u11 boys (Northern va)

[Anonymous]

Just moved back to the area (Northern Va) and looking for a home club for my DS, who will be a u11 this fall. The 4 that geographically make the most sense would be Arlington, Alexandria, McLean and SYC. Any big differences in playing/coaching style? I've reached out to each but I guess most haven't started practices yet so he hasn't been able to come out to play.

[Anonymous]

Is your son going to be playing on the top team? If not - they're all fine - just pick the one that's closest.

If your son is hoping to play for the first team then
- Arlington once you get to the Academy age group (which might be U12?) and Alexandria in general have better coaching than the other two
- Alexandria and SYC play MLS Next, whereas Arlington and McLean play ECNL.

That said most teams will have filled their rosters months ago - so you may just have to call around to see who has a spot.

And these clubs are practicing already so you should start calling immediately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is your son going to be playing on the top team? If not - they're all fine - just pick the one that's closest.

If your son is hoping to play for the first team then
- Arlington once you get to the Academy age group (which might be U12?) and Alexandria in general have better coaching than the other two
- Alexandria and SYC play MLS Next, whereas Arlington and McLean play ECNL.

That said most teams will have filled their rosters months ago - so you may just have to call around to see who has a spot.

And these clubs are practicing already so you should start calling immediately.

OP here, thanks for the insight! He had been playing on the top team, but fully aware we are coming in late and he may have to work his way up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is your son going to be playing on the top team? If not - they're all fine - just pick the one that's closest.

If your son is hoping to play for the first team then
- Arlington once you get to the Academy age group (which might be U12?) and Alexandria in general have better coaching than the other two
- Alexandria and SYC play MLS Next, whereas Arlington and McLean play ECNL.

That said most teams will have filled their rosters months ago - so you may just have to call around to see who has a spot.

And these clubs are practicing already so you should start calling immediately.

OP here, thanks for the insight! He had been playing on the top team, but fully aware we are coming in late and he may have to work his way up.

OP, at least for Alexandria, just reach out to the coach of the team and asked to practice with the first team. They can give you feedback as to how ur kid did. We have a very talented DS and there has always been a spot for him regardless of when we’ve reached out to clubs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just moved back to the area (Northern Va) and looking for a home club for my DS, who will be a u11 this fall. The 4 that geographically make the most sense would be Arlington, Alexandria, McLean and SYC. Any big differences in playing/coaching style? I've reached out to each but I guess most haven't started practices yet so he hasn't been able to come out to play.

You asked about coaching style, so it's appropriate to mention that the youth coaches I've seen from SYC are the worst with non-stop, abusive (in my opinion) yelling and screaming at their players during games.

I don't know what's been going on at McLean but I have heard from parents of pretty talented young players who left McLean in the last year ot two because they weren't happy with the way things were going. Someone with first hand knowledge could probably comment with more info.

Both Arlington and Alexandria are solid clubs and we've had kids in our family play for each of these clubs at various times. There is a big rivalry between them, however, so having kids playing at these clubs always makes for interesting dinner conversations lol.

[Anonymous]

If U11 means boys born in 2013, I would rank their top teams as follows:

1) SYC - much better team than Arlington and Alexandria, I would say probably top 20 nationally. Their first team have been playing together since they were ~7 so it might be hard to get a spot unless your kid is very good. Their second team is not that good.

2) Arlington
3) McLean and Alexandria are about equal

This is based on watching these teams play last year. I have no knowledge about how likely they are to develop teams and kids going forward,

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just moved back to the area (Northern Va) and looking for a home club for my DS, who will be a u11 this fall. The 4 that geographically make the most sense would be Arlington, Alexandria, McLean and SYC. Any big differences in playing/coaching style? I've reached out to each but I guess most haven't started practices yet so he hasn't been able to come out to play.

You asked about coaching style, so it's appropriate to mention that the youth coaches I've seen from SYC are the worst with non-stop, abusive (in my opinion) yelling and screaming at their players during games.

I don't know what's been going on at McLean but I have heard from parents of pretty talented young players who left McLean in the last year ot two because they weren't happy with the way things were going. Someone with first hand knowledge could probably comment with more info.

Both Arlington and Alexandria are solid clubs and we've had kids in our family play for each of these clubs at various times. There is a big rivalry between them, however, so having kids playing at these clubs always makes for interesting dinner conversations lol.

So SYC teams are very good but having had a DS play against their top teams, i can verify what the PP said about the yelling. A parent friend whose kid tried out for SYC thought this was ok if their kid was up for it. They decided their kid was not. There are other top teams at big clubs who are yelly. Prob not as extreme as SYC but they all have them. So if it’s possible, ask to guest play to see what the coaching is like during games.

Our kid has always had quiet coaches during games and for him, this is important, to be able to make mistakes as well as trust his instincts. The coach gives feedbacks at half time. I don’t know how kids can develop being constantly yelled at from the sidelines.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just moved back to the area (Northern Va) and looking for a home club for my DS, who will be a u11 this fall. The 4 that geographically make the most sense would be Arlington, Alexandria, McLean and SYC. Any big differences in playing/coaching style? I've reached out to each but I guess most haven't started practices yet so he hasn't been able to come out to play.

You asked about coaching style, so it's appropriate to mention that the youth coaches I've seen from SYC are the worst with non-stop, abusive (in my opinion) yelling and screaming at their players during games.

I don't know what's been going on at McLean but I have heard from parents of pretty talented young players who left McLean in the last year ot two because they weren't happy with the way things were going. Someone with first hand knowledge could probably comment with more info.

Both Arlington and Alexandria are solid clubs and we've had kids in our family play for each of these clubs at various times. There is a big rivalry between them, however, so having kids playing at these clubs always makes for interesting dinner conversations lol.

So SYC teams are very good but having had a DS play against their top teams, i can verify what the PP said about the yelling. A parent friend whose kid tried out for SYC thought this was ok if their kid was up for it. They decided their kid was not. There are other top teams at big clubs who are yelly. Prob not as extreme as SYC but they all have them. So if it’s possible, ask to guest play to see what the coaching is like during games.

Our kid has always had quiet coaches during games and for him, this is important, to be able to make mistakes as well as trust his instincts. The coach gives feedbacks at half time. I don’t know how kids can develop being constantly yelled at from the sidelines.

Appreciate the feedback!