Soccer Clubs Agree to Share Fields, But 'Battle Between Egos' Continues

A “battle between egos and personalities” must end and a new era of cooperation should begin, the leaders of two Urbandale soccer clubs agreed at a recent meeting of the City Council.

General agreement that the relationship between the Urbandale Soccer Club and J-Hawk Soccer Club has gotten out of hand came at a meeting three weeks ago, when the Urbandale City Council approved a three-year lease agreement for the two clubs to use city soccer fields, the Des Moines Register reports.

But the two sides didn't agree on exactly how they'll usher in a new era of cooperation.

Shea Mears, Urbandale Soccer Club president, said the solution is only temporary unless the two clubs can either reach a compromise on how fields will be shared, or agree to operate as one organization again. The two clubs and city council members have been discussing a compromise on field use since January.

The J-Hawk Club started with only about 2011 players in 2011 when it split from the Urbandale Soccer Club. Last spring, the club had 312 players. Councilman Mike Carver, the J-Hawk club president, said having options has been positive for Urbandale, both in increasing participation and creating financial competition that opened soccer to more youths in the community.

Councilman Ron Pogge, a former president of the Urbandale Soccer Club, called on the two organizations to become one again.

Mears said that’s the Urbandale Soccer Club’s ultimate goal. In the meantime during what he described as a “cool-down period,” Mears said he will continue to look for ways the club’s can work together, though he acknowledged mending relationships will take time.