travel or stay in rec?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do not need to worry about "falling behind."

The main reason for switching from rec to travel for us was that my kids wanted formal practice more than once a week....

lol no you wanted that

[Anonymous]

Many clubs have a pre-travel program at that age that have more structured practices with professional coaching but not the same team/pressure as full-on travel. Could be a compromise position.

Passion for the game/fun is the most important thing at that age. But professional coaching does make a difference in skills over time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

OP don’t listen to this BS . This is a dumb parent whose kid will do D 3 maybe and or drop out of college ball first year if they make it at all.

Too much travel is bad for injuries and it’s a scam



Mother of more than one division 1 player whose kids didn’t do travel til 5 th grade at the earliest. I live in a very competitive area.

If your kid is motivated on their own you know still zero reason to start that young

[Anonymous]

It's accurate that the girls on the travel team will be stronger players than your DD in a years time. Professional coaching and more time playing against higher competition will do that. So in that sense she will fall behind.

But it is inaccurate that at a U9 level it will matter in any meaningful way for the future. If she want to keep playing and wants to play at a higher level, you sign her up for a few supplemental trainings and send her outside with a ball and she will "catch up" just fine.

Rosters open at U11 when they start fielding more players, so that's a good entry year.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't recommend signing up for travel unless your child is the one pushing for it. When my daughter was U8-U10, she had no interest in travel and was happy in rec and developmental leagues and trying out other sports. By U11, she got much more competitive and started setting her sights on travel soccer, training more on her own and asking us to sign her up for supplemental skills sessions. She didn't make a travel team until U12. While she is on a lower level team, she is having fun with her teammates and improving her individual and team skills. By U12/U13, quite a few of the kids who had started travel in U8/U9 were dropping out of travel to pursue other sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

Thank you for the actual honest response. You will fall behind, it will depend on her natural talent if she can make that up, but it gets harder every year. It's not drastic at her age, but it compounds over time.

+1 and +1
Have her go out for a travel team practice w one of her friends. She will feel good about making the "travel team." Trust me, it will be an ego boost. If she waits a year, the peers will be on the top team and she will be on the B team. And unless you start supplimenting with extra training, she probably will not catch up for a few years, if at all.

-Trust me, just have her join travel a year early w her buddies...her skills will grow massively compared to staying on rec for another year. And yes, the kids who were never really into it, usually quit after 3 years in travel do do other stuff..which is great for them. But playing the catch-up game.. is really really hard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

Thank you for the actual honest response. You will fall behind, it will depend on her natural talent if she can make that up, but it gets harder every year. It's not drastic at her age, but it compounds over time.

+1 and +1
Have her go out for a travel team practice w one of her friends. She will feel good about making the "travel team." Trust me, it will be an ego boost. If she waits a year, the peers will be on the top team and she will be on the B team. And unless you start supplimenting with extra training, she probably will not catch up for a few years, if at all.

-Trust me, just have her join travel a year early w her buddies...her skills will grow massively compared to staying on rec for another year. And yes, the kids who were never really into it, usually quit after 3 years in travel do do other stuff..which is great for them. But playing the catch-up game.. is really really hard.

The ego boost is a horrible excuse to justify something she's not that in to. Don't be that parent. Let your kid find joy in their sport and provide the right environment for their level, which sounds like rec.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

OP don’t listen to this BS . This is a dumb parent whose kid will do D 3 maybe and or drop out of college ball first year if they make it at all.

Too much travel is bad for injuries and it’s a scam



Mother of more than one division 1 player whose kids didn’t do travel til 5 th grade at the earliest. I live in a very competitive area.

If your kid is motivated on their own you know still zero reason to start that young

Yes, assuming everyone's kids here are the athletic equal of Alex Morgan, who didn't do club until 14, you're fine staying in rec.

Now, for the very few willing to admit their kid isn't a world-class athlete, there is an obvious development benefit to being in travel earlier. Of course, this is supposed to be fun, so don't put your kid in travel if you don't think they'll enjoy it.

[Anonymous]

I observed some Montgomery County travel tryouts this spring and saw both long-time travel players and MSI classic players competing for spots. They all performed very well and from my eyes, similarly. The travel girls had strong technical skills and could juggle for days; the MSI classic girls had humility, team spirit, and tenacity—they really wanted it and didn’t assume they’d make it. From the tryouts and sideline chats, it seems that sometimes the better path is a classic or “travel-lite” team with 2 practices a week. The right coach and environment make all the difference—especially when even young players can lose their love of the game under too much pressure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

This is hysterical! Thanks for the laugh!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

This is hysterical! Thanks for the laugh!

This site is a hoot. A simple question is asked and out of the woodwork will come 5 people to insult everyone, flex their inner a-hole, and brag about their 10 year-old doing bicycle kicks in the yard, scoring 20 goals per game, and juggling to 1000. A serious response applicable to the average kid trying to enjoy the sport will immediately be met with attacks that their kid sucks at soccer.

[Anonymous]

Unless your kid makes the 1st or 2nd travel team, don’t bother. Anything less is glorified rec for way more money and way more time commitment for all of you. Let her enjoy rec soccer and if she gets to the point where it’s not fun for her anymore because her skills have outpaced others, then it will be time to consider travel.

[Anonymous]

OP might want to check this other thread for some perspective of a U12 parent who waited.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1274459.page

Also note all the people there discussing the advantage of getting in early for making the team. If your kid is a freak athlete, will do expensive private training in lieu of the extra practices, or will spend hundreds of hours alone in the yard working on juggling and dribbling/shooting drills, you can probably safely wait. If you have a slightly above average athlete who will barely practice extra on his/her own, unfortunately, you may have to risk travel earlier than you like or you'll get left behind.

I watched this happen to one of my daughter's best friends. She was one of the strongest in rec when they were all 7-9 years old. All the other strong players left rec for travel teams in second and third grade. This girl said she just wanted to stay in rec, both Spring and Fall. She was a good runner, still a good athlete, smart, did a couple summer camps put on by the local high school, but otherwise no extra practice. My daughter went to a couple of her rec games to cheer for her friend. This friend was the best rec player left there, but half the kids were barely playing. In fifth grade, she changed her mind and decided to try out for the same travel club as her school friends. She couldn't even make the B team, and she was shocked at the gap that had formed in 2 years. She definitely could have made a team at another club, but the whole point was to play at the same club as her friends (who were mixed between A and B there). So she instead quit soccer.

I often hate aspects of travel as much as others, and the race into travel for 6-8 year olds is ridiculous. But people are doing a (dishonest) disservice to others claiming that it's so easy to just wait and join later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP might want to check this other thread for some perspective of a U12 parent who waited.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1274459.page

Also note all the people there discussing the advantage of getting in early for making the team. If your kid is a freak athlete, will do expensive private training in lieu of the extra practices, or will spend hundreds of hours alone in the yard working on juggling and dribbling/shooting drills, you can probably safely wait. If you have a slightly above average athlete who will barely practice extra on his/her own, unfortunately, you may have to risk travel earlier than you like or you'll get left behind.

I watched this happen to one of my daughter's best friends. She was one of the strongest in rec when they were all 7-9 years old. All the other strong players left rec for travel teams in second and third grade. This girl said she just wanted to stay in rec, both Spring and Fall. She was a good runner, still a good athlete, smart, did a couple summer camps put on by the local high school, but otherwise no extra practice. My daughter went to a couple of her rec games to cheer for her friend. This friend was the best rec player left there, but half the kids were barely playing. In fifth grade, she changed her mind and decided to try out for the same travel club as her school friends. She couldn't even make the B team, and she was shocked at the gap that had formed in 2 years. She definitely could have made a team at another club, but the whole point was to play at the same club as her friends (who were mixed between A and B there). So she instead quit soccer.

I often hate aspects of travel as much as others, and the race into travel for 6-8 year olds is ridiculous. But people are doing a (dishonest) disservice to others claiming that it's so easy to just wait and join later.

Thank you for yet another honest response as opposed to just making the OP feel better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing what you know now... what do you recommend?

My 1st grade DD currently plays rec and is on a team with a lot of friends from school. Half of her team tried out for different travel clubs and it sounds like most have made it. DD isn't really ready for travel (IMO), she likes playing but doesn't seen as motivated as some of her peers, but now she's pretty bummed her current team is being disbanded and keeps asking is she can try out too. My gut it telling me to find another rec team and do one more year on rec -- but my only worry is she will fall significantly behind those on travel. And I over thinking this? Do you recommend jumping to travel as early as possible.. or does 2nd grade vs 3rd grade really matter? (what about for a kid that will likely always be middle of the pack skill wise ?).

She will fall behind, plain and simple. At 2nd/3rd grade though, she will still be able to make the B team at a decent club. She may just start out closer to the bottom of the team later. So although she may be behind, she won't be iced out of travel soccer completely at that age. By about 5th/6th grade, she may be iced out of even B teams. If she aspires to ever make a decent club's A team, starting late will definitely make that harder.

B teams have lots of less motivated kids, so long as your kid does like the sport enough to enjoy extra practices. If she doesn't really want to be there, and becomes disruptive at practices because of it, that's not fair to the other kids, and the coach will be very frustrated.

If you have a decent club nearby home, and you don't mind potentially wasting $2-3k, this sounds like you should give it a try.

This is hysterical! Thanks for the laugh!

This site is a hoot. A simple question is asked and out of the woodwork will come 5 people to insult everyone, flex their inner a-hole, and brag about their 10 year-old doing bicycle kicks in the yard, scoring 20 goals per game, and juggling to 1000. A serious response applicable to the average kid trying to enjoy the sport will immediately be met with attacks that their kid sucks at soccer.

It's all about priorities. If you just want to have fun with friends, rec is great. Anyone who is remotely serious will want to move to a higher level since those teams constantly fold and have kids missing all the time. It's hard to take a sport seriously if half the team shows up to each practice.