The snow has melted, the grass is greening and the temperatures are rising. That can only mean one thing...

SOCCER SEASON!

Yes, soccer season kicks off early next week and we caught up with Jason Roy, President of the Weyburn Soccer Association, to get the details on the upcoming season.

"This weekend we're having and equipment and field prep day and that will be Saturday at 10:00 a.m.," said Roy. "If anyone is able to come out and help, all volunteers are welcome. We're just going to be painting lines and setting up nets and putting air in the soccer balls."

"On the Sunday we'll be having a coaches clinic and this is just a little something to give our coaches a bit of direction on how to read our plans and show the plans that we are bringing out."

Roy noted that there will be some changes to how the younger age groups are coached this year.

"It's called Four Stations and it's something soccer Canada has been doing," said Roy.  "What it is is, one coach will actually learn one drill. They'll take the kids and they'll do their little lesson or their little mini game and after about 15 minutes they'll get a new group. It's just a way to get socialized a little bit more and it's a great introduction to the game."

The soccer season kicks off for girls on Monday, April 29th and will be followed by the boys kickoff on Tuesday, April 30th. 

Some concerns and questions have been raised about the impending soccer season as construction is underway in the area.

"Safety is our first priority," said Roy. "There is construction out by Jubilee Park. Construction of the new Weyburn Community Centre and the school is underway. There is a fence and it is the barrier between the park and the construction area. These fences are not to be crossed. We stress the fact that if a soccer ball or something goes over, tell a coach or one of our executive members. We do have plans in place to get those back."

Fortunately, though, the construction didn't have too much of an impact on the playing fields.

"The barrier fences that went up has taken a bit of where we had some soccer fields but we're able just to shuffle things over and the fields are going to be very similar to where our people played last year."

He added that there are also reduced speed limits in the area to help ensure everyone's safety.

Overall, Roy is looking forward to the upcoming season.

"We're working on some programs, we're going to try to introduce some new things for all age groups."