Match Preview

The format for each festival is that every team will play four matches. There are no knockout stages and no group or overall winners. Scores will not be collated. Every player will receive a commemorative medal which will be in the registration packs.

The maximum squad sizes allowed are as follows:
Under 7 – 6 players (4 players plus 2 subs)
Under 8 – 10 players (6 players plus 4 subs)
Under 9 – 12 players (7 players plus 5 subs)
Under 10 – 13 players (8 players plus 5 subs)
Under 11 – 14 players (9 players plus 5 subs)

Duration of Games will be:
U7 & U8 – 5 minutes each way
U9 & U10 – 6 minutes each way
U11 – 7 minutes each way

Half-time will be 2 minutes long. Could we please ask coaches not to conduct post-match de-briefs on the pitch, in order to help everyone keep to the advertised schedule?

The first games will kick-off at 10.00am sharp but, as you know, parking at these events is always a challenge, so we look forward to seeing you all starting to arrive from 8.30am onwards. The final games should finish between 12.30pm and 1.30pm depending on age group.

St John Ambulance will be in attendance but we expect each club to provide a qualified first aider at each age group. Each team will also need to provide a referee to officiate games during the morning. A referees' briefing will be held pitch side by the Esher Head Coach of the relevant age group at around 9.45am. Esher will provide pitch marshals on every pitch who will liaise with all teams to ensure everybody is in the right place at the right time so we can keep on schedule!

Food and drinks will be available from the clubhouse and from our outside kitchen. Please also note that a voucher for every player to receive a FREE Hot Dog will be included in the registration packs. The Hot Dogs will be available at the end of the tournament and will be served from a separate location to the main food outlet, to ensure the children get a prompt reward for their efforts.

The pitch allocations and a match schedule will be forwarded closer to the weekend. The final version will be available in the festival programmes that each team will receive on the day.