DA vs ECNL vs everything else

[Anonymous]

04 is where the rubber meets the road

04s that held out last year for their ECNL teams are not doing so in year 2 of DA. Just look at Mclean

05 and 06 are clearly choosing DA. It's not even debatable.

So yeah, 04 and down.

[Anonymous]

"Common kids" are needed to make soccer a popular sport in the nation. Top athletes will just be attracted to other sports if the sport can't connect with the common child. Is USA soccer blind to this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi. I have one in GDA and one in ECNL (yes, that is true). So I hope both leagues continue to do well. After reading a ton of posts on this board (and there is huge amount of them), I decided to pull some data to answer a few questions that are often discussed. The first is what league (and teams) would be considered "better". There are lots of ways to determine that title (subjective and objective). I decided to be objective and look at the 2018 college placements by club. Another would be placements on the national teams (have not done that yet). I am sure there are others. And, there are ways to further analyze placement for value (D1 vs D2, ACC versus Big 12 etc.) I picked 2018 as it is the broadest and most complete data set, and it is the closest moment at which the DA / ECNL switch hit. Future graduating classes can be analyzed to determine how this balance of power migrates back and forth between ECNL and DA for college placements (yes, just one of many yard sticks).

I also was able to see the perceived value pulled over to DA from ECNL during the initial organization of clubs (another popular argument on the board). And, one can see the presumed value pulled back (or not) on recent departures from DA. Last, you can look region by region too, and see where power was pulled or not pulled by DA from ECNL club transfers (e.g. West Coast). I am not providing anything here but data and a basic interpretation. I dont care about who wins this argument going on because it hurts / helps both my kids.

There were approximately 2,150 girls placed at the collegiate level (D1 and below) for the class 0f 2018 from about 375 clubs. Of that, 421 were placed by the top 15 clubs (top determined by volume only). That represents 20% of all placements from just 4% of the total clubs. Here is a snapshot of those clubs from top volume (#1 club in U.S. placing girls in college and below), and what percentage of the 421 placements they represented:

PDA 11%
Michigan Hawks 9%
Sting (Austin / Dallas) 8%
Ohio Premier 7%
FC Boston Scorpions 7%
Challenge SC 7%
Real Colorado 7%
Slammers FC 7%
East Meadow SC 6%
Colorado Storm 6%
NTH Tophat 6%
So Cal Blues 6%
FC Stars of Massachusetts 5%
LA Galaxy San Diego 5%
Tennessee SC 5%

During the inaugural year of the DA, 49% of these placements (207) were badged as DA (teams that left ECNL). Net, the power at the top was split 50/50 upon the divorce of ECNL and USSF. With the recent defections of PDA, Michigan Hawks, and FC Stars, the balance would in theory shift back to ECNL in a 75% / 25% split (103 players owned by DA clubs and 318 to ECNL clubs). This includes the top two producers of college placements for the class of 2018 - PDA and Michigan Hawks. Obviously, this does not project future shifts in future years and how "demand" from colleges may change by club or year. And, it does not reveal key regions that may be stronger than others in DA. For example, the West coast where several clubs (So Cal Blues, West Coast FC and SD Surf) double badge DA / ECNL with the concept of 1/2. I believe there the DA has a stronger hold on things. But, when looking at the top of the pyramid, after the recent re-migrations back, ECNL holds 10 of the 15 top producing clubs, with one double badged (So Cal Blues) and 4 DA badged.

Based on this data, I would state that the migrations back are not immaterial or insignificant as some have suggested. I would state that the balance of power between the two leagues is in great flux, that ECNL has not lost as much strength as suggested especially after the move back of those clubs, but that the DA has very strong footholds in regions such as CA and Texas when looking deeper at the data that they will build from. I would also state that the data would suggest that college coaches will continue to look at both leagues for talent in the foreseeable future as their is a strong talent pool in both based on club prowess to warrant going to both sets of showcases with equal interest. I also believe that the DA / ECNL question will be answered on a geographic by geographic basis. Some areas allow for easy switching (NOVA) based on proximity of clubs. Other areas in the US do not.

A few more notes: Any more big defections of clubs one direction or the other will have a big impact on the landscape. If any big Texas or California club moves to ECNL or choses ECNL only, this would massively change things and possible trigger a domino affect. At present, I dont see that occurring based on the pace of announcements and the timeline of where folks are at for recruiting teams for the next season under ECNL or DA badge. On the other hand, if a new big ECNL club departs to DA, the same can be said. At present, I would state that the likelihood of a longer term stalemate seems higher than prior to the moves of the big 3 clubs back to ECNL. Only time will tell. I am quite confident there will be some sarcastic responses to this post based on how this board seems to work, so I am going to leave it here and just ignore that.

This matters only if the clubs actually develop whoever shows up at U9. But the truth is it is all dependent on where the actual talent migrates towards. As many have stated the rubber really hits the road at 05 and 06. By 07/08 the picture will be a bit more clear. But, Top, Top talent will obviously migrate to DA for the NTC potential that ECNL will struggle to fight against. Kids/parents will want their kids to play with the best possible talent, all things being equal.

ECNL is mostly in a position to fight for those "might be kids", late bloomers etc. Isolated clubs like the Hawks can do what they want and it will not matter. They chose the path that was easiest for the club because they are large enough to get away with it. PDA may find that talent does in fact begin to drift to Cedar Stars. But these two clubs, regardless of platform have a long tradition and rich history of developing players. The platform they chose is based more on what is best for the club as a whole and less because the platform actually matters to them. Other smaller clubs need to chose the platform far more wisely as the golden ticket is the draw versus the club.

But if Cedar Stars develops well on their own AND they can pull 3-4 top PDA players a year that is all that really matters. Beyond the top 5 players there isn't a significant difference between a PDA roster or a Cedar Star roster. It is all about where those top 4 players end up.

This. As some posts mentioned maybe 100 pages ago, the most recent NTC call-ups in DMV were 2 girls from Richmond United. They are staying in ECNL for the obvious reasons and they are the only game in town. Even if the parents preferred GDA over ECNL, they had no other places to go.

And on top of it, a typical Loudoun ECNL will likely play PDA or the Hawks about aas much as they would have had the clubs stayed in DA. If they were in your division what PDA does matters but as it stands your division is week. And thanks to allowing HS soccer season schedules instead of having a Division comprised of Loudoun, BRYC, McLean, VDA, Bethesda, MD United, as possible local games with the potential of the "far away games" being FC Bucks and FC Continental and Richmond you would actually have a compelling league with nominal travel costs but as it stands you get to drive to the Carolina's for your away games. But hey HS Soccer right!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:04 is where the rubber meets the road

04s that held out last year for their ECNL teams are not doing so in year 2 of DA. Just look at Mclean

05 and 06 are clearly choosing DA. It's not even debatable.

So yeah, 04 and down.

06Girls for one specific club did not really choose DA. It was not even close. So not sure, why you assume all 06's are leaving to go to GDA. Either have your facts straight or don't say something that is completely false

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi. I have one in GDA and one in ECNL (yes, that is true). So I hope both leagues continue to do well. After reading a ton of posts on this board (and there is huge amount of them), I decided to pull some data to answer a few questions that are often discussed. The first is what league (and teams) would be considered "better". There are lots of ways to determine that title (subjective and objective). I decided to be objective and look at the 2018 college placements by club. Another would be placements on the national teams (have not done that yet). I am sure there are others. And, there are ways to further analyze placement for value (D1 vs D2, ACC versus Big 12 etc.) I picked 2018 as it is the broadest and most complete data set, and it is the closest moment at which the DA / ECNL switch hit. Future graduating classes can be analyzed to determine how this balance of power migrates back and forth between ECNL and DA for college placements (yes, just one of many yard sticks).

I also was able to see the perceived value pulled over to DA from ECNL during the initial organization of clubs (another popular argument on the board). And, one can see the presumed value pulled back (or not) on recent departures from DA. Last, you can look region by region too, and see where power was pulled or not pulled by DA from ECNL club transfers (e.g. West Coast). I am not providing anything here but data and a basic interpretation. I dont care about who wins this argument going on because it hurts / helps both my kids.

There were approximately 2,150 girls placed at the collegiate level (D1 and below) for the class 0f 2018 from about 375 clubs. Of that, 421 were placed by the top 15 clubs (top determined by volume only). That represents 20% of all placements from just 4% of the total clubs. Here is a snapshot of those clubs from top volume (#1 club in U.S. placing girls in college and below), and what percentage of the 421 placements they represented:

PDA 11%
Michigan Hawks 9%
Sting (Austin / Dallas) 8%
Ohio Premier 7%
FC Boston Scorpions 7%
Challenge SC 7%
Real Colorado 7%
Slammers FC 7%
East Meadow SC 6%
Colorado Storm 6%
NTH Tophat 6%
So Cal Blues 6%
FC Stars of Massachusetts 5%
LA Galaxy San Diego 5%
Tennessee SC 5%

During the inaugural year of the DA, 49% of these placements (207) were badged as DA (teams that left ECNL). Net, the power at the top was split 50/50 upon the divorce of ECNL and USSF. With the recent defections of PDA, Michigan Hawks, and FC Stars, the balance would in theory shift back to ECNL in a 75% / 25% split (103 players owned by DA clubs and 318 to ECNL clubs). This includes the top two producers of college placements for the class of 2018 - PDA and Michigan Hawks. Obviously, this does not project future shifts in future years and how "demand" from colleges may change by club or year. And, it does not reveal key regions that may be stronger than others in DA. For example, the West coast where several clubs (So Cal Blues, West Coast FC and SD Surf) double badge DA / ECNL with the concept of 1/2. I believe there the DA has a stronger hold on things. But, when looking at the top of the pyramid, after the recent re-migrations back, ECNL holds 10 of the 15 top producing clubs, with one double badged (So Cal Blues) and 4 DA badged.

Based on this data, I would state that the migrations back are not immaterial or insignificant as some have suggested. I would state that the balance of power between the two leagues is in great flux, that ECNL has not lost as much strength as suggested especially after the move back of those clubs, but that the DA has very strong footholds in regions such as CA and Texas when looking deeper at the data that they will build from. I would also state that the data would suggest that college coaches will continue to look at both leagues for talent in the foreseeable future as their is a strong talent pool in both based on club prowess to warrant going to both sets of showcases with equal interest. I also believe that the DA / ECNL question will be answered on a geographic by geographic basis. Some areas allow for easy switching (NOVA) based on proximity of clubs. Other areas in the US do not.

A few more notes: Any more big defections of clubs one direction or the other will have a big impact on the landscape. If any big Texas or California club moves to ECNL or choses ECNL only, this would massively change things and possible trigger a domino affect. At present, I dont see that occurring based on the pace of announcements and the timeline of where folks are at for recruiting teams for the next season under ECNL or DA badge. On the other hand, if a new big ECNL club departs to DA, the same can be said. At present, I would state that the likelihood of a longer term stalemate seems higher than prior to the moves of the big 3 clubs back to ECNL. Only time will tell. I am quite confident there will be some sarcastic responses to this post based on how this board seems to work, so I am going to leave it here and just ignore that.

This matters only if the clubs actually develop whoever shows up at U9. But the truth is it is all dependent on where the actual talent migrates towards. As many have stated the rubber really hits the road at 05 and 06. By 07/08 the picture will be a bit more clear. But, Top, Top talent will obviously migrate to DA for the NTC potential that ECNL will struggle to fight against. Kids/parents will want their kids to play with the best possible talent, all things being equal.

ECNL is mostly in a position to fight for those "might be kids", late bloomers etc. Isolated clubs like the Hawks can do what they want and it will not matter. They chose the path that was easiest for the club because they are large enough to get away with it. PDA may find that talent does in fact begin to drift to Cedar Stars. But these two clubs, regardless of platform have a long tradition and rich history of developing players. The platform they chose is based more on what is best for the club as a whole and less because the platform actually matters to them. Other smaller clubs need to chose the platform far more wisely as the golden ticket is the draw versus the club.

But if Cedar Stars develops well on their own AND they can pull 3-4 top PDA players a year that is all that really matters. Beyond the top 5 players there isn't a significant difference between a PDA roster or a Cedar Star roster. It is all about where those top 4 players end up.

Some data to add to this set...7 clubs that were dual GDA/ECNL have dropped ECNL completely.

[Anonymous]

The "common kids" nomenclature is funny. What us the definition of a "common kid"?. An elite player that does not make NTC? A player among the top third of a DA roster?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Awww listen to these "my kid is a Star" parents crying about having to play with "common" kids now. "How will anyone know she is a Star now?" Whaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!

Some of us actually care about the state of the sport in this country and being globally competitive. There is a lot wrong with the DA but a lot more wrong with the rest of youth soccer.

If the country can support two competing leagues like DA and ECNL and expose kids to quality coaching and competition then the state of the sport is actually better than you realize. Having these two leagues actually do more to keep quality players engaged and playing the sport longer than they would be otherwise. The leagues may not be as concentrated in talent as you would like for your Star but if our national game is going to grow it is going to do so by being as inclusive to quality opportunity as possible. Telling kids at 13, who are not perfect but still very strong players with room to grow that you are done, go play NCSL and HS, simply because they might be late bloomers is everything that is wrong with the sport here.

The two leagues also allow for a greater diversity of player type instead of a bunch of athletic clones that cast away some really strong players. I mean the one thing that Pipeline Guy is right about is there are a number of strong teams outside of the DA and ECNL circles. And even with DA and ECNL there are still kids who belong on either roster. So talent is there and having to compete for every scrap of quality player means coaches have to look harder, and actually scout potential versus size and speed. The clubs that will now be successful will actually have to work harder to see the intangible qualities in players.

What you want is simply lazy.

Expecting to compete on a global level by having youth players take off 3-6 months of the year to play HS soccer is what is intellectually lazy. The USWNT had a 3 decade head-start and the world has caught up quickly and will pass us unless we make some significant improvements. ECNL is flawed just like college soccer is flawed in terms of building national team caliber players. You just cannot match the development of the DA playing only 5-7 months of the year and clustering your games over a 3-4 month span. It just won't happen. And it isn't rocket science.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Awww listen to these "my kid is a Star" parents crying about having to play with "common" kids now. "How will anyone know she is a Star now?" Whaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!

Some of us actually care about the state of the sport in this country and being globally competitive. There is a lot wrong with the DA but a lot more wrong with the rest of youth soccer.

If the country can support two competing leagues like DA and ECNL and expose kids to quality coaching and competition then the state of the sport is actually better than you realize. Having these two leagues actually do more to keep quality players engaged and playing the sport longer than they would be otherwise. The leagues may not be as concentrated in talent as you would like for your Star but if our national game is going to grow it is going to do so by being as inclusive to quality opportunity as possible. Telling kids at 13, who are not perfect but still very strong players with room to grow that you are done, go play NCSL and HS, simply because they might be late bloomers is everything that is wrong with the sport here.

The two leagues also allow for a greater diversity of player type instead of a bunch of athletic clones that cast away some really strong players. I mean the one thing that Pipeline Guy is right about is there are a number of strong teams outside of the DA and ECNL circles. And even with DA and ECNL there are still kids who belong on either roster. So talent is there and having to compete for every scrap of quality player means coaches have to look harder, and actually scout potential versus size and speed. The clubs that will now be successful will actually have to work harder to see the intangible qualities in players.

What you want is simply lazy.

Expecting to compete on a global level by having youth players take off 3-6 months of the year to play HS soccer is what is intellectually lazy. The USWNT had a 3 decade head-start and the world has caught up quickly and will pass us unless we make some significant improvements. ECNL is flawed just like college soccer is flawed in terms of building national team caliber players. You just cannot match the development of the DA playing only 5-7 months of the year and clustering your games over a 3-4 month span. It just won't happen. And it isn't rocket science.

I am not championing ECNL. But, ECNL exists as another platform and allows a way for very talented players to remain in the game at a highly competitive level assuming playing in a college program is a goal. Those wishing for a High level college, NT or Pro life at soccer DA is certainly a better platform for that kind of focus. But starting in ECNL with "modest" goals doesn't mean that focus or drive in a kid doesn't change and they show more promise or HS soccer wasn't all they thought it was. But ECNL kept them in a strong environment if they choose to switch to DA.

DA kids on the other hand may find the grind to much but still have college aspirations and wish to compete at a high level. These kids may seek out ECNL. But opportunity exists because the net is wide and more importantly it keeps more quality girls playing soccer in quality environments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:04 is where the rubber meets the road

04s that held out last year for their ECNL teams are not doing so in year 2 of DA. Just look at Mclean

05 and 06 are clearly choosing DA. It's not even debatable.

So yeah, 04 and down.

06Girls for one specific club did not really choose DA. It was not even close. So not sure, why you assume all 06's are leaving to go to GDA. Either have your facts straight or don't say something that is completely false

Name it?

I'm talking 06s from ECNL clubs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:04 is where the rubber meets the road

04s that held out last year for their ECNL teams are not doing so in year 2 of DA. Just look at Mclean

05 and 06 are clearly choosing DA. It's not even debatable.

So yeah, 04 and down.

Says a parent of an 04 or down. Everything is debatable. McLean’s 04s are not exactly the top team in the ECNL. They are losing even in a watered down ECNL, plus Spirit has location on its side. Spirit has picked up McLean from 01 down, including 02s, 03s, etc That has been pointed out several times.

Across the board outside of your bubble, 04s are not the lunch pin. I may give that though to the 05s or 06s. There is some real talent there. And Spirit VApicked up an 07 that probably would have gone to Bethesda ECNL in the past.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:04 is where the rubber meets the road

04s that held out last year for their ECNL teams are not doing so in year 2 of DA. Just look at Mclean

05 and 06 are clearly choosing DA. It's not even debatable.

So yeah, 04 and down.

06Girls for one specific club did not really choose DA. It was not even close. So not sure, why you assume all 06's are leaving to go to GDA. Either have your facts straight or don't say something that is completely false

Name it?

I'm talking 06s from ECNL clubs.

Do your research and you will find out. That is all i am saying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:04 is where the rubber meets the road

04s that held out last year for their ECNL teams are not doing so in year 2 of DA. Just look at Mclean

05 and 06 are clearly choosing DA. It's not even debatable.

So yeah, 04 and down.

06s. 06s are without question where the rubber meets the road. Now that the DA has U13s, kids won’t first opt for then ECNL and the consider a switch. They can come to the DA out the gate. That is where the DA will take off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi. I have one in GDA and one in ECNL (yes, that is true). So I hope both leagues continue to do well. After reading a ton of posts on this board (and there is huge amount of them), I decided to pull some data to answer a few questions that are often discussed. The first is what league (and teams) would be considered "better". There are lots of ways to determine that title (subjective and objective). I decided to be objective and look at the 2018 college placements by club. Another would be placements on the national teams (have not done that yet). I am sure there are others. And, there are ways to further analyze placement for value (D1 vs D2, ACC versus Big 12 etc.) I picked 2018 as it is the broadest and most complete data set, and it is the closest moment at which the DA / ECNL switch hit. Future graduating classes can be analyzed to determine how this balance of power migrates back and forth between ECNL and DA for college placements (yes, just one of many yard sticks).

I also was able to see the perceived value pulled over to DA from ECNL during the initial organization of clubs (another popular argument on the board). And, one can see the presumed value pulled back (or not) on recent departures from DA. Last, you can look region by region too, and see where power was pulled or not pulled by DA from ECNL club transfers (e.g. West Coast). I am not providing anything here but data and a basic interpretation. I dont care about who wins this argument going on because it hurts / helps both my kids.

There were approximately 2,150 girls placed at the collegiate level (D1 and below) for the class 0f 2018 from about 375 clubs. Of that, 421 were placed by the top 15 clubs (top determined by volume only). That represents 20% of all placements from just 4% of the total clubs. Here is a snapshot of those clubs from top volume (#1 club in U.S. placing girls in college and below), and what percentage of the 421 placements they represented:

PDA 11%
Michigan Hawks 9%
Sting (Austin / Dallas) 8%
Ohio Premier 7%
FC Boston Scorpions 7%
Challenge SC 7%
Real Colorado 7%
Slammers FC 7%
East Meadow SC 6%
Colorado Storm 6%
NTH Tophat 6%
So Cal Blues 6%
FC Stars of Massachusetts 5%
LA Galaxy San Diego 5%
Tennessee SC 5%

During the inaugural year of the DA, 49% of these placements (207) were badged as DA (teams that left ECNL). Net, the power at the top was split 50/50 upon the divorce of ECNL and USSF. With the recent defections of PDA, Michigan Hawks, and FC Stars, the balance would in theory shift back to ECNL in a 75% / 25% split (103 players owned by DA clubs and 318 to ECNL clubs). This includes the top two producers of college placements for the class of 2018 - PDA and Michigan Hawks. Obviously, this does not project future shifts in future years and how "demand" from colleges may change by club or year. And, it does not reveal key regions that may be stronger than others in DA. For example, the West coast where several clubs (So Cal Blues, West Coast FC and SD Surf) double badge DA / ECNL with the concept of 1/2. I believe there the DA has a stronger hold on things. But, when looking at the top of the pyramid, after the recent re-migrations back, ECNL holds 10 of the 15 top producing clubs, with one double badged (So Cal Blues) and 4 DA badged.

Based on this data, I would state that the migrations back are not immaterial or insignificant as some have suggested. I would state that the balance of power between the two leagues is in great flux, that ECNL has not lost as much strength as suggested especially after the move back of those clubs, but that the DA has very strong footholds in regions such as CA and Texas when looking deeper at the data that they will build from. I would also state that the data would suggest that college coaches will continue to look at both leagues for talent in the foreseeable future as their is a strong talent pool in both based on club prowess to warrant going to both sets of showcases with equal interest. I also believe that the DA / ECNL question will be answered on a geographic by geographic basis. Some areas allow for easy switching (NOVA) based on proximity of clubs. Other areas in the US do not.

A few more notes: Any more big defections of clubs one direction or the other will have a big impact on the landscape. If any big Texas or California club moves to ECNL or choses ECNL only, this would massively change things and possible trigger a domino affect. At present, I dont see that occurring based on the pace of announcements and the timeline of where folks are at for recruiting teams for the next season under ECNL or DA badge. On the other hand, if a new big ECNL club departs to DA, the same can be said. At present, I would state that the likelihood of a longer term stalemate seems higher than prior to the moves of the big 3 clubs back to ECNL. Only time will tell. I am quite confident there will be some sarcastic responses to this post based on how this board seems to work, so I am going to leave it here and just ignore that.

What if I find interesting is that ECNL defections seems to have been generally one per conference, but for DA clubs leaving the ECNL are two entire states, the best of the best to boot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Awww listen to these "my kid is a Star" parents crying about having to play with "common" kids now. "How will anyone know she is a Star now?" Whaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!

Some of us actually care about the state of the sport in this country and being globally competitive. There is a lot wrong with the DA but a lot more wrong with the rest of youth soccer.

If the country can support two competing leagues like DA and ECNL and expose kids to quality coaching and competition then the state of the sport is actually better than you realize. Having these two leagues actually do more to keep quality players engaged and playing the sport longer than they would be otherwise. The leagues may not be as concentrated in talent as you would like for your Star but if our national game is going to grow it is going to do so by being as inclusive to quality opportunity as possible. Telling kids at 13, who are not perfect but still very strong players with room to grow that you are done, go play NCSL and HS, simply because they might be late bloomers is everything that is wrong with the sport here.

The two leagues also allow for a greater diversity of player type instead of a bunch of athletic clones that cast away some really strong players. I mean the one thing that Pipeline Guy is right about is there are a number of strong teams outside of the DA and ECNL circles. And even with DA and ECNL there are still kids who belong on either roster. So talent is there and having to compete for every scrap of quality player means coaches have to look harder, and actually scout potential versus size and speed. The clubs that will now be successful will actually have to work harder to see the intangible qualities in players.

What you want is simply lazy.

Expecting to compete on a global level by having youth players take off 3-6 months of the year to play HS soccer is what is intellectually lazy. The USWNT had a 3 decade head-start and the world has caught up quickly and will pass us unless we make some significant improvements. ECNL is flawed just like college soccer is flawed in terms of building national team caliber players. You just cannot match the development of the DA playing only 5-7 months of the year and clustering your games over a 3-4 month span. It just won't happen. And it isn't rocket science.

I am not championing ECNL. But, ECNL exists as another platform and allows a way for very talented players to remain in the game at a highly competitive level assuming playing in a college program is a goal. Those wishing for a High level college, NT or Pro life at soccer DA is certainly a better platform for that kind of focus. But starting in ECNL with "modest" goals doesn't mean that focus or drive in a kid doesn't change and they show more promise or HS soccer wasn't all they thought it was. But ECNL kept them in a strong environment if they choose to switch to DA.

DA kids on the other hand may find the grind to much but still have college aspirations and wish to compete at a high level. These kids may seek out ECNL. But opportunity exists because the net is wide and more importantly it keeps more quality girls playing soccer in quality environments.

So why are some ECNL teams goi g to a 10 month schedule and opting out of high school if their model? I’m really shocked at that new nugget revealed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Awww listen to these "my kid is a Star" parents crying about having to play with "common" kids now. "How will anyone know she is a Star now?" Whaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!

Some of us actually care about the state of the sport in this country and being globally competitive. There is a lot wrong with the DA but a lot more wrong with the rest of youth soccer.

If the country can support two competing leagues like DA and ECNL and expose kids to quality coaching and competition then the state of the sport is actually better than you realize. Having these two leagues actually do more to keep quality players engaged and playing the sport longer than they would be otherwise. The leagues may not be as concentrated in talent as you would like for your Star but if our national game is going to grow it is going to do so by being as inclusive to quality opportunity as possible. Telling kids at 13, who are not perfect but still very strong players with room to grow that you are done, go play NCSL and HS, simply because they might be late bloomers is everything that is wrong with the sport here.

The two leagues also allow for a greater diversity of player type instead of a bunch of athletic clones that cast away some really strong players. I mean the one thing that Pipeline Guy is right about is there are a number of strong teams outside of the DA and ECNL circles. And even with DA and ECNL there are still kids who belong on either roster. So talent is there and having to compete for every scrap of quality player means coaches have to look harder, and actually scout potential versus size and speed. The clubs that will now be successful will actually have to work harder to see the intangible qualities in players.

What you want is simply lazy.

Expecting to compete on a global level by having youth players take off 3-6 months of the year to play HS soccer is what is intellectually lazy. The USWNT had a 3 decade head-start and the world has caught up quickly and will pass us unless we make some significant improvements. ECNL is flawed just like college soccer is flawed in terms of building national team caliber players. You just cannot match the development of the DA playing only 5-7 months of the year and clustering your games over a 3-4 month span. It just won't happen. And it isn't rocket science.

I am not championing ECNL. But, ECNL exists as another platform and allows a way for very talented players to remain in the game at a highly competitive level assuming playing in a college program is a goal. Those wishing for a High level college, NT or Pro life at soccer DA is certainly a better platform for that kind of focus. But starting in ECNL with "modest" goals doesn't mean that focus or drive in a kid doesn't change and they show more promise or HS soccer wasn't all they thought it was. But ECNL kept them in a strong environment if they choose to switch to DA.

DA kids on the other hand may find the grind to much but still have college aspirations and wish to compete at a high level. These kids may seek out ECNL. But opportunity exists because the net is wide and more importantly it keeps more quality girls playing soccer in quality environments.

So why are some ECNL teams goi g to a 10 month schedule and opting out of high school if their model? I’m really shocked at that new nugget revealed.

News flash, ECNL coaches always hated HS Soccer, they simply tolerated it. They have championed HS Soccer as a sales ploy to distinguish themselves from DA.