Failure Can Be A Step Towards Success... Yup... Just was speaking of this over the weekend - Sockers failure for my kid = success. All the other shit-binned players are hanging out on their 3rd team which is at best a high level "C" team. But hey - at least they can tell community college coaches they played for Sockers I cannot tell you how many times (on the girls side I have heard from existing parents that the program is awful (Pre-Academy) but that they are staying for the name. Idiots.
Ok, who all knows someone who stays at a club, on a low performing team, for the name. Truly. I can imagine staying for a hundred other bad reasons, but for the name?
Salty - not at all. I saw the writing on the wall 2 years prior but did not want to strip my daughter from friends. When BC bs'd her twice to her face - she made the decision for herself. If anything vindicated but honestly I don't need that. What I need is to see my kid smile and enjoy the sport.
It happens - I know 4 kids who are doing it now. 3 are on Sockers C 2005 team and the other is on the 04 PA team. I also know parents who have said they may move over to Sockers or Eclipse - knowing that their daughter would not be on the top team, specifically because it looks good for colleges. I would add that 5 of the girls from the second 99/98 team were asked by coaches to walk on to the college teams they went to because they played at Sockers. 4 of them made the team and 3 of them are starters. Mix of D2 and D3 colleges. Frankly - despite my critisism here - I think the name does carry some weight.
I can assure you there are plenty that are thrilled with their girls playing PA and feel it’s miles better than the community club from which they left. Oh and there is a rumor that in addition to their name their training methodology is by far the best in the state (Volk - stop right there! We know you had a bad experience and what you think of (some) of the girls coaches!!! Let’s put that story to rest for 2020!!! You can do it
Dude - all the numbers point to the exact opposite. IWSL - 75% of the teams will be forced down to B or C level. Girls are leaving mid season. Worst numbers ever. You don't even have to be "in the know" to get this stuff bro. It's 99% recruiting now for top teams. Put down the kool aid bro.
Then why do you come here and post nonsense when you have stated you don't know much about the girls side in the past?
Last few pages have been head spinning. Lots of initials I can't keep up with, lol. I think the key is lots of coaches with different tactics, philosophy and personalities. Some of it works for some girls, some it does not. I rather have my DD be coached by an assh... who plays her based on talent and work ethic rather than a nice guy who plays his favorites. As long as he doesn't cross the line. End of day, Soccers and Eclipse at the higher levels and older age groups are platforms and the best players should and will play. Everything below is a crapshoot and money grab on second teams and most iwsl, or tier 3 clubs in the Midwest qualifiers. I still wonder why parents pay a lot of money for their 16 year old who probably will not crack a top tier team, and play IWSL or mWC qualifier. Waste of money. Having said that, TC's second team for u18 has a few college bound girls to D2,D3.
There's any number of reasons why people make the club choices they do. Some like the coach, some might prefer the training environment, some its about location, some might be because they have siblings there...whether or not its a waste of money would come down to what each family values in a soccer program. Fact: players on some clubs second teams do play college soccer, sometimes even D1. Even sometimes at affiliates or locations. There was a kid from the south suburbs I coached like 7 years ago who finished at Sockers Naperville and went on to Loyola. Played on what could be considered a 3rd or 4th team in the club. I'm definitely not saying I'm the reason he's there only worked with the kid for like 8 months lol but know the family well. The point is you don't have to be on the first team to play college soccer. People end up bouncing around in search of that first team that plays XYZ league and often never ends up finding what they're looking for. Just spends extra money playing for 2-3 clubs in a year, driving all over town for that next "great opportunity". My two cents for what its worth, if you can't make the first team at a big club find one who's first-team coach also handles the second team or has a group of coaches working together directly. At least then you'll get relatively consistent training. Those are pretty few and far between tho.
Honestly, the more I learn about college soccer the more convinced I am that picking a school based on “non-soccer” factors and then playing club ball while you’re there is the way to go.
That or just making sure that soccer is not the reason you choose a specific college. Unless of course you are getting a full ride but even then I would focus on athletics. I know a few who went for the better soccer college and want to be top reps for Nike. LOL
If Sockers FC stats are to be believed (87%+ go on to play College soccer at some level) then there has to be many, many kids who are on the "lower" teams who play college ball. And frankly the DIII, NAIA's might be the best spots to play.
We were chatting about allergies tonight at training in St Charles. One parent said that its gotta be better then WestPlex and another parent said "Nothing is as bad as Soccer City!" 3rd parent responded... "Soccer City... Where vending machines go to die." So true...
That place has smelled like a dirty sock drawer since I played there in 88. No matter what we all disagree/agree on - there is no denying that. Westplex is pretty dirty as well. I would say the air quality in both are pretty bad. McCook is okay - Canlan is decent as is The Mac all the way out in Woodstock. My kid went to watch her 06 friend from ELA play at the old Kits last weekend and that place still has the run down feel to it. New parking lot however which is nice.... HEY I heard SC re-paved their lot as well - much needed!
Back in the day the overall cleanliness of the facility went hand-in-hand with the quality of the play. The dirtier the better lol. Odeum, Soccer City, and Hallmark were all dumps but the best players played there. The reality is that it wasn't the facilities themselves that drove the businesses but it was the people involved. The Odeum had been steady forever until Tony Dallas unfortunately passed, now they're starting to decline. Hallmark almost went under when Magic evaporated but are hanging on now that CFJS came in. Say what you want about the state of the place but of all the facilities around Soccer City has been the most steady for the longest time. Just so happens their ownership and anchor tenant have also been the steadiest around. That place in Crystal Lake is such a mystery. Basically empty since it opened like 15 years ago but still dumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into it. Who would see that as a good investment? Madness.
Crystal Lake is packed with training and games. My kid is on 3 teams there over the course of 2 sessions and it's always packed. Food is very good as well. When Magic was there they had many tenants. There were a few lean years but it's more crowded then ever. Not sure if they are in the black but many of these facilities are just barely making a profit.
Freshman orientation last night at the high school. H/S girls were excited to see my kid there - she met the Varsity coach for the first time and he and I had a really nice chat. It's been an awesome journey with many lessons and I am really happy to just see my kid smile and be excited about something she has been doing hard-core since she's been 4. The team may not do incredibly well but socially this will be a huge boost for her. We'll continue to train in the Fall with her club and shoot for a D2 school in Colorado - focusing primarily on academics.
Vegas Cup, Disney Showcase, Albion in CA. Anyone attend or know how IL teams performed. Few months away from another start to a season although indoor is grinding away. We are in the 11v11 at Bridgeview.
For those of you that have kids currently playing club soccer this winter I'm curious: how many days a week does your club train and for how long? Do they play matches and how long are they? Don't need to reference which club. I've just been out of the game for too long. Wondering if things have changed in the last 7 years.
Two training sessions a week, about 3 hours total. No games aside from the relatively low-key indoor league they play in. The practice sessions started in January after taking December and most of November off. My son's only doing one of those training sessions a week and instead playing on a winter-only regional team that trains a day or two a week (November through March), depending on the week, and plays in a handful of tournaments over the winter.