The Burlingame Soccer Club has a structured approach to game scheduling and field requests. The underlying purpose is to limit the coaches’ scheduling conflicts and to assign fields in the most efficient manner as possible.
Before getting into the mechanics of scheduling, it is important to first define a few key roles that are crucial to executing each team’s game schedule each season.
- Club Scheduler
- Coach’s Master Schedule Coordinator
- Team Scheduler
Club Scheduler
The Club Scheduler manages the Burlingame Soccer Club’s fields and assigns fields for League games, State Cup games and Scrimmage games, on request.
Coach’s Master Schedule Coordinator
Each coach with two or more teams needs to have a Master Schedule Coordinator. The role of the Master Schedule Coordinator is to oversee the coach’s comprehensive schedule and to avoid/minimize scheduling conflicts between the coach’s teams. The Master Schedule Coordinator is also responsible for coordinating tournaments for their coach. Please see below.
NOTE: If a coach has only one team, then the Team Scheduler from that team acts as his or her own Schedule Coordinator, and therefore works directly with the Club Scheduler to request fields for his or her team.
Team Scheduler
Each team has a Team Scheduler. This job can be done by the Team Manager, or the Team Manager can delegate the task to someone else. The role of the Team Scheduler is to work with the Master Schedule Coordinator to establish a conflict-free schedule for the coach, and then to negotiate game dates and times with the team’s opponents.
Scheduling Process/Making Field Requests
Creating the Initial Schedule
Once NorCal and CCSL publish their schedules, the Team Schedulers must all submit their initial schedules (dates without times and field assignments for all HOME and AWAY games) to their coach’s Master Schedule Coordinator, who will then create a comprehensive schedule for their coach. A sample Master Scheduling Document has been provided as a guideline. It is a good practice for Master Schedule Coordinators to make such a document public to all of their Team Schedulers, and to use it throughout the season to communicate the coach’s schedule.
Making Field Requests
After all of the coach’s games have been gathered into a single schedule and the Master Schedule Coordinator has configured an optimal schedule for the coach, he or she will request fields from the Club Scheduler.
Initial field requests will be made by inputting all of the coach’s games using the BSC Field Request Form. (NOTE: Some Master Schedule Coordinators input the entire schedules themselves, some publish the initial optimized schedule to their Team Schedulers and ask them to each input their own games.)
Once the HOME games are scheduled, the Club Scheduler will send the initial game times and field assignments to the Master Schedule Coordinators, who will in turn distribute each team’s schedule to the appropriate Team Scheduler.
NOTE: During the regular season, the Club Scheduler will work exclusively with Master Schedule Coordinators to secure game fields, as they will be the gatekeepers for the coaches’ schedules. Team Schedulers need to work with their coach’s Master Schedule Coordinator.
NOTE: When a field is assigned, the time given is the Kick-off time. This is how the referees are scheduled and it helps keep games on track.
NOTE: Referees are automatically assigned by the Burlingame Soccer Club. No action is needed on the part of the teams.
Scheduling Games with Opponent Teams
One the Team Schedulers receive their field assignments they will begin the negotiation process to schedule all games (both HOME and AWAY) with their opponents. This is a back and forth process, and the Team Schedulers will need to make all schedule requests/changes through the coach’s Master Schedule Coordinator, who will in turn work with the Club Scheduler to reschedule HOME games, as needed.
When negotiating game times with opponents, it occasionally is an option for the AWAY team to host the game on its own fields. On these occasions, it is the responsibility of the HOME team to pay for the refs. These payments should be cash payments made on game day at the field. If a BSC team is responsible for paying the refs in cash, please request reimbursement from the Burlingame Soccer Club Treasurer. For BSC referee pay rates, please refer to the Burlingame Soccer Club Referee Page.
NOTE: All changes to these requests should be communicated to the Club Scheduler via email. When requesting a change for specific games, please give as much detail as possible. Be sure to reference team name, age, gender, Game ID, game moving from date and time, game moving to date and time as well as field location.
Email Subject: League (NorCal/CCSL) Bracket (Premier, Gold, etc.) XXXX (Game ID) Burlingame TeamYY vs. Away TeamZZ
This game is currently scheduled on:
Day (Saturday, Sunday), Month Xth at Y:00 pm at Some Field
Please reschedule for:
Day (Saturday, Sunday), Month Xth at Y:00 pm at Some Field
For available times, please feel free to look at the BSC Field Calendars.
NOTE: During the regular season, the Club Scheduler will work exclusively with Master Schedule Coordinators to secure game fields, as they will be the gatekeepers for the coaches’ schedules.
Scheduling Games at the League Sites
After game dates and times have been negotiated with opponent teams, it is necessary to update the league websites with date, time and field information. The league websites are also where all scores will be reported and standings will be calculated. Each team is responsible for updating its own HOME games.
NorCal
Pending/Under Construction…
CCSL/GotSoccer
First login to your GotSoccer account.
- From the Home page you will select the League Schedule Task
- a) Select the List View Tab – it’s easier to navigate; b) View/Edit each of your home games.
- a) Specify game info for this game, which was rescheduled for 5/19 at 11:30 am at Franklin; b) Update to save.
Your home games will now be officially scheduled and visible to your opponent and league.
Items of Note
- If you cancel or move a game the week that the game is scheduled to be played – you may be charged for the referees. Please contact the Referee Coordinator as early as possible so he can cancel the refs.
- Please carefully check the Monday night Manager’s Game Report for any discrepancies in your schedule.
- Field Calendars can be viewed at the BSC Field Calendars. You can view these to determine space availability.
Scheduling State Cup Games
State Cup game scheduling follows the same protocol as League Game scheduling.
Scheduling Tournaments
Most coaches will play one or more tournaments with each of their teams during each season. Often they will take multiple teams to a single tournament. It is important for the Master Schedule Coordinator to consider these tournaments when creating the initial (optimal) schedule for their coach to avoid scheduling league games during those weekends. If the tournaments have not been identified yet when the initial schedules are made, it may become necessary to reschedule games that were scheduled during the tournament weekend.
Once the tournaments have been selected, each Team Scheduler should register their team. If more than one of the coach’s teams is playing in the tournament, once the teams have been accepted, the Master Schedule Coordinator should contact the tournament director to alert them to the fact that the coach has multiple teams in the tournament, and to please consider this when making the schedules in order to eliminate/minimize any scheduling conflicts for the coach.
Scheduling HOME Games on AWAY Fields
The policy on these field switches is that the original HOME team (visiting team) is responsible for paying the referees, in accordance with the hosting Club’s referee payment rates. The visiting team needs to determine these rates before game day, and is expected to make a cash payment immediately following the game, directly to the refs. The Burlingame Soccer Club will then reimburse these costs to the affected team.
For reimbursement of referee costs, please visit the . Once the game has been played, the Team Manager should fill out Referee Payment Reimbursement Request Form and the request will be sent directly to the BSC Treasurer for reimbursement and to the BSC Referee Assignor for verification.
Scheduling Scrimmages
During the pre-seasons and off-seasons, we have several fields available. It is up to the individual teams to find teams to scrimmage and to arrange their games. Scrimmages can be scheduled by the Team Managers or Team Schedulers, directly with the Club Scheduler. For scrimmages, it is up to the teams to decide if they want Referees. If so, please contact the Referee Coordinator directly. If referees are desired, it is customary to hire a single, Center Ref, who needs to be paid at the field, in cash, by teams playing. Normally, the two teams split this fee. For Referee pay rates, please visit the Burlingame Soccer Club Referee Page.
NOTE: If a scrimmage has been booked and a league game needs to be booked at the same time, the league game will take precedence over the scrimmage.