Kajumulo FC: FAQ
What are the teams called? The name of the club is Kajumulo FC, after our head coach Alex Kajumulo. The girls teams are called Farasi, which means fast horse in Swahili. The boys teams are called Tembo, meaning elephant. We presently have U16 (Farasi 95, Tembo 95) and U13 (Farasi 98, Tembo 98) teams. We may be adding several new teams, including a Tembo 99, Farasi ’00, and Farasi 03.
When are we playing? We play in the Puget Sound Premier League, which has two seasons. The Fall season runs from mid September to early December. The Spring season starts in February and runs through April or May. For the younger girls and for the boys the Fall season is the main season, with 12 games. There are 8 games in the Spring season. However, for High School age girls the seasons are reversed, with Spring season as the main 12 game season. Games can be on either Saturday or Sunday. The 98 teams practice 10 months a year, taking July and December off, although the older teams continue practice year round and everyone is welcome to attend. Practice times vary by age group, although Friday is an all ages open practice called Soccer Monster. We also have half day camps during breaks. Finally we play 3 to 4 tournaments a year. Which tournaments we attend varies by team and year, but some main tournaments are:Pacific Coast Super Cup – January (Tukwila), February (Portland)The Washington Cup – April (Tukwila, Lacey)Skagit River Cup – May (Burlington)Snohomish United Invitational – June (Snohomish)US Club Regionals – June (Redmond)Diadora Legacy – July (Marysville)Puma Rimland – August (Bellingham)
Who and where are we playing? The number of teams and divisions varies by season and age group, but currently Farasi and Tembo 95 play in the Super League, or top division. Farasi 98 and Tembo 98 are expected to play in Classic (2nd division) in the Fall season of 2012. Most of the teams are in the Puget Sound region, although there are a couple of teams from eastern Washington. This past year we’ve had games in Auburn, Tacoma, Sammamish, Snoqualmie, Poulsbo, Port Orchard, Monroe, Spokane, and Wenatchee.
What about try outs? Kajumulo FC is different in that there aren’t “try outs” every year where your child is competing against others for a spot on the team. Instead, coach Alex looks for girls who are willing to work hard, love soccer, and commit to the team. The ‘try out’ is instead for the families to make sure that Kajumulo FC is a good fit for them. Select soccer is a commitment, but it should be fun and enjoyable for everyone involved. We want to make sure that, long term, everyone – players, coaches, and families -- understands the program and is supportive of it and each other.
When do we have to commit? The idea is to practice together through May so that everyone can get a good understanding of Kajumulo FC and then look to make a commitment in early June to match the club’s fiscal year.
Can we still play on our rec. and school teams? We encourage players to play for their school teams. There can occasionally be conflicts at the Middle School ages, and we ask that Kajumulo FC has to take priority in the event of a conflict, but we try and schedule games around them. Since we play in US Club soccer, players can technically continue to play for their SYSA rec. teams. That isn’t to say it is easy, or even a good idea, however. Of course, Farasi has to take priority in the event of a conflict.
What are the costs? One of the benefits of being an independent team is we can keep costs down. 2012 fees for the 95 and 98 teams are estimated to be $1550 a year, which includes the league play, the tournaments, practices, and practice t-shirts. It doesn’t include your travel costs to games/tournaments and we also sometimes do camps during breaks. These camps are usually $20 a day for a 3 hour camp, but are optional. Finally, uniforms are $60, but are only purchased when needed. If you can get away with wearing one for 3 or 4 years then we think that’s great. Additional tournaments, in particular for the older teams, are also an added cost.
The Farasi 03 development team has a different schedule and cost structure, and is set for 2012 at $600.
Coaches
Alex has, in addition to his recent music career, spent his life studying, playing, and teaching soccer. In particular, he’s focused on teaching foot skills and technique to youth. He’s spent a lot of time studying successful youth soccer development in such diverse places as Ghana, Brazil, and with Ajax’s youth system. When any discussion is made about what makes Kajumulo FC unique, it pretty much starts and ends with Alex’s philosophy and style of play. Because it is a coach driven club, the entire focus is then on individual player development. His objective is to create life long players who have a love and understanding of the total game. In practical terms what this means is players learn to play all positions and what matters is we make great players, rather than win trophies.
