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Ben Mitchell, shown taking a corner kick against Yongsan International-Seoul, and his Seoul American Falcons will host the first DODDS Korea boys soccer jamboree on Saturday.

Ben Mitchell, shown taking a corner kick against Yongsan International-Seoul, and his Seoul American Falcons will host the first DODDS Korea boys soccer jamboree on Saturday. (C.J. Mitchell/Special to Stars and Stripes)

Faced with the prospect of too many games for too few weekends, DODDS soccer teams in Korea chose to pool their resources.

The result is jamborees Saturday at Seoul American (boys) and Osan (girls).

Limits implemented in November by DODDS Pacific on the number of games each school may play, along with an “interval week” between seasons, and two weeks of practice reduced the number of weekends available for games.

That meant Daegu, Seoul American, Humphreys and Osan couldn’t begin play until March 14-15. Before, they started as early as late February, along with the Korean-American Interscholastic Activities Conference’s international schools.

And the DODDS Korea teams also face a hurdle at the back end of the season – KAIAC has a rule that forbids matches in May due to Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate testing.

Daegu AD Ken Walter and the other three DODDS Korea athletics directors decided the jamborees were the answer. The four DODDS teams will take turns playing each other, a maximum of two matches per school as the new competition limits state.

“We had enough weekends for 10 games, but not enough for 12” plus the KAIAC tournaments April 25-26, Walter said. The KAIAC boys tournament is at Seoul American and the girls at Taejon Christian International.

Jamborees will be added to the basketball and volleyball seasons in the future, Walter said. “We don’t have enough weekends any more. We need to fulfill our obligations to KAIAC; they (international schools) shouldn’t pay for our new policies.”

This will be a weekend of firsts in DODDS Korea, to include the first track and field meet to be held on DODDS property. Humphreys will christen its new eight-lane track with a quadrangular meet involving the DODDS Korea four; the meet also features automated timing.

“Keep your fingers crossed,” Humphreys coach and meet manager Mitch Moellendick said. “We brought it out and got everything lined up today. Everything’s working but you know what they say about the best laid plans. But right now, everything’s set up and working.”

Rain is forecast for Saturday, but it is an all-weather track. It also relieves DODDS Korea of having to rent off-base facilities, some where throwing and hurdles events could not be contested.

This meet will feature only DODDS teams, but future meets will include KAIAC international schools such as Seoul Foreign and Gyeonggi Suwon International. “They’re bringing about 25 athletes each,” Moellendick said.

Having the league’s five meets in the same location offers “some consistency,” Moellendick said. “They know what things will be like week to week.”

ornauer.dave@stripes.com

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Dave Ornauer has been employed by or assigned to Stars and Stripes Pacific almost continuously since March 5, 1981. He covers interservice and high school sports at DODEA-Pacific schools and manages the Pacific Storm Tracker.

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