On the first Tuesday back from break, while most Guilford students were in their warm dorm rooms doing homework, one group of students stretching across all years (including alumni) were running around in the biting cold playing soccer. Tuesday night soccer has been around for a long while. No one knows exactly who started it or when. For the last few years, every Tuesday night, at least a few diehards are out playing soccer – no matter the temperature, no matter the weather.

“Tuesday night soccer is a gift from the soccer gods,” said senior and long-time player, Gabe Guindon. “My sophomore year we noticed there was enough light on the football field to play at night. It was cool at first. Whether you were good at soccer or not, it was just fun.”

However, there were some objections that the soccer games were ruining the grass on the football field. After being run off by Public Safety a few times, the students talked to Aaron Fetrow, the Dean for Campus Life, about finding an alternative field.

Now the lights over the Hayworth practice field are turned on every Tuesday night at 10 p.m. and around 10:30 p.m., the game begins.

The Tuesday-night soccer games are informal. Games are played until a specific numbers of goals have been tallied (although there have been occasions where no score is kept at all). If the soccer team’s goals haven’t been left up, t-shirts or shoes suffice. There are no refs, no free kicks, no out-of-bounds; everything is in good faith. “If someone wanted to call a foul they probably could,” Guindon said. “But no one ever does.”

The number of people who come out varies from night to night, but there is always someone out there; and usually it is quite an eclectic mix. Last Tuesday, there were enough people for an 11-on-11 game, and everyone was made to feel welcome.

“There tends to be a staple crowd,” said first-year, Raji Ward, who began to play after intramural soccer ended. “Fifteen people or so come out almost every Tuesday night. I guess it depends on the night, but we try to keep it pretty relaxed; and you definitely get a good vibe from the people.”

For players on Guilford’s school soccer team the Tuesday night games can be both a good way to keep their hand in during the off-season and a chance to play a more relaxed soccer game with less outside pressure.

“The Tuesday night games have a fun, looser feel to them,” said sophomore and right-back for Guilford’s soccer team, Bram Crowe-Getty. “It can be a nice break from playing in a rigid, strict doctrine all year. You can be a little more carefree than you would be in a team game. You have to approach it from a different way too. If the Tuesday games got too over-competitive, you would lose the spirit of it.”

Everyone is welcome to come and play. The games are held on Hayworth practice field (rugby pitch) behind Frank Family Science Center and the Bryan parking lot. The games begin anywhere from 10 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., but latecomers can jump right in.

“I play Tuesday soccer to stay sane,” Guindon said. “It’s my favorite thing. I love soccer; I would play any night with these guys. It’s not like people get pissed because someone isn’t good enough or if someone is too good. Everyone is out there to have fun