coming up in a few weeks. We've done that one the last 3 years.
This year, we did their May tournament. It was considerably smaller, but I think it was better. Competition was good. Weather was a bit cool (but the weekend before was a scorcher, so you never know). It was much less crowded. You had room to set up your stuff on the sand. You could actually park close to the courts. The hotel rates were a little bit more reasonable (if you booked in advance. The week of they were really expensive).
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This is the one we are looking at doing. Assume it will be very crowded, or maybe a bit less as some teams did the May tourney?

Thanks everyone else for info, helpful.
 
My son is a keeper and doing his first sand tournament in HB. He wears contacts so I am a little nervous regarding the sand and his diving. Any advice on cheap goggles, socks etc would be appreciated. I am assuming that the ball is different but should he wear gloves?
 
You could go to any motorcycle shop and get a cheap pair of dirt bike goggles for probably $20. If not even check Pep Boys. Sand socks are available at any soccer shop. Some kids like them. Some just play barefoot. Ball is much softer. If you have an old pair of GK gloves laying around I suggest using those. Gloves don't seem to come clean the same way they normally do after a weekend of beach soccer. I always keep an old pair or two in the garage for a future sand tournament.
 
Agree on the above.
It's a size 4 or size 5 ball (based on age group), but under inflated by about a pound.
GK gloves will definitely be unuseable after the weekend. But necessary for a gk to wear them. Make sure your keeper knows that punts from the other keeper are considered indirect. So rather than make a leaping save for a ball that's coming out of the sky, just get out of the way. Lots of goals happen each year because the keeper nicks the ball with her pinky and it goes in. If she doesn't touch it, its a GK coming out.
I've not seen anyone wear goggles the last few years. My 9 year old is a part time keeper and also wears contacts. Shes done it the last 2 years without much of an issue. Bring an extra set of contacts and some saline just in case. (And the may weekend was incredibly windy. I dont think she had any issues).

As far as parking and getting around - USE UBER!!!! We stated at the Hyatt the last 3 years. They run a a shuttle, but it's not always convenient. The fields are about 3 miles from the Hyatt, so a bit of a walk if you are in a hurry. The parking lot will be a MESS by 10:00 am. If you have a game at 11:00 and are hoping to get to the lot at 10:00 am, you'll need to drop your player off and have her run to the field. You'll be lucky to make it there by the start of the game once you park.

Here's what I would do if I wasn't staying in HB. Park at Fashion Island in Newport Beach. Free parking. Call an Uber. It will cost less than $20 each way and will drop you off right near your field. They will have food trucks and beach snack shack right near the courts. The food court lines are long. If you have a long break between games, grab an Uber to Main Street/Pacific City for lunch.

Also - If you need to use the bathroom, don't wait until the last minute. The lines get long. I also make sure to bring a few rolls of toilet paper for the team. Near the end of the day, the bathrooms will be out of TP. That's not fun for anybody.

Some people will rope of football field (or futbol) sized areas for their team to congregate in. Don't be that person. There is plenty of beach around for everyone. You don't need to mark off your private island. Bring an EZ Up or 2, some beach chairs and plenty of water.

A word about staying at the Hyatt - The kid pool section looks like a Vegas nightclub at around 3pm on Saturday and stays that way until about 10:00 pm. It is wall-to-wall kids. On Saturday night, they illuminate the water slide and play music and have a laser light show. The kids love it. And the bar is open late for the adults. If you are feeling "spendy", not a bad idea to get a poolside cabana so that you have a home base.
 
Also- most kids prefer sand socks. They will have them for sale at the beach. Dicks also carries them. And Amazon too.
Vincere is the main brand.
Most kids also like to tape the sand socks. You need to use duct tape. Athletic tape won't stick once its dirty. Bring 3 big rolls for your team to get through the weekend.

And if you plan to get your kid a sweatshirt, you need to do it first thing Saturday morning for the common sizes. They will have xs and xxl all weekend, but everything else will sell out.
If they have a pre-order option, do that.
 
timbuck said:
Also- most kids prefer sand socks. They will have them for sale at the beach. Dicks also carries them. And Amazon too.
Vincere is the main brand.
Most kids also like to tape the sand socks. You need to use duct tape. Athletic tape won't stick once its dirty. Bring 3 big rolls for your team to get through the weekend.

And if you plan to get your kid a sweatshirt, you need to do it first thing Saturday morning for the common sizes. They will have xs and xxl all weekend, but everything else will sell out.
If they have a pre-order option, do that.
Click to expand...
Pre-wrap first, then duct tape. It saves the skin..
 
It's really a ton of fun for all involved. I think it helps with soccer because it is purely for fun, and the two (soccer and fun) should probably be associated on occasion. It's also great for team bonding or just bonding with soccer friends.

Agree on the Great Whites though :rolleyes:
 
It is great fun that absolutely has nothing to do with soccer. It is just a fun weekend on the beach for a team bonding.
It's not common but injuries do happen and I don't know any serious high level teams that playing sand soccer.
 
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