COACH OF THE YEAR:

Sid Ings - Larchmont Soccer Club:

Sid has been devoted to Westchester youth soccer for over 30 years, serving in capacities ranging from league referee to community advocate to Larchmont club president. But his favorite role is on the field serving as coach. Since arriving from the UK in 1982, he has coached NINE soccer teams: two rec teams, six travel teams, as well as the Mamaroneck High School Girls’ JV team. Sid has coached almost 1000 soccer players in his fantastic career.

His current team the GU-15 Larchmont Pumas are a typical Sid Ings success story. In six years the team has won six division Championships and over one dozen tournaments. Sid instills not only a winning attitude, but also a love of the beautiful game in his players. 100% of the team, currently freshman and sophomores, played high school soccer in the fall of 2013. Six played varsity (at Mamaroneck, Rye Neck, Rye Country Day, Holy Child, and FASNY), while twelve played JV.

Sid’s commitment to his own soccer skill is outstanding, including decades of professional development that keeps his training and results at the highest level. The results extend beyond the Pumas. For example, in the last two seasons Sid coached the MHS JV girls to a record of 27 wins, two draws, and three losses.

While results on the field are of great importance, Sid excels at professionalism, sportsmanship, and citizenship, and more importantly he imparts it to his players.

COACH OF THE YEAR:

Ron Rubin - West Side Soccer Club:

West Side Red Bullls G2000 West- Girls

Division G14-3 Coaching WYSL Travel Since Fall 2012

For many years Ron coached recreational soccer with West Side Soccer.  During that time, he rose from being certified as an AYSO Coach to being an AYSO Instructor.  During that time, he coached his daughters' two Rec teams each Fall and Spring season, and each season his teams imporved because Ron spent as much time with his lower level players as he did with his star players. Ron knew that the weakest player was just as important as the stronges if his eams were to succeed on the field.

When West Side Soccer started its travel program in Spring 2012 Ron immediately volunteered to coach a Girls 13 team., which was comprised of a group of athletic girls who lacked the fundamental skills needed to succed in travel soccer. The girls started that Fall season in Division 3. Then they played during the Winter, indoor tournaments and Futsal.  The next season they re-seeded to a lower division and were undeafeated. They also won first place for Sportsmanship.

The following Fall, the girls returned to Divsion 3 and continue to improve.

Whether it's facing the intense competition of Travel Soccer or enjoying the feeling of giving back to the soccer community, Ron Rubin is there to guide our kids onto the right path.

SPORTING PLAYERS OF THE YEAR:

Margarida Ferraira - Scarsdale Independence

Hannah Guttenberg - Edgemont Fire

YOUNG REFEREES OF THE YEAR:

Matthew Copland

Nasya Sandy

CLUB DEVELOPMENT & LEADERSHIP:

Cesar Aliaga - Port Chester Soccer Club

Cesar Aliaga is a native of Huancayo - Peru came to Toronto-Canada in 1979, and then he moved to USA in 1980, he graduated from the Mercy College, and later went to graduate school at New York Medical College - Valhalla NY and obtained his degree in Biochemistry. He worked as a scientist for the American Health Foundation and later called Institute for Cancer Prevention.

Cesar is currently working as an Assistant Professor for Penn State University-College of Medicine in Hershey, PA.

During his school years, He has worked and study at the same time to solve his expenses; he had played soccer for most of his life; he volunteered in different town events but his devotions will always be in the soccer field. In 1982, he founded Club Atletico Tumi and serve as the president for 16 years. He joined the Eastern District League the same year. He also served as a board member for the EDSL for 6 years.
In 1993, because of the explosion in the Latino population in the area that Cesar feels the need to organize soccer. He founded The Port Chester Amateur Soccer League and served as the Chairman since. This summer league had up to 18 teams at one point, hosting more than 300 players. PSCL is now a sub-division of the EDSL

In 2004, the weekend battles took a toll on the field and efforts by the players to restore it were futile. Before the Village took the field away, Cesar and players tried to fix it themselves. Besides cleaning the mess left on the field after games. League members and volunteers level, seed and add topsoil to the playing field in preparation for the games.  Members of the league had poured $15,000 of their own money into trying to salvage the field. Finally Cesar worked very in helping to get a grant to build a new turf field. In 2004 when the New Columbus Park Turf field was open to the public, this was a dream come true for Cesar as he sees his efforts were paying off.

In 1994, a year after the men’s league was founded; Cesar also founded the Port Chester Soccer Club, a youth soccer club, joining the Westchester Youth Soccer league. Cesar serve as the Club President from 1994-2001 and 2003-now. He also served as a Trustee for the Westchester Youth Soccer League for two periods in 2003 and 2005.

The PCSC started with two teams and now has 25 teams ranging from U8 to U17. The PCSC under his direction organizes two big tournaments. In late March, Pre-Season Tournament hosts close to a 100 teams in three venues. During Labor Day weekend, Independence Cup - an International event hosting teams from South and Central America. This year was the IX edition in two venues. Cesar is also very proud to announce that two young players are now part of the US National teams. BU15 and BU20

This year in recognition of his efforts, Cesar received a Proclamation from the Village of Port Chester, naming August 30th as the Cesar Aliaga’s Day.

Cesar is also providing volunteer service since 1994 as the Soccer Program Director for Recreation Department in Port Chester.

Cesar lived in Port Chester for 21 years.  He married Ivone Aliaga in 1996 and later moved to Carmel, NY where he lives now with his two children John Caesar (12) and Jennie Belle (7) both playing soccer at local leagues.

Cesar has been recognized and rewarded for his efforts by the Westchester County in 2009. He appeared in several news media. His passion for soccer, his constant efforts for improvement and charisma is what drives him to do more for the sport he loves.

One kid at a time.

“FROM THE STREET INTO THE PITCH”

 

Michael Ferber - Coach of the Year

Patrick Shields:

Pat Shields is the consummate European footballer.  While he was born in Ireland, he actually started playing soccer in Wallonia, otherwise known as the French-speaking southern part of Belgium where he attended the equivalent of our middle schools.

And then, it was on to England for more schooling and more soccer.  He played for the hospital team where he worked and played semi-pro ball for the next 11 years.  Then Pat and his wife Katie came the United States and played with the White Plains Germans---how he came to play with the German team is a long story having to do with his being scouted by a priest from Scotland.

Then back to Ireland for two years where Pat got into coaching and became a referee at the Senior Amateur level.  They came back in 1984. He made his mark in refereeing and served on the referee Board. He became a mentor to young refs and also to the new refs who officiate HS games and still does the mentoring.

Pat’s activities in Rye are well-documented and greatly appreciated.  He has served Rye Youth Soccer in various capacities for the last 17 years.  He is still active in Rye---you can usually find him on some field in Rye anytime someone is playing or practicing.

So here is someone involved in all phases of the game: player (where he continued playing until age 60), coach, referee, mentor, officer, and fan.  And when we asked Pat why---the response was simple---“because I love it!”

Donald E. Dietz, III:

Don’s involvement with youth soccer started in the traditional way - as a rec coach for his four young kids in Scarsdale. Little did he know when he volunteered as an assistant coach for his oldest son’s U-09 travel team in 1995 that a long-standing soccer journey was about to begin. For the next ten years, Don coached all three of his sons’ travel teams from AYSO to a highly-ranked U-15 team that won its division multiple times, earned the league’s sporting award and advanced to the quarter-final round in State Cup. In addition to being a licensed coach, Don is also a certified, although admittedly inactive, referee, and a strong advocate of Positive Coaching, qualifications he believes helped him become a better and more complete coach.

In 1996, Don was asked by Larry Bell, Scarsdale’s then president and also a WYSL Hall of Famer, to join the board of the Scarsdale Youth Soccer Club, the league’s largest club at that time, where his commitment and hard work led to his becoming a major contributor to the club’s extensive and successful travel program for nearly fifteen years. Don’s responsibilities ranged from field czar to chief scheduler to tryout coordinator, and he was instrumental in Scarsdale’s Fields for Kids project, which resulted in one of Westchester’s first turf fields at the high school. As a senior member of the Scarsdale board, Don was able to provide experienced counsel and continuity to six club presidents, a notable achievement in and of itself.

Don was elected to the Westchester Soccer League board in 2001, where he has served with distinction and dedication in many capacities and on numerous league committees, including Sportsmanship, Audit, Arbitration, Select and, his personal favorite, the Scholarship Committee, which he now chairs and has been a part of since its inception five years ago. His duties league-wide have been many and varied, and he has unflaggingly done them well for a very long time.

As an emeritus director, Don is one of the league’s longest tenured active board members, and his across-the-board contributions to the many kids he has coached, the Scarsdale Club and the WYSL over a period spanning nearly twenty years are exemplary and worthy of the recognition afforded him tonight.

 

This year’s inductees:

Bruce Mandel:

Bruce Mandel is the assignor for all of the WYSL games and has done an extraordinary job in getting games covered. His record is the best of any assignor we have had going back 35 years. At minimum, 95% + of the games are covered, and most weekends there is a ref assigned to each game. He is also recognize as the referee with the red curly hair.

Bruce has an impressive soccer resume, which includes regional head of AYSO in Westchester, former coach of the girls u14 travel team from Ardsley / Dobbs Ferry. He also is a high school ref and one of the most highly rated. He has been the president of the Westchester Soccer Referee Organization and is currently a Vice President of the high school ref association.

He had a long and illustrious career as one of IBM’s top sale executives before retiring to full time soccer matters.

Bruce was born and raised in Brooklyn, attending James Madison HS (where he was student body president) and graduating from Brooklyn College. Bruce and his wife Barbara had appeared in many Community Theatre productions of Broadway musicals.
 

Lonny Unger:

Lonny Unger has been involved in soccer as a player, coach, administrator and referee.

He played locally at Byram Hills H.S. and was named the Westchester player of the year in 1976.  He then went on to play collegiately at the University of Rhode Island.

He first got involved in coaching back in the early 1980s, when he coached a U18 team from Harrison during one of the first years of the WYSL.

In the mid 1990s, he returned to the WYSL as a coach in the U9 girls’ age group and coached his daughter’s team and then his son’s team in New Rochelle Youth Soccer.

During that time, he became president of the New Rochelle Youth Soccer Intramural Division from 1996 to 1997 and then president of the New Rochelle Youth Soccer Travel Division from 1997 to 2000.  When his son moved to FC Westchester, he was then asked by FC Westchester founder Al Pastore to become president of that club and he has served in that role since 2001.

While in New Rochelle, then WYSL president Barry Salter recruited him to join the WYSL board and he continues as an emeritus member to this day there.  For the WYSL, he re-started the Select program in approximately 1998, and he has served on the board’s Seeding, Scholarship and Arbitration Committees, among others.

He also spent about 10 years serving on the board of directors of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer, chairing the Rules Committee, Public Relations Committee and the ODP Committee.

During the past decade or so, he’s also been involved in college coaching, having served as an assistant coach at Iona College from 1998-2003, the head coach at Purchase College from 2003-2005, an assistant coach at Manhattan College from 2005-2010, and he is currently back coaching at Purchase College.

He also coaches the FC Westchester U18 U.S. Soccer Development Academy team and has coached in the Academy program since its inception five years ago.  

He has also coached in the ENYYSA ODP program and he has been a Grade 8 USSF referee.


 

Three outstanding candidates where inducted into the WYSL Hall of Fame at the end of season meeting on December 2, 2010.  Lee D’Argenio, who has served as the League Registrar for 15 years, Gino D’Ippolito who has served as a referee for 33 years, and Rip Fisher, who has served as the League President for 7 years were all recognized for their longtanding commitment to youth soccer.

Lee D’Argenio

Lee began her youth soccer service as the scorekeeper for Pelham Travel Soccer in 1989, and she became the Score Reporter for the WYSL in 1991.  Lee worked initially with WYSL Presidents Tom Munno and Jack Loftus.  In 1995 when Barry Salter became the WYSL President Lee became the League Registrar, and when the league opened its office in the K Building in New Rochelle Lee was the first employee based in the office.  Prior to the League having an office,  League Registrar Marianne Marino had been making passes in her kitchen.  Once the office was opened, Lee worked with Larchmont club registrar Biffy Halliday to develop the first databases for the league for both players and coaches.  The state of the art system at that time was quaint by later standards- Lee relayed information for passes to Biffy over the phone, who entered the information into an off-site computer system and printed the passes.  Club Registrars would drive to Larchmont, pick up the passes, and bring them back to the office in New Rochelle for laminating.  Lee would receive game scores over the phone or by fax, and type them up each week and mail them out to all club presidents.   This primative system has been upgraded and streamlined over time.

After Rip Fisher became WYSL President in 2004, Lee spearheaded the efforts to fully automate the player and coach registration.  The League was the first league in Eastern New York to engage League Sports SignUp to develop an online registration process, and the WYSL’s success led to all other leagues in ENYYSA subsequently adopting on-line registration.  The WYSL developed its own website with Demosphere, and Lee worked with LSS and Demosphere to automate the score reporting, seedings, sportsmanship and referee reporting processes.   By 2010, the WYSL had in place a system with almost all interactions are done on-line.

Gino D’Ippolito

Gino started refereeing in 1962 in Eastern New York.  He was playing in a game and was unhappy with the referee’s performance.  When he told this to the referee after the game, the ref's response was "If you think you can do a better job, why don’t you become a referee?"  Gino did, and by 1968 he received an invitation to officiate in the NPSL professional soccer league.  In 1975 Gino received his FIFA badge.   Gino was an official in over 600 NASL games from 1968-1984, and at over 1,500 MISL, MSL and CISL games.   He also traveled to 15 countries to officiate at FIFA games, and served in 15 Qualifiers for the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups.  Gino served as an official at Pele’s first and last game as a New York Cosmos Player.   Pele’s final game was televised and viewed by over 400 million people worldwide.

In 1977, Gino began serving as a referee in the WYSL.  Since then, Gino has served at over 700 WYSL games.  Today, even though he is in his seventh decade, Gino still enjoys officiating in the WYSL.  He can be seen on weekends doing two or three U-9 and U-10 WYSL games, and he can be seen at WYSL club tournaments where he officiates on holiday weekends.  Gino continues to give back to the game by officiating youth games and serving as a Role Model and Mentor to youth referees. 

Rip Fisher

Rip’s daughters began their soccer careers in the Scarsdale rec league, and Rip began coaching there.  Two daughters joined the Scarsdale travel teams, and Rip became an Assistant Coach and then Head Coach in the WYSL.  Both daughters’ teams won the WYSL first division several times, and both moved to an older age group to seek more competition.   The Scarsdale club recognized Rip’s coaching and administrative abilities, and asked him to become club president even though he had never served on its Board of Directors.  During Rip’s club presidency, the SYSC instituted a variety of innovative programs including its Micro-Soccer Program, brought in a coaching academy to educate its coaches, hired its first Director of Coaching, brought the Positive Coaching Alliance workshops to the East Coast for the first time and began its Memorial Day Tournament.  In 2002, the Positive Coaching Alliance selected the SYSC as one of three youth sports organizations across the nation to receive its national "Honoring the Game Award."

Rip joined the WYSL Board in 2000, and served on the Arbitration, Coaching and Seedings Committee.  While a Board Member he made suggestions that resulted in the creation of the WYSL Coach Orientation Program, the WYSL Sportsmanship Program and Silent Sundays.   Rip became the WYSL President in 2004, and following the pattern that was established by his predecessors the League continued to improve and grow.   During his Presidency Rip has taught the New Coach Orientation Courses and personally welcomed over 2,000 new coaches and team managers to the WYSL.  The League was the first league to embrace website technology to adopt on-line registration to replace paper registrations, a move that has been followed by all leagues in Eastern New York.  When there weren’t enough soccer fields in Scarsdale, he convinced the Scarsdale School district to build a turf field at Scarsdale High School, and then formed the Fields for Kids fundraising group and collected $700,000 in donations from over 800 families to pay for the field.  Rip subsequently shared the experience gained in building this field with other clubs, school districts and municipalities, and many more turf fields were built throughout Westchester.  The Westchester County Government recognized Rip’s expertise in this area, and asked him to join the Westchester County Parks and Recreation Board.   The County built over a dozen new soccer fields under the Legacy program, and many of them are now used by WYSL clubs each weekend.   During Rip’s term as President, the WYSL grew from 28 clubs to 45 clubs, from 350 travel teams to 700 travel teams and from 11,000 players to almost 18,000 players.

Ken and Ilene Finder

In early 1997, as Ken and Ilene Finder began to ponder how their boys could pursue their interest in soccer, they realized that there were no options available in Rye Brook.  The village had neither a travel soccer club nor a recreation program.  Faced with these realities, they decided to form a club for the Rye Brook community,  They were confronted with many issues, as the village name was already being used by a non Rye Brook club, and there was no soccer field available in Rye Brook.  It looked like an impossible dream, but a few short months later, Ken and Ilene had incorporated a not-for-profit organization, obtained the Rye Brook name, secured the use of a field for home games, purchased equipment and enrolled players.   In September 1997, they proudly watched 14 boys suit up to be the first team to play under the banner of Rye Brook Youth Soccer.

Over the next seven years, even after their boys stopped playing soccer, they together ran Rye Brook Youth Soccer.  Ken served as President, coached two teams, and became synonymous with soccer in Rye Brook.  Ilene performed the duties of Registrar, Treasurer, Uniform and Equipment Manager, and everything else.  During these years, Ken and Ilene were responible for the growth of Rye Brook Youth Soccer, not only in numbers of players, but also in quality and stature.  Ken continues to serve on the Executive Board as past president for life and Ilene turned over her responsibilites to six people. 

As a result of the expansion of Rye Brook Youth Soccer, the village of Rye Brook and the Blind Brook School District had to build more fields to accomodate the unleased popularity of soccer in the village.  Ken was intricately involved with new fields becoming a reality in the community, serving on both the village of Rye Brook Field Task Force and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee.   Now Rye Brook has a youth sports complex with five synthetic turf fields and Rye Brook Youth Soccer is able to host a highly acclaimed pre-season tournamemt each March.  Ken and Ilene’s dream that started with 14 boys now serves over 400 boys and girls playing travel soccer and participating in the club’s pre-travel program.

Jerry Fischoff

 

Doug Grover

Doug began coaching soccer in Briarcliff when his oldest son was in kindergarten.  He had a pretty athletic group, his philosophy was to let them play hard and have fun, and after a couple of years his team became quite successful.  Since his team was winning most of their games when they played recreation teams from Briarcliff or other towns, Doug thought is was time to find stronger competition, and the Shooting Stars became the first Briarcliff team to join the WYSL.   Doug’s team had several good years, moving up into the first division, and placing in several tournaments.  The word spread in Briarcliff, and soon other families and teams followed.  A successful new club had been started.

For many years, Doug did all of the liaison work with the WYSL, serving as President, Registrar and Score Reporter.   He took a couple of years off from coaching, but returned when he saw that Briarcliff’s high school age boys team needed serious help.  He coached the high school boys for 7 years even though his son was only on this team for two of those seasons.   During this time Doug volunteered to serve on the WYSL Board, and he has worked his way to becoming Chairman of the Arbitration and Risk Management Committees.   In these capacities, Doug has become widely respected for his diligence and fairness in dealing with the cases brought before him.   With the inspiration initially provided by Doug, the Briarcliff club has grown to more than a dozen teams.  His son is now 24, and Doug is still actively involved. 

Sid Ings

Sid was sent to the US in 1982 for a 3-year stint with his company, and is still here 28 years later!  About 2 months after his arrival in Larchmont, at a neighborhood party the then-registrar of LJSL picked up his English accent and invited him to "get involved in Larchmont Soccer".   A certified referee but not a coach in England, he coached 7th/8th grade Rec teams in his first two fall seasons.  He was then invited to coach a new U9 Boys travel team - and the rest is history!  Three different boys teams, then a switch to girls, now with his third girls team.  In addition, he has coached the Junior Varsity Girls at Mamaroneck HS for the last 8 seasons.

Under Tom Munno’s presidency in the 90s, Sid was Head Referee for the club, and he initiated its 2nd grade program.  In 2001 he succeeded Tom as president, and has now served 8 years.  During this period LJSL has thrived, and it is one of the largest clubs in Westchester despite Larchmont’s relatively small population.  In recent years, he has worked with the Village of Larchmont Mayor and Trustees to support the fundraising and building of the Alma Turf Field in Flint Park, as well as the ongoing renovation of grass fields.  Under his leadership, the LJSL is the largest donor to the Fields for Kids fundraising effort to bring a new synthetic turf surface to the Mamaroneck High School Memorial Field - a project that has been talked about for over 5 years!  But most of all, Sid just loves being out there on the field with the kids - working to help them not only to become good soccer players, but also quality young citizens.  Like everyone else, Sid loves to win, but more important to him is watching the kids develop and having a fun time doing it.

Richard Helfman

Albino Guimaraes- In 1957 Albino was one of the founding fathers that helped form the Mamaroneck Soccer Club, which was an adult-only club at that time, and played on one of its team for 28 years.  Albino became its president and then president of the adult league known as the Eastern District Soccer League. He has been the vice-president of ENYSASA for the past 20 years. 

Tom Munno -  Tom Munno has been a pioneer for youth soccer in Westchester County.  He began coaching in the Larchmont Recreational Soccer Program in 1981 when his son began to play.  As his children progressed in soccer, Tom progressed as well and he became a Larchmont travel soccer coach in 1984 and continued to coach through 2002.  Tom is one of those volunteers who offers to get involved in soccer at all levels, and he also became the Larchmont Travel Commissioner and joined the WYSL Board of Directors in 1984.

Because of his contributions as a Board Member, the WYSL elected Tom as President in 1986, and he continued to serve in this capacity for 8 years through 1994.  Since Tom had boundless energy for serving the youth soccer community, he also served as the President of the Larchmont Junior Soccer League for 14 years from 1987- 2001.  Not one to entirely retire from youth soccer, Tom has continued to participate as a Referee at WYSL soccer games and as a coach for first and second graders in the Larchmont Junior Soccer program.