Why are some kindergarten teams so much stronger?

[Anonymous]

9:18 - in Arlington, scores aren't kept till 2nd grade. But the kids know who's winning, and generally by how much.

2nd grade is when they start keeping score so they can seed the divisions more fairly. Though I think they re-seeded teams for this upcoming spring season; we had some very lopsided wins last season and none of those teams are in our division this time around; the teams we're playing have similar records to ours. Which is better - nobody likes to lose by a lot, and winning by a lot is awkward.

[Anonymous]

Sorry to burst the coach's bubble (I coach also), but sooo much of it is just the innate ability of the kids on your team. I've coached teams that dominated and others that were routinely crushed. Yes, coaching plays a huge part in development, but sometimes you just get a few kids assigned to your team who "get it" and are goal scoring machines or defensive stalwarts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:22:19 here - I think it helps that in this area, soccer and sports start VERY early for some - well before kindergarten. I'm athletic, and physical activity is a priority for me, so I've had my very energetic daughter enrolled in physical activities since she was very young. Swimming, tumbling, dance, gymnastics, "little olympians", t-ball, soccer, lacrosse, basketball, etc. She's always done something at least once a week. So kindergarten rec came pretty naturally to her - she enjoyed it, she was decent at it, and a lot of the other kids were in the same position. (plus we had a bunch of former soccer players - one pro - as our volunteer coaching staff.)

When you have a bunch of kids like that who happen to end up on the same team, it can lead to some lopsided wins over teams of kids who have never touched a ball.

that's the question - how does a club 'happen to' end up with a bunch of athletic/experienced kids at Kindergarten year after year? it does not seem random at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:22:19 here - I think it helps that in this area, soccer and sports start VERY early for some - well before kindergarten. I'm athletic, and physical activity is a priority for me, so I've had my very energetic daughter enrolled in physical activities since she was very young. Swimming, tumbling, dance, gymnastics, "little olympians", t-ball, soccer, lacrosse, basketball, etc. She's always done something at least once a week. So kindergarten rec came pretty naturally to her - she enjoyed it, she was decent at it, and a lot of the other kids were in the same position. (plus we had a bunch of former soccer players - one pro - as our volunteer coaching staff.)

When you have a bunch of kids like that who happen to end up on the same team, it can lead to some lopsided wins over teams of kids who have never touched a ball.

that's the question - how does a club 'happen to' end up with a bunch of athletic/experienced kids at Kindergarten year after year? it does not seem random at all.

My kids are at a school with lots of diversity and a parental base that is focused solely on academics. Culturally sports is not a thing. It is a special ialized County school. A neighborhood over is a traditional school with kids who have parents that all played sports. It's amazing some of our teams can accomplish what they have given the player pool and commitment. More often, you have 2 talented kids who can carry the lot only so far. The school gets crushed a lot and when they do well (both my kids had fantastic coaches and were able to progress to winning almost everything)--it's 99% coaching/teaching and working with whatever strength you can bring out in a kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:22:19 here - I think it helps that in this area, soccer and sports start VERY early for some - well before kindergarten. I'm athletic, and physical activity is a priority for me, so I've had my very energetic daughter enrolled in physical activities since she was very young. Swimming, tumbling, dance, gymnastics, "little olympians", t-ball, soccer, lacrosse, basketball, etc. She's always done something at least once a week. So kindergarten rec came pretty naturally to her - she enjoyed it, she was decent at it, and a lot of the other kids were in the same position. (plus we had a bunch of former soccer players - one pro - as our volunteer coaching staff.)

When you have a bunch of kids like that who happen to end up on the same team, it can lead to some lopsided wins over teams of kids who have never touched a ball.

that's the question - how does a club 'happen to' end up with a bunch of athletic/experienced kids at Kindergarten year after year? it does not seem random at all.

I know one school where parents were incredibly exclusionary. We had several players on our team from their school because the parent cliques and spots were jockeyed to win. It's Rec so this behavior is nutso.

[Anonymous]

It comes down to athletic and AGGRESSIVE kids in kindergarten. My husband played soccer growing up in Latin America so our kids started kicking a ball around as soon as they could walk. Our oldest, who is skinny and short, was the most skilled on the team by far but not the most aggressive so the field (he would pass to open players, stay in his position, and didn't like physically pushing to get the ball) so he did well but didn't dominate. Parents who were from Europe or Latin America or who played college soccer told us they loved to watch him play. Our younger son, who is tall and solidly built) was really aggressive and a ball hog along with another kid on the team. They won every loose (50-50) ball, they dribbled around players, shielded the ball, then exploded down the field, and kicked hard. They also pushed other kids off the ball and stole it away. They both weren't afraid of contact with other players and in fact craved it. That team never even came close to losing. My husband would tell my son to pass and use skills instead of relying on being physical but the coach loved that style of play because they won. My husband called it "ugly soccer" that American coaches love.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It comes down to athletic and AGGRESSIVE kids in kindergarten. My husband played soccer growing up in Latin America so our kids started kicking a ball around as soon as they could walk. Our oldest, who is skinny and short, was the most skilled on the team by far but not the most aggressive so the field (he would pass to open players, stay in his position, and didn't like physically pushing to get the ball) so he did well but didn't dominate. Parents who were from Europe or Latin America or who played college soccer told us they loved to watch him play. Our younger son, who is tall and solidly built) was really aggressive and a ball hog along with another kid on the team. They won every loose (50-50) ball, they dribbled around players, shielded the ball, then exploded down the field, and kicked hard. They also pushed other kids off the ball and stole it away. They both weren't afraid of contact with other players and in fact craved it. That team never even came close to losing. My husband would tell my son to pass and use skills instead of relying on being physical but the coach loved that style of play because they won. My husband called it "ugly soccer" that American coaches love.

YEP

[Anonymous]

^^ the 2 big, pushy kids would make A team. Your skilled, smart-playing small kid would be D or below. That's the way it works around here. Sigh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^ the 2 big, pushy kids would make A team. Your skilled, smart-playing small kid would be D or below. That's the way it works around here. Sigh.

It's because the Clubs get bigger and make more $ by posting wins and gotsoccer points. The way you win especially in the younger years is by the big, pushy kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry to burst the coach's bubble (I coach also), but sooo much of it is just the innate ability of the kids on your team. I've coached teams that dominated and others that were routinely crushed. Yes, coaching plays a huge part in development, but sometimes you just get a few kids assigned to your team who "get it" and are goal scoring machines or defensive stalwarts.

+1

I've seen absolute idiots who coach teams that, if scores were kept, would dominate the U6 league. I've seen exceptional coaches who have better priorities.

And at that age, 1-2 kids can make an immense difference. You're playing 3v3 or 4v4, and not that many kids know how to pass. Find one fast kid who can catch up to anyone breaking away toward the Pugg goal and then take it the other way, and you'll "win."

Also -- what clubs have the same U6 coaches year after year? Not the same coaches running the club-wide training programs, which would be evenly distributed from school to school. The U6 kids I've seen throughout Northern Virginia are playing rec league with parent coaches, and the parents move along with their kids. Green Suburb Elementary doesn't hire a U6 coach who stays for several years. So each age group will be playing with a different coach. Do some clubs actually assign a bad U6 coach to one school and a good U6 coach to another? (And are they always breaking up the teams strictly on those district lines, or will an elementary school account for 2-3 teams one year and 1-2 the next?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sorry to burst the coach's bubble (I coach also), but sooo much of it is just the innate ability of the kids on your team. I've coached teams that dominated and others that were routinely crushed. Yes, coaching plays a huge part in development, but sometimes you just get a few kids assigned to your team who "get it" and are goal scoring machines or defensive stalwarts.

+1

I've seen absolute idiots who coach teams that, if scores were kept, would dominate the U6 league. I've seen exceptional coaches who have better priorities.

And at that age, 1-2 kids can make an immense difference. You're playing 3v3 or 4v4, and not that many kids know how to pass. Find one fast kid who can catch up to anyone breaking away toward the Pugg goal and then take it the other way, and you'll "win."

Also -- what clubs have the same U6 coaches year after year? Not the same coaches running the club-wide training programs, which would be evenly distributed from school to school. The U6 kids I've seen throughout Northern Virginia are playing rec league with parent coaches, and the parents move along with their kids. Green Suburb Elementary doesn't hire a U6 coach who stays for several years. So each age group will be playing with a different coach. Do some clubs actually assign a bad U6 coach to one school and a good U6 coach to another? (And are they always breaking up the teams strictly on those district lines, or will an elementary school account for 2-3 teams one year and 1-2 the next?)

OP here. yes, most every team has 1-2 of those kids, but the strong team has 3 or 4 in first season in K! and it seems year after year this club has strongest K team with more big/fast kids. not random.

[Anonymous]

OMG this is the dumbest soccer thread in some time. Please stop!

[Anonymous]

Younger siblings
Preschool teams/classes
Coaches pick teams of know good players

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OMG this is the dumbest soccer thread in some time. Please stop!

+100. Hoping this thread dies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG this is the dumbest soccer thread in some time. Please stop!

+100. Hoping this thread dies.

why is it dumb and needs to die?