AYSO Saugus Region 46

Providing Youth Soccer Experience in a Fun, Fair and Safe Environment

Our Own History

The American Youth Soccer Organization was founded in 1964 but  it wasn't until twenty-five years ago that some soccer enthusiasts saw a need for soccer in our local area. 

One evening in 1973, the founding members of Region 46 got together to discuss forming a soccer region in cooperation with AYSO. The meeting was held in Saugus at Guy Thomas's house. He was only one of two Americans present. The other American was Frank Bullock. The others, all men, came from all over the world including Iceland, Bolivia, England, Scotland, Mexico and Ecuador. Since Region 46 was going to be a new Region of AYSO, the members selected Guy Thomas to be the first Regional Commissioner because he was American. All others present at the initial meeting took on the other various duties of the Region including Field Maintenance, Equipment, Treasurer, Head Referee, Head Coach, Division Rep. Since there wasn't any former soccer organization in the valley, the new AYSO region covered a wide area including Sulphur Springs, Castaic, Canyon Country, Valencia, Newhall and Saugus.

Starting a new Region certainly had its challenges. First players had to be recruited, so as registration neared, flyers were sent out through all the local elementary schools. Dates were heavily advertised in the Signal thanks to Linda Pederson, a columnist. The first sign-up for soccer was held in the Kmart parking lot. In following years, as fields became available, school fields were also used for registration. Many youths in the valley were already playing baseball and football. So in the beginning, the soccer season was planned around the baseball and football seasons leaving young athletes available for soccer. Less than one hundred kids signed up for the pilot year in 1973, including a few girls, which made some of the first teams coed. The following year in 1974, the number of players grew to two hundred and thirty-five with players ages seven on up. In 1974, and 1975, there was a big increase in girls signing up, which led to girls versus boys' games. Still the region was small enough that everyone knew everyone else and games were a lot of fun.

One of the first schools to host soccer games was Rio Vista Elementary. As the region grew other schools and parks from all over the valley were used. Fields and goals were often take what you could get. Sometimes, the goals were too small and the fields too big, but it was a start. As time passed, goals were improved by using different construction, mainly PVC pipe and fit to size.

Today, most of the goals are compact, portable goals sized for the age division playing. The fields needed work too. Often fathers and mothers would go out to the fields with their hand mowers to trim the grass before game day. At times this chore along with marking the field lines had to be done in the dark after work. In order to see at night, car headlights were turned on to light up the fields. What a sight this must have been.

Not only were fields in short supply in the beginning, so were uniforms. Initially the players' uniforms were hand me downs borrowed from the San Fernando Valley teams. Players did not have a choice in color or style as there is now. Also, back then, after a season was over, players had to return their uniforms so they could be reused. Coaches were also in demand back then. Soccer had not become popular yet, so very few people knew anything about the game. Many parents were recruited as coaches with little or no knowledge of the game. To get the ball rolling, volunteers who had played the game or who had some exposure to the game put on weekend coaching clinics which helped tremendously. At the time, soccer was still considered a man's game so there were very few women coaches. Two that did survive the pressure of being in the minority were Anne Harvey and Pat Hyfield. In fact, both women served as coaches, performed other regional positions, as well as reaching the top level as Regional Commissioner.

Parent volunteers, whether moms or dads, did step in though wherever necessary, from coaching to team parent. These positions along with the many others duties couldn't have been done without dedicated, skilled volunteers who did anything and everything that was asked of them and deserve all the credit no matter what they're level of involvement.

One of the five philosophies of AYSO is Balanced Teams. Players are rated and put on teams so that the games will be fun and fair for all involved. One of the duties of the Division Representatives back when the region was new was to sort players onto teams. It was relatively easy for the division reps to get to know all the players by their first names and their abilities because at the time the region was small. Home addresses were also used to sort players onto teams. This made it easier for parents to get their kids to practices, plus the players would already know their teammates. 

Recalling what made soccer so popular then as it is today, Ray Hill made this comment, " The competitiveness was something we were always conscious of, never allowing teams to be stacked one against another. And from what I understand that has been followed through. I think that is why AYSO is so popular." Region 46, along with all AYSO regions, balances teams to the best of their abilities using a rating system which then is entered into a software program. This method of balancing teams in each division has been very successful.

Another philosophy of AYSO is Everyone Plays. It doesn't matter what a player's skill level is while participating in soccer. Everyone plays at least half of every game. In Region 46, it is recommended that all players in most divisions play three quarters of every game. This enables each player to develop their soccer skills and increase their level of confidence. In addition, it helps to build team work and cooperation.

The other philosophies are Open Registration, Positive Coaching and Good Sportsmanship. All five philosophies have been followed according to National standards.

At the beginning of every soccer season, it is customary to have an Opening Day Ceremony. Region 46 was no exception, and after only 15 years the region had grown so big that the ceremony had to be held in the College of the Canyons' Stadium. Team after team lined up until the entire track was filled with colorful jerseys and banners. Note: by this time the region had saved enough money to buy uniforms. The region actually had became so large that it was decided it would be better if the region were split into three regions. In 1989, under the direction of Pat Hyfield, who remained the Regional Commissioner for Saugus Region 46, two other regions were formed: Canyon Country became Region 677 and the Valencia/Newhall area became Region 678.

In 1991, two new programs were initiated, micro-soccer and the VIP program. Micro-soccer was started in our region to cater to the younger player. It is designed to instruct the youngest players ages four and a half to six, in the basics of soccer and the various positions as well as teamwork and having fun. Last year more than 500 children participated in micro-soccer. The VIP program is designed for kids with special needs. Both programs have made a tremendous impact on youth soccer by giving more youths the opportunity to play.

AYSO is a volunteer organization. Without the countless individuals who are always ready and willing, we would not have such a strong program.

Thanks to people like Guy Thomas, Ray Hill, Ernie Mendez, Johann Olafsson, Ron Ricklefs, Frank Bullock, to name a few who saw the need, followed through and gave our region its start. Many others have followed in their footsteps, more than could be possibly mentioned. To those that followed thank you for your dedication and support of AYSO. And to those who are presently active in the region, you are the best people in the world to work with, and to have the honor to call a friend.


Our Structure
For administrative purposes, AYSO divides the country into 14 geographic Sections based on player population. Section Directors oversee activities in their respective Sections. We fall under Section 10.
A group of regions in close proximity make up an Area. Area Directors are responsible for activities of the regions in their Area, as well as Area-wide activities. We are under Area S.
At the grassroots level there's a community-based league, called a Region. A Region can range in size from a few hundred players to several thousand. Each Region is supervised by a Regional Commissioner and a local Board of Directors. We are known as Region 46.


Area S was formed in the spring of 2002 and consists of AYSO Regions 46 (Saugus), 677 (Canyon Country), 678 (Valencia-Newhall), and 1441(Castaic). Regions 46, 677, and 678 had been part of Area C which included all of the Regions of the San Fernando Valley and Burbank. In the spring of 2002, spurred by growth in the Santa Clarita Valley, Area C was split into V (San Fernando Valley) and S (Santa Clarita Valley). The Castaic Region was created as a pilot region within 678 at that time and became a charter region in 2004.
 
Area S is a member of Section 10 of the American Youth Soccer Organization. Section 10 is one of 14 member Sections of the organization which provides soccer to nearly 600,000 kids nationwide! Section 10's geographic boundaries cover the San Fernando Valley north to Paso Robles, west to the Pacific Ocean, and east through Palmdale and Lancaster, and Bakersfield. There are approximately 65,000 players within the Section.