FREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONSFREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONS
Players must reside within either the Tredyffrin/Easttown
School District or the Great Valley School District. Players must
be at least 9* years old but no older than 12* for boys and 13*
for girls in order to participate. If you need to confirm which
age group your child should play in, refer to the age chart.
(*age on August 31, 2007)
Tryouts are generally held in late October/early November. Practices will begin in mid November. Teams will begin playing games in December. The regular season will end in mid-to-late February. There will be no practices or games over the Thanksgiving week or during the Christmas holiday season.
The majority of the practices and games are on either Thursday or Friday evening, and during the day Saturday. Occasionally practices or games are held on Tuesday or Wednesday evenings, or Sunday afternoons.
The gyms generally used by the league are (in Tredyffrin/Easttown School District): Valley Forge Elementary School, Beaumont Elementary School, Valley Forge Middle School, Tredyffrin Easttown Middle School, & occasionally Conestoga High School; (in Great Valley School District): Great Valley Middle School and General Wayne Elementary School. The bigger gyms will generally be used for the older players. Directions to the gyms are available on this website.
Registration for the Paoli Wildcats takes place in early October. For the 2007/2008 season registration will take place at Tredyffrin/Easttown Middle School on just one day, Saturday, Oct 6, 2007 (9-11).
Returning players for both boys and girls should receive registration applications in the mail.
All NEW players must register in person. Returning players forms must be RECEIVED before the deadline (girls: Oct. 3; boys: Oct. 5) in order to guarantee a place in this year's league.
Registration for all new girls is on a first-come, first-served basis. Once an age group in the girls division is full, a waiting list will be established for any persons interested in participating.
Registration for new boys is as follows:
Juniors (9-yr olds) - the first 60 or so players to sign up will be accepted on a first come-first served basis.
Juniors (10-yr olds) and Seniors (11/12-yr olds) - there are a limited number of openings in the each division. Players will be selected by the "out of the hat" method. New 10-12 year old players do NOT have to be first in line at registration. The random selection will take place once registration is over.
All new players must bring proof of age (birth certificate, passport, etc.). Parents or guardians must be in attendance to sign the registration form as well as a medical release form. Some insurance information and emergency/doctor contacts will be required when filling out the medical release form. All players need to indicate shirt size on the registration form as well.
When registration for an age group is first come first served, parents sometimes find themselves with a problem if they cannot be at registration. Any adult (neighbor, friend, etc.) can go to registration to sign up a player. The registration process works as follows:
If the friend or neighbor is a parent who wants to register his/her own children as well, that parent should first present applications for all of his/her own children. Then this adult may present an application for a player who is not his/her child as long as the adult has written authority to complete the application from the player's parents.
If there is a line at registration, only one of these players can be registered at a time. The registering adult must go to the end of the line to register any additional friend's children.
For either the boys or girls: if you can't come to registration at all, a registration form (and medical form and check) can be mailed. However, please note that these forms will be accepted in the order they are received, and only AFTER the regular registration is complete. Link here to mailing addresses.
Registration and medical forms can be downloaded prior to going to registration if this is helpful.
There will be just one line for all registrations - parents of boys and girls will be in the same line. All those who are registering boys will be handed (while they are in the line) a numbered registration form that can then be submitted once they are done registering their daughter. (Boys - if you download your own registration form - be sure that you ALSO take one of the numbered forms or you will not get credit for being in line.)
No. In both the boys and the girls divisions the goal is to create balanced competition. Players are selected for teams on that basis. The girls division uses a committee assignment process and the boys division uses a draft system. NOTES: Unless otherwise requested by the parent, children of head coaches are automatically on their parents' teams. Also, parents have the prerogative to determine whether siblings of the same sex in the same age group should be on the same or different teams.
It is very important that all players who register have schedules that will permit them to attend the majority of practices and games. Frequent conflicts with indoor soccer, winter swimming, other basketball programs, school plays, etc. is especially disruptive to a team. Substantial unexcused absences may result in limited playing time, or even in being dropped from the team.
No. Tryouts are just used to evaluate skill levels in order to balance teams. They are never used to cut players.
At the highest level of commitment, parents are needed as coaches and assistant coaches. On a week-to-week basis, parents are needed to help run the clocks at the games, keep the scorebooks, help lower/raise the baskets, organize team parties, etc.
In addition to working on a child's team, we need parents to help out in the administration of either the boys or girls divisions. For example, help is needed updating the database, ordering and distributing game shirts and other equipment, or a variety of other important tasks.
The league appreciates any parents who want to be a sponsor. A minimum donation of $100 is requested for any sponsors.
If you are interested in helping in any way, please indicate this on your child's registration form or contact us (boys) / contact us (girls).
Each player will be provided with a game shirt. No special practice shirts are required, and no special shorts or shoes are needed for practices or games. Players should wear top quality shoes that provide good support that will help prevent injuries. Each coach is provided with basketballs for the team. If a player wants to bring his/her own ball to practices (no extra balls are ever needed at games), please be sure to have that ball labeled with your name. NOTE: Individual coaches may prefer that players do not bring their own balls to practice.
Winter snow storms can force practices and games to be cancelled. Players will generally be notified of any cancellations by their coaches. In the event that a school is dismissed early due to a storm, there will be no practices or games at that school that evening. Check with your coach following any cancellations for information as to schedule changes resulting from a winter storm.
Are there other leagues available if the Wildcats are full?
The Berwyn YMCA has basketball leagues for area youth (grades 3-4 and grades 5-9). The program is run throughout the winter on Saturdays only, beginning in December. Discounts for Y members. Call 610-647-YMCA or go to www.UMLY.org.
The Malvern Basketball League has a winter league for boys and girls from 2nd-8th grades, plus a high school division, with games Saturday and Sunday afternoons and some evenings, Dec.-March. Contact Kevin McCarry at 610-431-6397 or go to www.malvernleague.com for more information.
St. Monica's Intramural Basketball program is for boys and girls in grades 1-4 who live in the Tredyffrin/Easttown School District; the program runs from mid December thru mid March. Registration is generally in early October. Go to http://www.smsberwyn.org or call 610-688-8638 for more information.
updated on 10/26/07
