Travel Soccer teams around NOVA let's discuss Part II

[Anonymous]

I'm pretty excited that SYC is getting some new people. Turned down a spot there at the lower boys age group. There were just too many kids/ too many teams. But if the new people are good, we would consider the club again. It is our closest big club.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes he did. From conversations with other parents, it seems that prior to last year, travel was very fluid among the different teams within a given age group. Players on the C team that were doing well would be pulled into B team games. All that was stopped effective this fall. In addition, I attended an SYC Town Hall last December where they stated the way travel 'billing' (for lack of a better word) would be handled. Previously the team managers handled it but going forward it would be handled centrally (which makes sense from an efficiency standpoint). Apparently the result was that the fees were doubled (and they said this was to account for the numerous travel scholarships that are awarded). So yes, there has been some pretty big changes in the last two years.

It also seems that the former TD and other coaches who were let go were notified via email (no face-to-face meeting) and were not given an opportunity to present their case, with what essentially amounted to two days notice. Of course if they were in at-will contracts then that's the way it goes, but that handling of the situation doesn't reflect well on SYC. I have gathered that there are a lot of politics involved at the top of the soccer committee and this is probably reflective of that.

It's been about a week since the announcement and likely a few practices, how's it going?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes he did. From conversations with other parents, it seems that prior to last year, travel was very fluid among the different teams within a given age group. Players on the C team that were doing well would be pulled into B team games. All that was stopped effective this fall. In addition, I attended an SYC Town Hall last December where they stated the way travel 'billing' (for lack of a better word) would be handled. Previously the team managers handled it but going forward it would be handled centrally (which makes sense from an efficiency standpoint). Apparently the result was that the fees were doubled (and they said this was to account for the numerous travel scholarships that are awarded). So yes, there has been some pretty big changes in the last two years.

It also seems that the former TD and other coaches who were let go were notified via email (no face-to-face meeting) and were not given an opportunity to present their case, with what essentially amounted to two days notice. Of course if they were in at-will contracts then that's the way it goes, but that handling of the situation doesn't reflect well on SYC. I have gathered that there are a lot of politics involved at the top of the soccer committee and this is probably reflective of that.

It's been about a week since the announcement and likely a few practices, how's it going?

I have a distinct feeling I am giving someone in the upper echelon of SYC anonymous feedback...but feedback is feedback. We have had one practice, which I think went well but. Didn't seem to differ too much from practice with prior TD. New TD was not aware that we were participating in a futsal league and had a game scheduled for Sunday. (In all fairness, he had only been on the job a day or two and SYC isn't known for its excellent communication skills so I am not surprised he didn't know.) TD said he'd send an email to let the parents know what the deal was. No email arrived but a coach did show up to the game (not the TD). In talking with other parents on the team, there were a lot of (unanswered) questions as to why the former TD was let go, and lamenting that he was gone, as he was liked (at least by the parents I spoke with). Which is not a knock on the new TD - we haven't gotten a chance to know him.

At the game on Sunday an LMVSC coach stayed to watch my child's game. He mentioned that he used to report to Coach Este and has taken on an additional team as a result of Coach Este's move. He wanted to watch our SYC team...not sure if he was sizing up the competition or what. If he was it would be a little ridiculous as these are U Littles. He did mention that LMVSC 'starts 'em young' (he was there with U13s for futsal).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes he did. From conversations with other parents, it seems that prior to last year, travel was very fluid among the different teams within a given age group. Players on the C team that were doing well would be pulled into B team games. All that was stopped effective this fall. In addition, I attended an SYC Town Hall last December where they stated the way travel 'billing' (for lack of a better word) would be handled. Previously the team managers handled it but going forward it would be handled centrally (which makes sense from an efficiency standpoint). Apparently the result was that the fees were doubled (and they said this was to account for the numerous travel scholarships that are awarded). So yes, there has been some pretty big changes in the last two years.

It also seems that the former TD and other coaches who were let go were notified via email (no face-to-face meeting) and were not given an opportunity to present their case, with what essentially amounted to two days notice. Of course if they were in at-will contracts then that's the way it goes, but that handling of the situation doesn't reflect well on SYC. I have gathered that there are a lot of politics involved at the top of the soccer committee and this is probably reflective of that.

I would suspect that the competition both from spots on a particular squad and for playing minutes is about to get a much harder edge and that there will be plenty of hurt feelings to go around as SYC transitions into "elite" club soccer.

The good news is that the kids don't seem to usually take it as hard as the parents if they're asked to play on a less competitive team.

What are you even talking about? SYC isn't transitioning to "elite" club soccer. They're a mess. They just fired a bunch of coaches in the middle of the year. Who would want to go to a club that does things like that? For parents of elite players especially, they put a lot of time and thought into finding the situation they think is optimal for their kid's development. At SYC, even if they thought they found such a situation (like the coach, like the training, like the club's philosophy), they now know that it could all change in the middle of the year without any warning or explanation, just b/c Dotty wants to make a change. Elite players will run away from a club run like that, not toward it.

Same with coaches too. When they land a coaching job, they count on it being set for the year. For the ones who just got canned, it will be almost impossible to find new coaching jobs at this time of year. That's a lot of lost income to try and replace. Who would want to take a job with an organization like that?

Besides, even if the new TD turns out great, SYC is too close to DA and ECNL clubs to ever make it to elite status. Heck, the couldn't even get into CCL I. At best they will be a feeder club.

[Anonymous]

Gotta say I agree 100% with PP. SYC is not elite. Not even close, for all the reasons PP mentioned. Speaking of what leagues they play in, what's the deal? Last April the plan was to transition into EDP (I think) for the 2019 season, but it looks like the vast majority of teams are still in NCSL. Does anyone know?

[Anonymous]

What are you even talking about? SYC isn't transitioning to "elite" club soccer. They're a mess. They just fired a bunch of coaches in the middle of the year. Who would want to go to a club that does things like that? For parents of elite players especially, they put a lot of time and thought into finding the situation they think is optimal for their kid's development. At SYC, even if they thought they found such a situation (like the coach, like the training, like the club's philosophy), they now know that it could all change in the middle of the year without any warning or explanation, just b/c Dotty wants to make a change. Elite players will run away from a club run like that, not toward it.

Same with coaches too. When they land a coaching job, they count on it being set for the year. For the ones who just got canned, it will be almost impossible to find new coaching jobs at this time of year. That's a lot of lost income to try and replace. Who would want to take a job with an organization like that?

Besides, even if the new TD turns out great, SYC is too close to DA and ECNL clubs to ever make it to elite status. Heck, the couldn't even get into CCL I. At best they will be a feeder club.

Transition: change or passage from one state or stage to another.

I don't know how long it will take or whether, in the long run, it will be successful, but that's what they're going for. Yep, this has been a rough start. Yep, SYC is not elite (except for 2 teams, whose coaches have now apparently been fired). But five years from now, when no one remembers the messy TD transition and Este's crew has had a chance to build?

The argument about being too close to DA/ECNL clubs and the leagues they couldn't get into last year isn't even worth replying to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What are you even talking about? SYC isn't transitioning to "elite" club soccer. They're a mess. They just fired a bunch of coaches in the middle of the year. Who would want to go to a club that does things like that? For parents of elite players especially, they put a lot of time and thought into finding the situation they think is optimal for their kid's development. At SYC, even if they thought they found such a situation (like the coach, like the training, like the club's philosophy), they now know that it could all change in the middle of the year without any warning or explanation, just b/c Dotty wants to make a change. Elite players will run away from a club run like that, not toward it.

Same with coaches too. When they land a coaching job, they count on it being set for the year. For the ones who just got canned, it will be almost impossible to find new coaching jobs at this time of year. That's a lot of lost income to try and replace. Who would want to take a job with an organization like that?

Besides, even if the new TD turns out great, SYC is too close to DA and ECNL clubs to ever make it to elite status. Heck, the couldn't even get into CCL I. At best they will be a feeder club.

Transition: change or passage from one state or stage to another.

I don't know how long it will take or whether, in the long run, it will be successful, but that's what they're going for. Yep, this has been a rough start. Yep, SYC is not elite (except for 2 teams, whose coaches have now apparently been fired). But five years from now, when no one remembers the messy TD transition and Este's crew has had a chance to build?

The argument about being too close to DA/ECNL clubs and the leagues they couldn't get into last year isn't even worth replying to.

You can't be "elite" without good players, and good players have far too many other choices in their backyard.

[Anonymous]

My thought is that clubs don't choose EDP. EDP is team specific and each team applies and then EDP accepts or rejects that team. EDP doesn't not accept sucky teams even if they are from big clubs. With that said...some sucky teams do sneak into EDP somehow but no one is perfect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What are you even talking about? SYC isn't transitioning to "elite" club soccer. They're a mess. They just fired a bunch of coaches in the middle of the year. Who would want to go to a club that does things like that? For parents of elite players especially, they put a lot of time and thought into finding the situation they think is optimal for their kid's development. At SYC, even if they thought they found such a situation (like the coach, like the training, like the club's philosophy), they now know that it could all change in the middle of the year without any warning or explanation, just b/c Dotty wants to make a change. Elite players will run away from a club run like that, not toward it.

Same with coaches too. When they land a coaching job, they count on it being set for the year. For the ones who just got canned, it will be almost impossible to find new coaching jobs at this time of year. That's a lot of lost income to try and replace. Who would want to take a job with an organization like that?

Besides, even if the new TD turns out great, SYC is too close to DA and ECNL clubs to ever make it to elite status. Heck, the couldn't even get into CCL I. At best they will be a feeder club.

Transition: change or passage from one state or stage to another.

I don't know how long it will take or whether, in the long run, it will be successful, but that's what they're going for. Yep, this has been a rough start. Yep, SYC is not elite (except for 2 teams, whose coaches have now apparently been fired). But five years from now, when no one remembers the messy TD transition and Este's crew has had a chance to build?

The argument about being too close to DA/ECNL clubs and the leagues they couldn't get into last year isn't even worth replying to.

But those are the very reasons that - no matter how could a job "Este's crew" does - SYC will never be considered an elite club.

They aren't going to be able to attract and retain the best players.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What are you even talking about? SYC isn't transitioning to "elite" club soccer. They're a mess. They just fired a bunch of coaches in the middle of the year. Who would want to go to a club that does things like that? For parents of elite players especially, they put a lot of time and thought into finding the situation they think is optimal for their kid's development. At SYC, even if they thought they found such a situation (like the coach, like the training, like the club's philosophy), they now know that it could all change in the middle of the year without any warning or explanation, just b/c Dotty wants to make a change. Elite players will run away from a club run like that, not toward it.

Same with coaches too. When they land a coaching job, they count on it being set for the year. For the ones who just got canned, it will be almost impossible to find new coaching jobs at this time of year. That's a lot of lost income to try and replace. Who would want to take a job with an organization like that?

Besides, even if the new TD turns out great, SYC is too close to DA and ECNL clubs to ever make it to elite status. Heck, the couldn't even get into CCL I. At best they will be a feeder club.

Transition: change or passage from one state or stage to another.

I don't know how long it will take or whether, in the long run, it will be successful, but that's what they're going for. Yep, this has been a rough start. Yep, SYC is not elite (except for 2 teams, whose coaches have now apparently been fired). But five years from now, when no one remembers the messy TD transition and Este's crew has had a chance to build?

The argument about being too close to DA/ECNL clubs and the leagues they couldn't get into last year isn't even worth replying to.

You can't be "elite" without good players, and good players have far too many other choices in their backyard.

5 years from now? Their last TD was gone after 2.

[Anonymous]

Who's Este's "crew"? Are they planning on raiding LMVSC for coaches and players? I'm sure the current staff and players must be thrilled at the prospect...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
But those are the very reasons that - no matter how could a job "Este's crew" does - SYC will never be considered an elite club.

They aren't going to be able to attract and retain the best players.

It sounds like you classify an elite club as only those that are topped off by a DA (i.e. Arlington, Loudoun, Bethesda). If that's the case, then you're right--SYC will probably not ever get there, as the best players will leave for DAs. However, they can get to the level of the best non-DA clubs in the region like McLean, Alexandria, LMVSC.

As far as the "raiding" question...There's no such thing as "raiding" for players. We don't sign multi-year contracts with clubs, and if we (as parents advocating for our players) don't like something, the club tells us to go f*ck ourselves. No parent or player owes a club a single thing beyond the fees which we agree to pay. Pay-to-play...it's a crappy system, but let's not pretend it should only work for the clubs.

Yeah, I think there will be lots of players and several coaches who go over to SYC. The worst part of that is that it seems that the coach of the teams at SYC that are already doing very well (06 and 07 Boys, both in their top brackets at the Jeff Cup) has already been fired. That seems pretty dumb.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
But those are the very reasons that - no matter how could a job "Este's crew" does - SYC will never be considered an elite club.

They aren't going to be able to attract and retain the best players.

It sounds like you classify an elite club as only those that are topped off by a DA (i.e. Arlington, Loudoun, Bethesda). If that's the case, then you're right--SYC will probably not ever get there, as the best players will leave for DAs. However, they can get to the level of the best non-DA clubs in the region like McLean, Alexandria, LMVSC.

As far as the "raiding" question...There's no such thing as "raiding" for players. We don't sign multi-year contracts with clubs, and if we (as parents advocating for our players) don't like something, the club tells us to go f*ck ourselves. No parent or player owes a club a single thing beyond the fees which we agree to pay. Pay-to-play...it's a crappy system, but let's not pretend it should only work for the clubs.

Yeah, I think there will be lots of players and several coaches who go over to SYC. The worst part of that is that it seems that the coach of the teams at SYC that are already doing very well (06 and 07 Boys, both in their top brackets at the Jeff Cup) has already been fired. That seems pretty dumb.

You think that many players/coaches will actually leave? As for coaches, if several are to come that means that others would need to be let go in order to accommodate. That could be a problematic end to the spring season for those coaches being let go of their roles. As for timing it may take a good amount of time before the club is better organized and if the prior TD only got 2 years who is to say that the new one will get more. Was Lee not liked at the club? How was the relationship with the other coaches. As for players I'm sure many will come over to try-outs but unlikely they will leave a top team to go to a new club's second.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
But those are the very reasons that - no matter how could a job "Este's crew" does - SYC will never be considered an elite club.

They aren't going to be able to attract and retain the best players.

It sounds like you classify an elite club as only those that are topped off by a DA (i.e. Arlington, Loudoun, Bethesda). If that's the case, then you're right--SYC will probably not ever get there, as the best players will leave for DAs. However, they can get to the level of the best non-DA clubs in the region like McLean, Alexandria, LMVSC.

As far as the "raiding" question...There's no such thing as "raiding" for players. We don't sign multi-year contracts with clubs, and if we (as parents advocating for our players) don't like something, the club tells us to go f*ck ourselves. No parent or player owes a club a single thing beyond the fees which we agree to pay. Pay-to-play...it's a crappy system, but let's not pretend it should only work for the clubs.

Yeah, I think there will be lots of players and several coaches who go over to SYC. The worst part of that is that it seems that the coach of the teams at SYC that are already doing very well (06 and 07 Boys, both in their top brackets at the Jeff Cup) has already been fired. That seems pretty dumb.

The issue isn't from the player side, it's from the coaching side. Este and whoever goes over most likely has a clause in their contract not to recruit from LMVSC. It's pretty standard language in coaching contracts. If at any point he recruits coaches to come over or players, they would be liable and SYC would be as well if they were aware of these clauses. Something they most definitely are since, again, it's standard language for contracts.

[Anonymous]

At least one (and I think two) LMVSC coaches have already come over to SYC - I think this is the 'crew' being referred to and I wouldn't be surprised to see more LMVSC coaches make the switch. Also, I don't think anyone currently classifies LMVSC as a 'top elite non-DA club', at least on this board. It's respected but I certainly wouldn't consider it elite, and that has nothing to do with not having a DA program. And I think the average person associates the term 'elite' with DA.

To the SYC powers-that-be that are trolling this board: it would behoove you to hold a town hall meeting for travel soccer families. Explain to them the changes in coaches, who will be coaching what team, as well as the new vision/path for SYC travel soccer. It has most definitely changed since your December travel townhall and it is not fun to be in the dark. You might want to consider a separate townhall in the spring that is more catered toward the ULittles getting ready to try out for U9 travel, as this will be Coach Este's freshman class.