Andalusia youth interested in playing on the Andalusia High School soccer team should get their cleats and shin guards ready.

Super-intendent Ted Watson said earlier this week plans are under way to host an organizational meeting during the week of Jan. 2-6 for both potential players and their parents.

“The date is not set in stone,” Watson said of the meeting. “We’ve got a little time to nail down the finer points of the program, but with that said, we’ll make the announcement at the return of school (from the Christmas break) of the date.”

Earlier this month, the school board voted to establish a soccer program with an abbreviated schedule.

“The purpose is to organize this year in the spring so we can see what kind of interest we have,” Watson said. “The plan is to work with the kids, to make sure we play a match or two to reward the kids for coming out.

“Then, we’ll practice during the summer, have an identity to do fundraising in the fall, and then hit the field,” he said. “That being said, we’ve got a bit to go before we get there.”

Watson said AHS Principal Dr. Daniel Shakespeare will now submit a letter to the state department requesting to establish a non-state championship competitive team this year, “to help get our legs underneath us.”

Girls and boys, both from the middle school and the high school, are urged to attend and to sign up for the new sport.

Watson said items of discussion at the meeting will include these important dates:

• Jan. 15, the deadline to submit the team’s schedule to the state;

• Jan. 23, the first practice; and

• Feb. 23, the first match.

“We’ve been given the time the we need to nail down the finer points of the program,” Watson said. “It’s a heroic effort on the board’s part to make sure (the program) is a possibility for this year. Everyone has advised us this is the route to go.”

He said every attempt would be made to field a boys team and a girls team; however, if there is not enough interest, then they will consider a co-ed team.

“The plan right now is to play four or five games,” Watson said of the season. “We want to take this slow and do it right. Our kids deserve that.”