Soccer clubs are notorious for their long abbreviations. SGCSA represents the Strikers of Gaston County Soccer Association. We are the only NCYSA sanctioned soccer club based in Gaston County. Our team colors are RED and WHITE. 

Most of our home games are held at George Poston Park in Lowell or Martha Rivers Park in Gastonia.  SGCSA teams can travel all over the state for "away" games and tournaments, but most play in leagues within NCYSA on the Western side of the statre including Charlotte and clubs west of Charlotte.

There are two categories of annual fees, club fees and team fees. Club fees are paid to SGCSA directly and cover costs including  NCYSA membership dues and player cards, field rental and light fees, and coaches' stipends and other costs that the club incurs. Team fees are dictated by the activity of your individual team and as such vary from team to team. The two major expenses covered by teams are the referee costs for each home game and the registration fees for any tournaments your team decides to attend. 

The Strikers of Gaston County Soccer Association was founded as an all volunteer organization 23 years ago.  We have evolved as a club to compensate head coaches for their time and dedication to develop kids into quality soccer players with a stipend for the fall and spring halves of each season. However, the spirit of volunteerism lives on!  We have a dedicated Board of Directors that help guide and direct our club. However, we have ZERO full-time staff members. We are able to keep our club fees low by utilizing volunteers at all levels of our organization. But our main assets are the coaches on the field and the players that make our teams!

Tryouts are held in mid-late May each year for most of our age groups. These dates are dictated by NCYSA who prohibits player evaluations from occuring until the completion of the seasons. High school age ladies who play only a fall season have tryouts for the following fall season in late January or early February in a window also dictated by the state. Those clubs holding tryouts in other periods are not NCYSA sanctioned soccer clubs.

All players trying out must be register online and pay a small evaluation fee that will be credited to your club fee should the player make an SGCSA team and accept our offer to join.

Once a player moves to a soccer club, their level of play is dictated by their age and the skill level of their team. You will see teams denoted by the players' birth year and/or their age shown, for example, as U10 to designate "Under 10 years old" at the start of that year. Players may be able to play in an older age level if their skill level, the size of a roster, and the coaches opinions warrant it. However, in NCYSA players may not "play down" or play with younger athletes. In some other organizations, that IS permitted which is why you may hear stories of "really big" athletes on the field.

Academy (U9 – U10) – Club soccer's entry point is called "Academy" and works well for players ready to make the jump from recreational soccer to a more challenging level. Game results are not emphasized at this level; rather the development of players is the driving factor. At SGCSA, this is the period team units develop and players learn to improve ball skills and positioning at game speed.

Challenge (U11 – U12) – This level is typically for players at U11 and U12 and serves as a bridge between academy and classic. Games are played within Charlotte and the surrounding areas.

Classic (U13-U18) –  The majority of our Strikers play at the Classic level within leagues determined by NCYSA to maintain fair, leveled matches between SGCSA and our competitors. We play in Classic leagues in Western North Carolina which includes clubs in Charlotte and west. We have teams who participate in the 2nd division, 1st division, and premier (statewide). 

For teams to play in the 1st division or premier level, they must be promoted based on their standing similar to European soccer leagues.