SKILL CENTRE PROGRAM 2026-27

REGISTER

CLICK HERE to register:

Schedule coming soon

Program Overview

Part of the competitive pathway of UDFC
Functions as the spring board/gateway to UDFC Youth Programming (U12 to U18 B to AAA) programming
U8 & U9 players are predominantly exposed to competition across Dartmouth Area
U10 & U11 players are predominantly exposed to competition across HRM

PROGRAM COST

U7&U8 - U9: $440

U10-U11: $490

Program Outcomes

Individual skill development through variable and dynamic learning environments:

An example would be:
- Recognizing when and how to beat an opposition player by using a variety of learned tricks and skills.

Improved quality of fundamental movement skills, including running, jumping, landing, stopping, turning, balancing, and ball manipulation within age-appropriate activities.
Improvements in agility, balance, coordination, and speed during play, evidenced by better body control, efficient changes of direction, and smoother transitions between movements.
Showing reduced hesitation, greater freedom of movement, and increased willingness to explore different ways to solve movement challenges.
Players will apply fundamental movement skills effectively within small-sided games and soccer-based activities, supporting improved receiving, retaining, and transferring of the ball. As well as effectively threatening opposition players and goal.

Age Groups & Eligibility

U7 ( 2020)
U8 (2019)
U9 (2018)
U10 (2017)
U11 (2016)

Who is this for?

Players who are engaged by the sport, wish to achieve their sporting and social goals, and are motivated to self-express themselves within sport and physical activity.

Commitment

Skill Centre Program:

Winter contacts:

2 training sessions a week
Opportunity to participate in the additional Committed Player Program weekly session (U10 & U11)
Participation in NSSL festivals

Summer contacts:

2 training sessions a week
Opportunity to participate in the additional Committed Player Program weekly session (U9, U10, & U11)
Participation in NSSL and Wanderers run festivals

Training and Team Formations

Skill Centre Program,:

Teams are formed in October for the winter season
Teams are formed in May for the summer season

U7/8 & U9 Program:

No Fixed teams. Teams are formed prior to each festival.
Players train in station based format and teams are predominantly balanced to the needs of the competition.

U10 Program:

Teams are formed within the pools and rotate within the pools.
Players spend periods of time training both in stations and pools with a balance between two formats.

U11 Program:

Teams are formed within the pools and rotate within the pools.
Players spend periods of time training both in stations and pools with a bias towards pool training.

What are station based training and training pools and what is the difference?

Station Based Training:

The players train together in stations which are created at the beginning of each session.

Pool Based Training:

Players are separated into different pools and train within the pools. For example Pool A players train together and Pool B players train together. Pools are kept together for a month at a time at which point they can be re-created based on player growth and development.

Coaches

Coaches are Canada Soccer & NCCP Certified and are supported by Skill Centre Program Lead Shahul Shaju

To learn more about Shahul click here

Key Dates

Program Registration Begins: September 3, 2026

Start Date: Week of October 18, 2026

End Date: Week of March 1, 2027

Practice Date: TBD
Game Date: TBD (from NSSL)

Game formats

U7/8 & U9:

5 a side game
25 minute game (they play 2 games on the same day)
Unlimited Substitutions and usage of power play

U10 & U11:

7 a side game
2 x 25 minute halves
Unlimited Substitutions and usage of power play

Tentative Game Day(s) as released by SNS

TBD FROM NSSL

Training Gear Purchase

FOR TRAINING GEAR PURCHASE CLICK HERE

Game Uniform Note: All Skill Centre players are required to have the navy blue and electric green training shirts as their uniforms.