Travel Soccer teams around NOVA let's discuss

[Anonymous]

Going back to the ODP training. There is a lot of talk about college exposure. That is not my situation at all. My son is a 2007. D-ODP is available for 2007s. He will be training 3 days a week with his club team in the fall. I'm just wondering if people think this is a good opportunity to train with other motivated, skilled (for their age) kids with decent coaching...or is it a waste of time as the kids/trainers are burnt out from weekend games? Thanks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Going back to the ODP training. There is a lot of talk about college exposure. That is not my situation at all. My son is a 2007. D-ODP is available for 2007s. He will be training 3 days a week with his club team in the fall. I'm just wondering if people think this is a good opportunity to train with other motivated, skilled (for their age) kids with decent coaching...or is it a waste of time as the kids/trainers are burnt out from weekend games? Thanks

I think it's a waste. If one of those three training days is not futsal he would probably get a lot more development from playing futsal one day a week. Even if it's pickup futsal I think that would be better. If he isn't playing futsal year round trust me when I say it will build skills faster than anything else for kid that age.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Going back to the ODP training. There is a lot of talk about college exposure. That is not my situation at all. My son is a 2007. D-ODP is available for 2007s. He will be training 3 days a week with his club team in the fall. I'm just wondering if people think this is a good opportunity to train with other motivated, skilled (for their age) kids with decent coaching...or is it a waste of time as the kids/trainers are burnt out from weekend games? Thanks

I think it's a waste. If one of those three training days is not futsal he would probably get a lot more development from playing futsal one day a week. Even if it's pickup futsal I think that would be better. If he isn't playing futsal year round trust me when I say it will build skills faster than anything else for kid that age.

Interesting. Where/What are the year round futsal opportunities? NPC? Anything else?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: MYS is missing, wonder what happened.

MYS is ECNL.

Didn't realize you couldn't do both. Maybe some changes are in order.

You can do both girls DA and ECNL. I'm sure ECNL would prefer that member clubs not participate in the girls DA as that's the only way they'll be able to try to claim they continue to be the top league for girls, but they can't really tell clubs that currently have boys DA plus ECNL not to apply for the girls' DA. The list of girls DA clubs has several ECNL teams like FC Dallas, CASL, Colorado Rush and SoCal Blues.

The press release just has the first wave of accepted clubs. I'm sure there will be more club announcements before too long.

The USGDA went to the Wash. Spirit, not any of those 4 CCL clubs, correct? So, this is different then the boys side, where both ASA and Loudon got academies, but formed an alliance with DCU for a pathway for older boys. These 4 CCL clubs here are not getting academies and are simply in alliance somehow with the Spirit. If that is correct, it seems like MYS was left out for some reason, and wouldn't later get a girls academy of its own . . . unless MYS would drop ECNL in order to get a girls academy?? Not likely I am wondering? (I am guessing MYS would have applied for an academy, as they did get the boys U12 academy, but how would they be able to fiance both ECNL and USGDA at a club with only 3,000 kids? I would think they would have needed the help of an alliance, which it looks like everyone else got but them.)

I don't have any inside information on any of this, but with respect to the relationship between the 4 CCL clubs and the Washington Spirit, the way I read the press release is that the 4 clubs will partner with the Spirit to send promising girls to the DA teams the Spirit runs, but will not have their own DA teams. It's structured differently for some of the other initial clubs--note that Sky Blue and PDA jointly will run a DA program.

I think it's too early to tell about the prospects for McLean or any other area club, because there will absolutely need to be a lot more clubs added for the league to be operational. The closest clubs to the Spirit right now are Penn Fusion, Sky Blue-PDA in NJ and CASL in NC. Kids can't do that kind of travel every week. I expect that there will be a lot more DC area teams added as time goes on. Note also this part from the Spirit press release: "The Spirit also have plans for an Academy more convenient to players from DC and Maryland, to be detailed at a later date." This suggests that there may in the end be a Spirit VA and a Spirit MD, like they have for Super Y now.

Great thoughts and very helpful. Thx! I too was wondering about the travel issue and not having enough clubs in the Mid-Atlantic. Time will tell, as it is still over a year away and maybe MYS gets invited into this Alliance so they can have a pathway as well. Another thought I have had was whether US Soccer would even be thinking at this point of expanding the girls Academy to include u12/u13 age groups to make it equal with the boys (for example, in 2018-19 season). I am sure no one knows at this point, but just mentioning it. A few months ago before the announcement I asked that question to one of the higher-ups working on a bid at one of the 4 CCL clubs and they didn't know.

As a northern Virginia CCL club just like the other members of the Spirit Virginia alliance, MYS was certainly offered a chance to join that group but for whatever reason decided not too. This was a poor decision by McLean as there's no chance they'll get a DA by itself, if for no other reason than proximity to the Spirit Virginia DA. Not being part of the DA will not stop top McLean players from trying out so why not join the alliance and get your club the prestige/benefits from being affiliated with what wilol be the top level of girls soccer?

Is MYS the redheaded stepchild? They just announced an expansion to 28 more clubs and MYS is not on the list. They announced the Washington Spirit Maryland, and two other clubs in NoVA, one of which I believe has an ECNL program. So clearly MYS with its ECNL program could still have been awarded a USGDA. The announcement does say more clubs will be added: http://www.ussoccerda.com/girls-da-welcomes-28-additional-clubs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I think it's a waste. If one of those three training days is not futsal he would probably get a lot more development from playing futsal one day a week. Even if it's pickup futsal I think that would be better. If he isn't playing futsal year round trust me when I say it will build skills faster than anything else for kid that age.

Interesting. Where/What are the year round futsal opportunities? NPC? Anything else?

There are a couple clubs I know of that have it as one of their training days year round, if that's not your club then NPC and DCFA are a couple options. I would look around again when the fall season starts back up and see if any new programs show up. For what it's worth, one of the best program I have seen is FutsalRVA out of Richmond, they usually have multiple teams at the national championships and placed several players on US youth futsal national teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Going back to the ODP training. There is a lot of talk about college exposure. That is not my situation at all. My son is a 2007. D-ODP is available for 2007s. He will be training 3 days a week with his club team in the fall. I'm just wondering if people think this is a good opportunity to train with other motivated, skilled (for their age) kids with decent coaching...or is it a waste of time as the kids/trainers are burnt out from weekend games? Thanks

This much "extra training" for an 8 yr old is silly, and SURE to burn him out by the critical u12-u14 period. If he is still passionate at 12/13, THEN go to ODP. I would only recommend for 07 if there were no other training options in your area,i.e., several clubs/programs/clinics/camps to choose from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: MYS is missing, wonder what happened.

MYS is ECNL.

Didn't realize you couldn't do both. Maybe some changes are in order.

You can do both girls DA and ECNL. I'm sure ECNL would prefer that member clubs not participate in the girls DA as that's the only way they'll be able to try to claim they continue to be the top league for girls, but they can't really tell clubs that currently have boys DA plus ECNL not to apply for the girls' DA. The list of girls DA clubs has several ECNL teams like FC Dallas, CASL, Colorado Rush and SoCal Blues.

The press release just has the first wave of accepted clubs. I'm sure there will be more club announcements before too long.

The USGDA went to the Wash. Spirit, not any of those 4 CCL clubs, correct? So, this is different then the boys side, where both ASA and Loudon got academies, but formed an alliance with DCU for a pathway for older boys. These 4 CCL clubs here are not getting academies and are simply in alliance somehow with the Spirit. If that is correct, it seems like MYS was left out for some reason, and wouldn't later get a girls academy of its own . . . unless MYS would drop ECNL in order to get a girls academy?? Not likely I am wondering? (I am guessing MYS would have applied for an academy, as they did get the boys U12 academy, but how would they be able to fiance both ECNL and USGDA at a club with only 3,000 kids? I would think they would have needed the help of an alliance, which it looks like everyone else got but them.)

I don't have any inside information on any of this, but with respect to the relationship between the 4 CCL clubs and the Washington Spirit, the way I read the press release is that the 4 clubs will partner with the Spirit to send promising girls to the DA teams the Spirit runs, but will not have their own DA teams. It's structured differently for some of the other initial clubs--note that Sky Blue and PDA jointly will run a DA program.

I think it's too early to tell about the prospects for McLean or any other area club, because there will absolutely need to be a lot more clubs added for the league to be operational. The closest clubs to the Spirit right now are Penn Fusion, Sky Blue-PDA in NJ and CASL in NC. Kids can't do that kind of travel every week. I expect that there will be a lot more DC area teams added as time goes on. Note also this part from the Spirit press release: "The Spirit also have plans for an Academy more convenient to players from DC and Maryland, to be detailed at a later date." This suggests that there may in the end be a Spirit VA and a Spirit MD, like they have for Super Y now.

Great thoughts and very helpful. Thx! I too was wondering about the travel issue and not having enough clubs in the Mid-Atlantic. Time will tell, as it is still over a year away and maybe MYS gets invited into this Alliance so they can have a pathway as well. Another thought I have had was whether US Soccer would even be thinking at this point of expanding the girls Academy to include u12/u13 age groups to make it equal with the boys (for example, in 2018-19 season). I am sure no one knows at this point, but just mentioning it. A few months ago before the announcement I asked that question to one of the higher-ups working on a bid at one of the 4 CCL clubs and they didn't know.

As a northern Virginia CCL club just like the other members of the Spirit Virginia alliance, MYS was certainly offered a chance to join that group but for whatever reason decided not too. This was a poor decision by McLean as there's no chance they'll get a DA by itself, if for no other reason than proximity to the Spirit Virginia DA. Not being part of the DA will not stop top McLean players from trying out so why not join the alliance and get your club the prestige/benefits from being affiliated with what wilol be the top level of girls soccer?

Is MYS the redheaded stepchild? They just announced an expansion to 28 more clubs and MYS is not on the list. They announced the Washington Spirit Maryland, and two other clubs in NoVA, one of which I believe has an ECNL program. So clearly MYS with its ECNL program could still have been awarded a USGDA. The announcement does say more clubs will be added: http://www.ussoccerda.com/girls-da-welcomes-28-additional-clubs

I think it's hard to underestimate how much MYS is disliked on the DC area soccer community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: MYS is missing, wonder what happened.

MYS is ECNL.

Didn't realize you couldn't do both. Maybe some changes are in order.

You can do both girls DA and ECNL. I'm sure ECNL would prefer that member clubs not participate in the girls DA as that's the only way they'll be able to try to claim they continue to be the top league for girls, but they can't really tell clubs that currently have boys DA plus ECNL not to apply for the girls' DA. The list of girls DA clubs has several ECNL teams like FC Dallas, CASL, Colorado Rush and SoCal Blues.

The press release just has the first wave of accepted clubs. I'm sure there will be more club announcements before too long.

The USGDA went to the Wash. Spirit, not any of those 4 CCL clubs, correct? So, this is different then the boys side, where both ASA and Loudon got academies, but formed an alliance with DCU for a pathway for older boys. These 4 CCL clubs here are not getting academies and are simply in alliance somehow with the Spirit. If that is correct, it seems like MYS was left out for some reason, and wouldn't later get a girls academy of its own . . . unless MYS would drop ECNL in order to get a girls academy?? Not likely I am wondering? (I am guessing MYS would have applied for an academy, as they did get the boys U12 academy, but how would they be able to fiance both ECNL and USGDA at a club with only 3,000 kids? I would think they would have needed the help of an alliance, which it looks like everyone else got but them.)

I don't have any inside information on any of this, but with respect to the relationship between the 4 CCL clubs and the Washington Spirit, the way I read the press release is that the 4 clubs will partner with the Spirit to send promising girls to the DA teams the Spirit runs, but will not have their own DA teams. It's structured differently for some of the other initial clubs--note that Sky Blue and PDA jointly will run a DA program.

I think it's too early to tell about the prospects for McLean or any other area club, because there will absolutely need to be a lot more clubs added for the league to be operational. The closest clubs to the Spirit right now are Penn Fusion, Sky Blue-PDA in NJ and CASL in NC. Kids can't do that kind of travel every week. I expect that there will be a lot more DC area teams added as time goes on. Note also this part from the Spirit press release: "The Spirit also have plans for an Academy more convenient to players from DC and Maryland, to be detailed at a later date." This suggests that there may in the end be a Spirit VA and a Spirit MD, like they have for Super Y now.

Great thoughts and very helpful. Thx! I too was wondering about the travel issue and not having enough clubs in the Mid-Atlantic. Time will tell, as it is still over a year away and maybe MYS gets invited into this Alliance so they can have a pathway as well. Another thought I have had was whether US Soccer would even be thinking at this point of expanding the girls Academy to include u12/u13 age groups to make it equal with the boys (for example, in 2018-19 season). I am sure no one knows at this point, but just mentioning it. A few months ago before the announcement I asked that question to one of the higher-ups working on a bid at one of the 4 CCL clubs and they didn't know.

As a northern Virginia CCL club just like the other members of the Spirit Virginia alliance, MYS was certainly offered a chance to join that group but for whatever reason decided not too. This was a poor decision by McLean as there's no chance they'll get a DA by itself, if for no other reason than proximity to the Spirit Virginia DA. Not being part of the DA will not stop top McLean players from trying out so why not join the alliance and get your club the prestige/benefits from being affiliated with what wilol be the top level of girls soccer?

Is MYS the redheaded stepchild? They just announced an expansion to 28 more clubs and MYS is not on the list. They announced the Washington Spirit Maryland, and two other clubs in NoVA, one of which I believe has an ECNL program. So clearly MYS with its ECNL program could still have been awarded a USGDA. The announcement does say more clubs will be added: http://www.ussoccerda.com/girls-da-welcomes-28-additional-clubs

I think it's hard to underestimate how much MYS is disliked on the DC area soccer community.

There's bound to be juicy details here, please elaborate...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: MYS is missing, wonder what happened.

MYS is ECNL.

Didn't realize you couldn't do both. Maybe some changes are in order.

You can do both girls DA and ECNL. I'm sure ECNL would prefer that member clubs not participate in the girls DA as that's the only way they'll be able to try to claim they continue to be the top league for girls, but they can't really tell clubs that currently have boys DA plus ECNL not to apply for the girls' DA. The list of girls DA clubs has several ECNL teams like FC Dallas, CASL, Colorado Rush and SoCal Blues.

The press release just has the first wave of accepted clubs. I'm sure there will be more club announcements before too long.

The USGDA went to the Wash. Spirit, not any of those 4 CCL clubs, correct? So, this is different then the boys side, where both ASA and Loudon got academies, but formed an alliance with DCU for a pathway for older boys. These 4 CCL clubs here are not getting academies and are simply in alliance somehow with the Spirit. If that is correct, it seems like MYS was left out for some reason, and wouldn't later get a girls academy of its own . . . unless MYS would drop ECNL in order to get a girls academy?? Not likely I am wondering? (I am guessing MYS would have applied for an academy, as they did get the boys U12 academy, but how would they be able to fiance both ECNL and USGDA at a club with only 3,000 kids? I would think they would have needed the help of an alliance, which it looks like everyone else got but them.)

I don't have any inside information on any of this, but with respect to the relationship between the 4 CCL clubs and the Washington Spirit, the way I read the press release is that the 4 clubs will partner with the Spirit to send promising girls to the DA teams the Spirit runs, but will not have their own DA teams. It's structured differently for some of the other initial clubs--note that Sky Blue and PDA jointly will run a DA program.

I think it's too early to tell about the prospects for McLean or any other area club, because there will absolutely need to be a lot more clubs added for the league to be operational. The closest clubs to the Spirit right now are Penn Fusion, Sky Blue-PDA in NJ and CASL in NC. Kids can't do that kind of travel every week. I expect that there will be a lot more DC area teams added as time goes on. Note also this part from the Spirit press release: "The Spirit also have plans for an Academy more convenient to players from DC and Maryland, to be detailed at a later date." This suggests that there may in the end be a Spirit VA and a Spirit MD, like they have for Super Y now.

Great thoughts and very helpful. Thx! I too was wondering about the travel issue and not having enough clubs in the Mid-Atlantic. Time will tell, as it is still over a year away and maybe MYS gets invited into this Alliance so they can have a pathway as well. Another thought I have had was whether US Soccer would even be thinking at this point of expanding the girls Academy to include u12/u13 age groups to make it equal with the boys (for example, in 2018-19 season). I am sure no one knows at this point, but just mentioning it. A few months ago before the announcement I asked that question to one of the higher-ups working on a bid at one of the 4 CCL clubs and they didn't know.

As a northern Virginia CCL club just like the other members of the Spirit Virginia alliance, MYS was certainly offered a chance to join that group but for whatever reason decided not too. This was a poor decision by McLean as there's no chance they'll get a DA by itself, if for no other reason than proximity to the Spirit Virginia DA. Not being part of the DA will not stop top McLean players from trying out so why not join the alliance and get your club the prestige/benefits from being affiliated with what wilol be the top level of girls soccer?

Is MYS the redheaded stepchild? They just announced an expansion to 28 more clubs and MYS is not on the list. They announced the Washington Spirit Maryland, and two other clubs in NoVA, one of which I believe has an ECNL program. So clearly MYS with its ECNL program could still have been awarded a USGDA. The announcement does say more clubs will be added: http://www.ussoccerda.com/girls-da-welcomes-28-additional-clubs

I think it's hard to underestimate how much MYS is disliked on the DC area soccer community.

There's bound to be juicy details here, please elaborate...

Just take a look at all of the former Mclean coaches that ran afoul of some powerful parent or other. They played games on the formation of CCL, lost a boys Development Academy slot a few years back because of inter-club warfare over money. About they only thing they do well is build turf fields.

[Anonymous]

We have been very happy with MYS. Really good coaches and more of a small club feel with personal attention. Issues that have been raised have been addresses inmediately and the communication has been solid.

Seems like there is a lot of vitrol out there but we have had nothing but a positive experience and seen a big focus on teamwork and Development . I am impressed with some of the new coaches they have brought on--and some of their longer term coaches are solid.

Anyway, just a different point of view I suppose since it seems some folks have a bone to pick with MYS...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Sorry bitter nay-sayers, at this point in time, ODP still matters to college coaches and looks great on a resume, it is one of the things that sticks out to them when they see it.......so saith the college coaches.

You mean, so saith the VYS rep. This is pure snake oil that you guys are selling. If people are fooled and want to buy it, that's on them. Caveat emptor.

What the hell? I don't even know what that means, what does VYS have to do with ODP?
I was speaking LITERALLY about the actual real-life college coaches that are reaching out to and recruiting my kids, and that have spoken to us at ID camps and showcase events: they like to see State/Region ODP; they like to see ECNL, id2, PDP, Region 1..... but hey why listen to the actual coaches who are looking at and recruiting players?

After reading this post again, I noticed that you had mentioned your DS was at a ID camp(ID2?). Maybe your son being in ODP is not the reason for scouting but for all of the other trainings you have sought out for him. I am now firmly of the belief that DA is the ONLY way to go to be scouted for college/US Soccer, prof. clubs., certainly there will be exceptions.

That's not quite the case:

- Several 2014 UVA men's signees not from DA: http://www.virginiasports.com/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/022714aaa.html
- Beach FC sending several players to college each year: http://www.beachfc.com/college-alumni

Here's a not-comprehensive list for 2016: http://www.soccerwire.com/ncaa-mens-soccer-commitment-tracker-class-of-2016/ ... note five from Arlington, many from Baltimore Celtic, four from FC Frederick, two from Loudoun, one from MSC, five from Pipeline, two from SYA, one SAC, four SOCA, one VSA, one Barca, one Virginia Rush, etc. And again, that's not comprehensive.

The USYSA National League notes nine from Arlington: http://www.usyouthsoccer.org/national_league/201516_national_league_commits__under18_boys/

So yes, the DA is the surest path. But not the only one.

Different poster here, but yes you don't need to play DA to get onto a good college team. There are not nearly enough DA players to fill all the available D1 spots, much less the universe of DI, DII, and DIII, and lots of great players don't live anywhere near a DA or ECNL team. You just will need to do more legwork in most cases to get yourself onto the radar of college coaches if you are not playing DA or on another high level regional or national league type team.

I think a lot of people on this forum did go to college, and perhaps already have their Master's of some sort. Probably a lot of people here also played some sort of organized sport in H.S. I ask a simple question:

While at college, would you have played at a low-ranked D1 or DII or lower if you didn't get any scholarship money? My point, and I'm not sure if anybody will agree with me, is that it will always benefit the person who focuses on academics vs. sports in college. I think a few H.S players may be sold into playing for a college team, in my opinion while going to college, those had the worst experiences and graduated a few years after I did(I graduated with a 4-year degree in 4-years).

Well.... i think maybe a lot depends on the program you play for and what your goal for a sport is. I played soccer in HS and was not good enough for a D1 school - i LOVED soccer and wanted to continue to play in soccer which factored into my decision making on schools. Clearly.. i got no money since it was dIII. But i played for the love of the game and for the joy of competing and being part of a team playing for your school. It taught me as a freshman to utilize my time efficiently since i had practice every afternoon and couldn't waste away an afternoon napping. All my team mates graduated in four years no issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have been very happy with MYS. Really good coaches and more of a small club feel with personal attention. Issues that have been raised have been addresses inmediately and the communication has been solid.

Seems like there is a lot of vitrol out there but we have had nothing but a positive experience and seen a big focus on teamwork and Development . I am impressed with some of the new coaches they have brought on--and some of their longer term coaches are solid.

Anyway, just a different point of view I suppose since it seems some folks have a bone to pick with MYS...

I guess you are pretty lucky. Our experience with MYS can't be worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have been very happy with MYS. Really good coaches and more of a small club feel with personal attention. Issues that have been raised have been addresses inmediately and the communication has been solid.

Seems like there is a lot of vitrol out there but we have had nothing but a positive experience and seen a big focus on teamwork and Development . I am impressed with some of the new coaches they have brought on--and some of their longer term coaches are solid.

Anyway, just a different point of view I suppose since it seems some folks have a bone to pick with MYS...

I guess you are pretty lucky. Our experience with MYS can't be worse.

I think it is reasonable to say that anyone can have a bone-to-pick with any of the clubs in this area. There is not a perfect flawless club where everyone is happy with everything they do. Luckily there are choices so if you are not happy with your club, you can go to another one. And just because one person or a group of people had issues with a club doesn't mean someone else will too. There is something here for everyone.

[Anonymous]

Any complaints or knowledge of SYA?

[Anonymous]

I am moving into the area from the west coast. I have a daughter in the 03 age group. Looking for guidance on 03 teams in Northern Virginia. .