Nice...oneheader..are you on Socalsoccer.com? I think the title including both is the ultimate benefit. If not you should be. That is the reason i dont come on big soccer that much anymore.
Playing on Surf or CV Man is the equivalent of playing on the Blues, Slammers or Arsenal in So Cal. Surf and CV Man are the 2 biggest clubs in presidio and maybe in the top 5 in So Cal. Switching from one of those to WCFC, or Blues is academic.
I hope this poster has it a little bit wrong.Man U UNC etc play for wins not at all about development not that Manu or UNC play any where near the same style of soccer. The reason people talk aboutthe south american style of soccer is because i is much better for development of a player although it might cost a few wins at the youth level. The WNT is suffering from this now they have very physical athletic players but lack the vision and creativity that will continue their stay on the top of womens soccer. UNC is all about a pressure game and capalize on defensive mistakes from the pressure. This style becomes less effective as defenders learn to handle the pressure and mount counter attacks. Even Anson has admitted this. This style of soccer also puts more of a premium on fitness than skill and creativity. It is very effective at the youth levels where players are still learning the game and skills. Teams and coaches do not develop players they help and have a big influence but the ultimate responsibility is on the player. 2 hours a week is not nearly enough time with ball. Spend plenty of extra time with your kid in the back yard working on her skills.
That is exactly right, and it was a concern for me until last fall. My dd had been an "appointment" soccer player--only playing at the appointed times of training and games. However, last summer/fall it clicked. She started just playing on her own in the yard, teaching her little sister stuff and trying her best to make her non-soccer older brothers look like fools trying to defend her. Over the winter, she's been working on footskills in our basement and also juggling. I've heard a few loud bangs and decided NOT to go down and investigate. Her old DoC runs a ton of programs, such as weekly group training, futsal, and other stuff based on the same theory that kids need to play WAY more than just at the appointed times. These extra things enable her to get a ton of touches beyond regular training and games. Playing in these non-pressure environments is critical to allowing players to learn WHY and WHERE to use the moves they learn in training. Too often the young players only get the HOW of a move. When they learn the tactical side of things in non-pressure environments, they become more confident and effective when the hit the pitch for real.
At the risk of opening up old wounds from the second half of this thread, I ran across this in a different forum. I know polls can be made to say most anything, but this one seems relevant to the Eclipse/Cleveland debate earlier: Club Rankings Based on Player Development: http://www.topdrawersoccer.com/component/option,com_topdrawer/Itemid,332/gender,w/ Eclipse Select is #2 Cleveland FC is #95 Quite a gap. Just thought I'd throw that out there...
No offense, but as far as the ranking of clubs in my state is concerned, TD's ranking is bizarre at best.
Yeah, I have no idea whether these are good, bad or indifferent. Just wanted to stir up that old Eclipse/Cleveland discussion. I don't really know why...
okay, my daughter has the opposite problem (going to be on u12 next season). She is really good, on the ODP state team and on the third tier team again just because the competition is so fierce with the large club that she is on.... I would say, let her decide what to do, but I would say if your daughter is serious about soccer in that she is striving to play in college find a good quality soccer team for her to play on, one that has A coaches and will give your daughter a chance to get noticed. Also I would have her participate in ODP, it has made a world of difference for my daughters self confidence. Per my daughter who does not care that she is on the third level team, its how good the team is that she is playing with that keeps her with this club. She says" we are so good" and I don't care if I am not on the top team.
ODP Sucks!!! They are there only to take $ and hopes/dreams away. If you have one State Coach who doesn't know how to evaluate potential, everything is awash. If this wasn't the case, they would be videotaping sessions for the real coaches, National Team Coaches, to view. But they don't. Why, so they can pick their favorites who have an open wallet/purse, and bring them false hopes/dreams. ODP Sucks! Don't do it.
okay. I don't know why you responded this way but I guess you must have had a bad experience?! I know for a fact the coaches at OSYSA ODP have major credentials. One of the coaches that coaches the boys u14 is my daughters club coach and has 20 + years of experience and a B license and he is is really good! I will let you know how her first ODP state experience is. If you think ODP is expensive you must not know how much being on a professional run club is... and any camp is $500 plus dollars so I don't think it is a rip off at all! Second, there is nothing better than having ODP experience on your soccer resume from what I have seen from players that I have watched over the years move up and playing in WPS league.
I disagree. ODP is a great experience. The coaches are the best around, and my daughter really benefited from her exposure there. She was on the Regional Team and loved it-and college coaches definitely look at that.
Yes, I've heard widely varying assessments of the value of ODP. It's something I haven't yet researched much. Maybe it varies by state. It seems every big club in my area boasts that they have an ODP coach on their staff, which suggests it may well be a bit political. I've also heard it's just a big, glorified camp. And I've heard good things, too. The thing that I've heard that concerns me the most is that my dd, who is small and has a late birthday, won't even get a serious look due to those factors. I guess we'll see...
Hi Oneheadertoomany. I will let you know how it goes with ODP. Actually, this coach has been doing it for years and never mentioned it to our team until he had to go to germany. Most of our coaches on our team has a A license and or the same level as him so I don't think he gets any brownie points for being a ODP coach. My daughter also has a late birthday (20 days from being in the next level) so I know what you mean by having to wait. Actually I was shocked when my daughter made the state team because she is not the most aggressive girl but has a great attitude, great foot skills, does not hog the ball and great at passing. I think I read they pick people to be a team so they get a mixture. I think its a great experience for my daughter, but she really never thought she would make it but wanted the experience so I think that is why it worked out for her.
It sounds like Ohio has a strong program. Illinois is a political mess, I hear. But then again, everything in Illinois is a political mess, not just soccer.
actually I hear that not too many players make it to regional or national camps from Ohio South.. .they mostly come from IL, IN etc. We do have one girl who made it on the u14 national team so we were proud. I think the more advanced academy club is less of a political game. My daughter is 12 and been playing since 4 so she has played on rec, goysal, a bad soccer club and good soccer club and I think the sub par clubs have the most political people running them and coaching on them.
My suggestion is to go with the best possible club. ECNL generally a good bet, but not always. Good book out on this topic -- "it's all about the club: a Parent's journey through the wilderness of girls' youth soccer". Has some good insights on club development and college recruiting. Check it out on kindle/amazon.
We are dealing with this, in a club with multiple teams per age group. Problem is that DOC makes unilateral moves, and the coach who "receives the gift of an outstanding player" often feels put upon and does not play the player. In that regard, sometimes it is better to look into changing clubs rather than trying to work up from the C team to the B team to the A team. In some circumstances, it is just as bad changing to a new club, especially older than U11 where coaches want to "make sure they have a big enough roster" in preparation for injuries and player movement. It may take a lot of time (months at least) for a new player to get into the rotation, unless there was an injury and the roster was small to begin with.
Wow--didn't expect this thread to still be alive 4.5 years after I posted the first entry. Here's the update: Then U11 dd is now U15 age. We went to megaclub and she did well for a couple seasons. She, however, is tiny. Not small. Tiny. Over time, other, larger and more athletic girls caught up and surpassed my dd in skill and speed. Injuries started to mount. Playing time decreased--and I'd have to say justifiably so. Interest waned. Now in HS, she no longer plays soccer except for fun. She runs XC and track--loves it. Misses her soccer teammates, but with Facebook she stays in touch. Her former club's U15 pool is incredibly talented and she's happy for those girls.
Not surprised, my son runs track as a second sport, and he loves that "how he does is how he does". Even if he is in a relay, they keep splits for the runners, so he has a tangible record of what *he* did. All in all, youth soccer (and most youth sports) is an injury crapshoot. That's probably one reason why bigger players seem to do better on the national stage (not exclusively, but anecdotally based on BNT players from my state). My son is very flexible and has avoided noticeable injury despite being subject to things like being picked up and thrown down by a defender and continual cleats-up tackles by goalies (he's a striker). Good luck to her with track and XC. I think it is important for kids to do some sport at least, if even for exercise and perks to the college application. Doing well in any particular sport is a bonus not a requirement.
How about the situation for a child where you have 2 choices: 1) Play on a high skill level team with more equal peer group, higher level of commitment and passion for the game against tougher competition, but unfortunately you have a very poor soccer coach (not very knowledgable about the game at all, but bullied his way into being able to coach the top flite team). 2) Be the elite star player on a lower level team with a coach that knows more about the game of soccer and training and such. Many players on team have low commitment level and even some "goof offs". Some dedicated players and some skillful players. Playing against a lower competition group as well.