Travel Soccer teams around NOVA let's discuss

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son's club played all three BRYC U9 boys team this season (Fall/Winter/Spring). I was favorably impressed by the playing style of the BRYC U9 teams - passing, spacing etc.. Seemed like they were learning some good things. I do not know anything about the BRYC coach or personnel. The one coach for six teams does sound bad.

I am not sure how BRYC handles CCL at these younger ages. Their U9 teams are not that strong this year and there are some powerhouse clubs in CCL. For example our club won almost all its games against BRYC U9 teams this year - several by large margins.

I'm an another club too and grew up in BRYC, but not there anymore.

I was talking to a U9 mom from BRYC on the sidelines and one of the players in the team you were playing was six years old so I'd take your blowout with a grain of salt.

They allow kids to play up and rotate their rosters fairly consistent. We played them 3 times in one season and faced a different roster each time.

I was also impressed with the skill of the players and the kids seem like they are really having a good time--even during a blowout. Their teams are strong later on due to investment in development not results young.

If you rack up enough losses, even kids can become numb to it. Good to hear they are having a good time and looking past the score.

[Anonymous]

So is it good for your kid to become numb to losing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So is it good for your kid to become numb to losing?

Depends. It's good in the sense that you want your kid to be able to shake off a result when they're simply overmatched. I've seen plenty of kids whose teams lose badly in U9 travel (or U8 crossover before that) who wind up doing quite well a year or two later.

But getting blown out a lot can wear on players (and, less importantly, parents). Some kids lose their enthusiasm after a while.

None of the travel leagues have good measures to force some parity in the early age groups. By the spring season in U11, NCSL has tiered its teams into divisions, so you have fewer mediocre teams playing truly elite teams. (And yes, NCSL still has a couple of those.)

Sometimes, an attentive technical staffer will make some schedule switches for more even games. I wish more people would make that effort.

Being challenged is good. Losing every game by 3-10 goals ... a little less so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So is it good for your kid to become numb to losing?

It's not good for your kid to have an inflated ego and get cocky from having every game be a 10-0 win when they are young.

The first time they actually face competition. They crumble. They look shell-shocked. It gets boring when it's happened 2 years running and the kids have lost out on development potential.

There's an in between in there that people should be striving for.

[Anonymous]

Probably a little *too* competitive. Very physical, sometimes with refs that let them get away with anything. And when the other team basically says "whatever" and mails it in for the rest of the game, they try to run up as many goals as possible.

On the plus side, they have good skills programs at U8 and under.

That may have happened at a game, but it's not the norm. FPYC certainly does not control refs. Also: Why would any team 'mail it in'? That's no good for anyone.

So if a team "mails it in" and the other teams scores more, who's fault is that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: Their teams are strong later on due to investment in development not results young.

How exactly is one coach for six teams at 9 and 10 an "investment in development" ?

There are clubs that put their best paid coaches at those ages and have small number of players per coach. That is an investment in development, what BRYC is doing sounds more like Ponzi scheme.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That may have happened at a game, but it's not the norm. FPYC certainly does not control refs. Also: Why would any team 'mail it in'? That's no good for anyone.

So if a team "mails it in" and the other teams scores more, who's fault is that?

FPYC's opponents in this case got sick of being shoved around, and they knew they'd give up a PK if they were even in the vicinity when a player fell in the box.

It's the only time I've seen a *biased* ref. Other reffing mistakes are generally just people being human -- single refs who aren't in good position to call offsides, young refs who are scared to blow the whistle, etc. No big deal. This guy was fussing with the coach and parents over nothing. Maybe he just didn't like the coach? Who knows?

The difference for FPYC as opposed to some other clubs -- they never dialed it back. No "pass the ball 10 times before you shoot," no "work on your left foot," no "OK, you can stop knocking the other team down with shoves from behind now." They were hell-bent on scoring as much as possible.

Compare that to a couple of other clubs that pass the ball like Barcelona, and when the score gets out of hand, they just pass MORE.

(On another note -- I've noticed in tournaments that the NCSL and some ODSL teams are better prepared for the games than the teams that have split off into YDL. But that might be a short-term thing. I don't know much about YDL -- are they still playing 5v5? That would mean they'd be unprepared for 7v7 tournament games, but in terms of long-term development, it'd be interesting to see how it turns out. Just another example of how little you can tell at U9 -- so many clubs have so many different approaches, and some are better suited toward getting results at U9. If the FPYC kids have good parents who are keeping them from getting big heads over meaningless U9 routs, they'll turn out fine, too.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Their teams are strong later on due to investment in development not results young.

How exactly is one coach for six teams at 9 and 10 an "investment in development" ?

There are clubs that put their best paid coaches at those ages and have small number of players per coach. That is an investment in development, what BRYC is doing sounds more like Ponzi scheme.

Is it literally one coach for six teams? Where do these teams play? Two in each age group in CCL/CCL2 -- that's four, so where are the next two? Not ODSL -- BRYC's ODSL teams are run out of their rec program.

Is it like the program VYS used to have, with one pro coach leading an "academy-style" age group while parent coaches (who were required to have licenses) led the teams on game days?

BRYC's costs seem low-ish for this age group - $1,610 in 2015-16, though it doesn't include tournament fees, and they enter a lot of tournaments.
http://www.brycsoccer.com/about-us/fees

[Anonymous]

[quote=AnonymousBRYC's costs seem low-ish for this age group - $1,610 in 2015-16, though it doesn't include tournament fees, and they enter a lot of tournaments.
http://www.brycsoccer.com/about-us/fees

Coming over from another club, I found BRYC to be less expensive for more overall training, especially when you figure in the 10% discount for paying your dues in one lump sum. However, our overall costs were higher as my child's team played in more tournaments, and farther away tournaments, associated with being on a much more competitive team. The training has been excellent but parents should know that this is not a club that seeks parent input - you do whatever the coach decides - which is typical for higher level clubs. Also the club is not forthcoming with information - tryout season is here but they haven't announced the coaching staff or even how teams will be set up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That may have happened at a game, but it's not the norm. FPYC certainly does not control refs. Also: Why would any team 'mail it in'? That's no good for anyone.

So if a team "mails it in" and the other teams scores more, who's fault is that?

FPYC's opponents in this case got sick of being shoved around, and they knew they'd give up a PK if they were even in the vicinity when a player fell in the box.

It's the only time I've seen a *biased* ref. Other reffing mistakes are generally just people being human -- single refs who aren't in good position to call offsides, young refs who are scared to blow the whistle, etc. No big deal. This guy was fussing with the coach and parents over nothing. Maybe he just didn't like the coach? Who knows?

The difference for FPYC as opposed to some other clubs -- they never dialed it back. No "pass the ball 10 times before you shoot," no "work on your left foot," no "OK, you can stop knocking the other team down with shoves from behind now." They were hell-bent on scoring as much as possible.

Compare that to a couple of other clubs that pass the ball like Barcelona, and when the score gets out of hand, they just pass MORE.

(On another note -- I've noticed in tournaments that the NCSL and some ODSL teams are better prepared for the games than the teams that have split off into YDL. But that might be a short-term thing. I don't know much about YDL -- are they still playing 5v5? That would mean they'd be unprepared for 7v7 tournament games, but in terms of long-term development, it'd be interesting to see how it turns out. Just another example of how little you can tell at U9 -- so many clubs have so many different approaches, and some are better suited toward getting results at U9. If the FPYC kids have good parents who are keeping them from getting big heads over meaningless U9 routs, they'll turn out fine, too.)

Oh yes -- Isn't this the game where your coach got a Yellow Card for yelling at the ref over a throw-in? Good role modeling there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That may have happened at a game, but it's not the norm. FPYC certainly does not control refs. Also: Why would any team 'mail it in'? That's no good for anyone.

So if a team "mails it in" and the other teams scores more, who's fault is that?

FPYC's opponents in this case got sick of being shoved around, and they knew they'd give up a PK if they were even in the vicinity when a player fell in the box.

It's the only time I've seen a *biased* ref. Other reffing mistakes are generally just people being human -- single refs who aren't in good position to call offsides, young refs who are scared to blow the whistle, etc. No big deal. This guy was fussing with the coach and parents over nothing. Maybe he just didn't like the coach? Who knows?

The difference for FPYC as opposed to some other clubs -- they never dialed it back. No "pass the ball 10 times before you shoot," no "work on your left foot," no "OK, you can stop knocking the other team down with shoves from behind now." They were hell-bent on scoring as much as possible.

Compare that to a couple of other clubs that pass the ball like Barcelona, and when the score gets out of hand, they just pass MORE.

(On another note -- I've noticed in tournaments that the NCSL and some ODSL teams are better prepared for the games than the teams that have split off into YDL. But that might be a short-term thing. I don't know much about YDL -- are they still playing 5v5? That would mean they'd be unprepared for 7v7 tournament games, but in terms of long-term development, it'd be interesting to see how it turns out. Just another example of how little you can tell at U9 -- so many clubs have so many different approaches, and some are better suited toward getting results at U9. If the FPYC kids have good parents who are keeping them from getting big heads over meaningless U9 routs, they'll turn out fine, too.)

Oh yes -- Isn't this the game where your coach got a Yellow Card for yelling at the ref over a throw-in? Good role modeling there.

I'll have to be careful about what I say here -- again, I wasn't there for the whole game, and it's not "my" team. I know people tried to get an explanation for the yellow card and were rebuffed. And what I saw of the game was a farce. Whatever grudge the ref had against the coach, he took out on the players. It was a classic power trip.

It wasn't the most "physical" game I've ever seen -- that dubious record is still held by a U9 rec All-Star team, not from FPYC, that was well-versed in "message" fouls.

[Anonymous]

The difference for FPYC as opposed to some other clubs -- they never dialed it back. No "pass the ball 10 times before you shoot," no "work on your left foot,"


Interesting, so a club doesn't dial it back as much as other clubs usually do when they play your team. Sounds like your team gets thumped a lot. Maybe they are where they shouldn't be. Maybe consider ODSL.

Also, what I've noticed is that when clubs are winning a lopsided match and a coach implements a passback restriction or 7-10 passes....it often makes it worse. The losing team chases the ball gets tired and/or deflated. The attacking team opens the field up creating lots of space, and it often makes it worse. Maybe that's what happened in this case, I don't know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The difference for FPYC as opposed to some other clubs -- they never dialed it back. No "pass the ball 10 times before you shoot," no "work on your left foot,"


Interesting, so a club doesn't dial it back as much as other clubs usually do when they play your team. Sounds like your team gets thumped a lot. Maybe they are where they shouldn't be. Maybe consider ODSL.

Also, what I've noticed is that when clubs are winning a lopsided match and a coach implements a passback restriction or 7-10 passes....it often makes it worse. The losing team chases the ball gets tired and/or deflated. The attacking team opens the field up creating lots of space, and it often makes it worse. Maybe that's what happened in this case, I don't know.

Yes and no. I've seen it from both sides at several levels. At U9, there are a lot of creative ways to even things out a little. Maybe that's when you put the kid who hasn't had much of a chance to play forward or goalkeeper in those spots. (Growing up, with very little below the U12 level, I was already a defensive specialist when I started playing travel, so the only goals I scored were in blowouts in which we shook up the lineup -- we usually knew ahead of time that the other team was going to be overmatched, so I'd start up front. It wasn't just a nice thing to do -- it helped me develop. I needed to see another part of the field on occasion.)

"Work on your left foot" is a good one, too. Everyone needs to develop his or her weaker foot.

And yeah, NCSL scheduling doesn't necessarily make it easy. We have one club that has one team, and they're matched up with a bunch of bigger clubs' C teams.

ODSL has turned into such a strange competition with so many clubs pulling out and with so many clubs putting a third team in NCSL. You have the D and E teams of some massive clubs like Loudoun and Alexandria, and then you have a couple of clubs that put most of their teams in ODSL. It's a pity. ODSL does a lot of things right (they're ahead of the curve in adapting to the birth-year age groups) and really should be that nice middle ground between rec and top-flight travel, but too many clubs aren't treating it that way any more.

[Anonymous]

There is a lot of talk about younger teams doing it right. I think Alexandria boys play some beautiful soccer. Coaching is great. They have their best coaches teaching at U8 (crossover), U9, U10, etc. They are great to watch and their "A" and "B" teams are both very strong.

[Anonymous]

"Work on your left foot" is a good one, too. Everyone needs to develop his or her weaker foot.

Work on left foot...so if it goes in, it's considered running up the score. If the kid misses, then the opponent feels better about themselves?

This made me think...why do tournaments have goal differential as the first tie breaker normally? This promotes running up the score.