Field hockey clubs feedback

[Anonymous]

Our daughter plays for Mustangs and we could not be happier. Every coach is both an excellent field hockey player and a stand out coach. The have high standards for the girls but it is almost impossible for me to imagine any of the coaches berating or shouting at any of the girls, something I've definitely heard and seen from some other clubs. Their overall club philosophy is to develop the girls in a well rounded fashion including performance training, hockey skills, strategy, etc. Practices are well managed, skills are described and demonstrated in detail, and they course correct both on a team and individual level efficiently. While they have some girls who are already very strong (as noted, they came from one of the other mentioned clubs here), a big part of their vision seems to be turning girls who aren't superstars into exceptional field hockey player. That means every player gets access to great coaching talent and the same high expectations. Our daughter's skills improved by leaps and bounds after just one season with Mustangs where she was languishing at another club. At the same time, she went from liking field hockey as a casual hobby to loving field hockey.

Not sure where you are located, but there are a decent collection of MoCo girls who play with the team even though there are other clubs that are undoubtedly closer.

[Anonymous]

For those of you with local clubs, and you don't have to say who if you don't want to, how much do your coaches/directors help with recruiting? I am trying to determine if our experience is typical.
Thx.

[Anonymous]

This is a mystery. My D’s clubs didn’t seem to be all that helpful, but they had good outcomes.

[Anonymous]

Wolves has strong recruiting support for top players

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a mystery. My D’s clubs didn’t seem to be all that helpful, but they had good outcomes.

Mine doesn't appear to help at all and that seems to conflict with what we're hearing from other clubs. Some kids, not yet SUPPOSED to be talking to D1 schools, seem to have knowledge who "wants them" and so forth. Others have their coaches promoting them and helping find fits. But not ours (it's one listed). They have had some successes the last couple of years and I suspect that the Coach is either a) taking credit for what the family has done with their "commitment announcements" or b) is disproportionately giving assistance to some over others.

I guess there is nothing to be done about that, however. It stinks. I would be nice to have an advocate, or at least a guide.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a mystery. My D’s clubs didn’t seem to be all that helpful, but they had good outcomes.

Mine doesn't appear to help at all and that seems to conflict with what we're hearing from other clubs. Some kids, not yet SUPPOSED to be talking to D1 schools, seem to have knowledge who "wants them" and so forth. Others have their coaches promoting them and helping find fits. But not ours (it's one listed). They have had some successes the last couple of years and I suspect that the Coach is either a) taking credit for what the family has done with their "commitment announcements" or b) is disproportionately giving assistance to some over others.

I guess there is nothing to be done about that, however. It stinks. I would be nice to have an advocate, or at least a guide.

Go to a new club. Several have legitimate recruiting programs with a coordinator or platform to connect athletes with colleges.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our daughter plays for Mustangs and we could not be happier. Every coach is both an excellent field hockey player and a stand out coach. The have high standards for the girls but it is almost impossible for me to imagine any of the coaches berating or shouting at any of the girls, something I've definitely heard and seen from some other clubs. Their overall club philosophy is to develop the girls in a well rounded fashion including performance training, hockey skills, strategy, etc. Practices are well managed, skills are described and demonstrated in detail, and they course correct both on a team and individual level efficiently. While they have some girls who are already very strong (as noted, they came from one of the other mentioned clubs here), a big part of their vision seems to be turning girls who aren't superstars into exceptional field hockey player. That means every player gets access to great coaching talent and the same high expectations. Our daughter's skills improved by leaps and bounds after just one season with Mustangs where she was languishing at another club. At the same time, she went from liking field hockey as a casual hobby to loving field hockey.

Not sure where you are located, but there are a decent collection of MoCo girls who play with the team even though there are other clubs that are undoubtedly closer.

Could you tell me how they are or what they do to help with recruiting?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our daughter plays for Mustangs and we could not be happier. Every coach is both an excellent field hockey player and a stand out coach. The have high standards for the girls but it is almost impossible for me to imagine any of the coaches berating or shouting at any of the girls, something I've definitely heard and seen from some other clubs. Their overall club philosophy is to develop the girls in a well rounded fashion including performance training, hockey skills, strategy, etc. Practices are well managed, skills are described and demonstrated in detail, and they course correct both on a team and individual level efficiently. While they have some girls who are already very strong (as noted, they came from one of the other mentioned clubs here), a big part of their vision seems to be turning girls who aren't superstars into exceptional field hockey player. That means every player gets access to great coaching talent and the same high expectations. Our daughter's skills improved by leaps and bounds after just one season with Mustangs where she was languishing at another club. At the same time, she went from liking field hockey as a casual hobby to loving field hockey.

Not sure where you are located, but there are a decent collection of MoCo girls who play with the team even though there are other clubs that are undoubtedly closer.

Could you tell me how they are or what they do to help with recruiting?

All girls on a u16 or u19 team get a sports recruits account. Players can upload videos, list accomplishments, and email college coaches directly through sports recruits. Sports recruits also has some college specific info that players can use to help narrow down the list of schools they are interested in, things like size, degree, location, division etc.

Additionally, coaches are willing to speak with college coaches or be cc’d on emails.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our daughter plays for Mustangs and we could not be happier. Every coach is both an excellent field hockey player and a stand out coach. The have high standards for the girls but it is almost impossible for me to imagine any of the coaches berating or shouting at any of the girls, something I've definitely heard and seen from some other clubs. Their overall club philosophy is to develop the girls in a well rounded fashion including performance training, hockey skills, strategy, etc. Practices are well managed, skills are described and demonstrated in detail, and they course correct both on a team and individual level efficiently. While they have some girls who are already very strong (as noted, they came from one of the other mentioned clubs here), a big part of their vision seems to be turning girls who aren't superstars into exceptional field hockey player. That means every player gets access to great coaching talent and the same high expectations. Our daughter's skills improved by leaps and bounds after just one season with Mustangs where she was languishing at another club. At the same time, she went from liking field hockey as a casual hobby to loving field hockey.

Not sure where you are located, but there are a decent collection of MoCo girls who play with the team even though there are other clubs that are undoubtedly closer.

Could you tell me how they are or what they do to help with recruiting?

All girls on a u16 or u19 team get a sports recruits account. Players can upload videos, list accomplishments, and email college coaches directly through sports recruits. Sports recruits also has some college specific info that players can use to help narrow down the list of schools they are interested in, things like size, degree, location, division etc.

Additionally, coaches are willing to speak with college coaches or be cc’d on emails.

This is pretty standard for most clubs in this area. As far as I’m aware, the only clubs that take it a step further with recruiting are Freedom and Wolves (based on feedback from DD’s friends.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our daughter plays for Mustangs and we could not be happier. Every coach is both an excellent field hockey player and a stand out coach. The have high standards for the girls but it is almost impossible for me to imagine any of the coaches berating or shouting at any of the girls, something I've definitely heard and seen from some other clubs. Their overall club philosophy is to develop the girls in a well rounded fashion including performance training, hockey skills, strategy, etc. Practices are well managed, skills are described and demonstrated in detail, and they course correct both on a team and individual level efficiently. While they have some girls who are already very strong (as noted, they came from one of the other mentioned clubs here), a big part of their vision seems to be turning girls who aren't superstars into exceptional field hockey player. That means every player gets access to great coaching talent and the same high expectations. Our daughter's skills improved by leaps and bounds after just one season with Mustangs where she was languishing at another club. At the same time, she went from liking field hockey as a casual hobby to loving field hockey.

Not sure where you are located, but there are a decent collection of MoCo girls who play with the team even though there are other clubs that are undoubtedly closer.

Could you tell me how they are or what they do to help with recruiting?

All girls on a u16 or u19 team get a sports recruits account. Players can upload videos, list accomplishments, and email college coaches directly through sports recruits. Sports recruits also has some college specific info that players can use to help narrow down the list of schools they are interested in, things like size, degree, location, division etc.

Additionally, coaches are willing to speak with college coaches or be cc’d on emails.

This is pretty standard for most clubs in this area. As far as I’m aware, the only clubs that take it a step further with recruiting are Freedom and Wolves (based on feedback from DD’s friends.)

For our daughter coach went over daughters list of colleges she was interested in and provided feedback on what was right level. She emailed coaches, these emails resulted in daughter being placed in top/recruit group for a few of the camps she attended. We are not with the above clubs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our daughter plays for Mustangs and we could not be happier. Every coach is both an excellent field hockey player and a stand out coach. The have high standards for the girls but it is almost impossible for me to imagine any of the coaches berating or shouting at any of the girls, something I've definitely heard and seen from some other clubs. Their overall club philosophy is to develop the girls in a well rounded fashion including performance training, hockey skills, strategy, etc. Practices are well managed, skills are described and demonstrated in detail, and they course correct both on a team and individual level efficiently. While they have some girls who are already very strong (as noted, they came from one of the other mentioned clubs here), a big part of their vision seems to be turning girls who aren't superstars into exceptional field hockey player. That means every player gets access to great coaching talent and the same high expectations. Our daughter's skills improved by leaps and bounds after just one season with Mustangs where she was languishing at another club. At the same time, she went from liking field hockey as a casual hobby to loving field hockey.

Not sure where you are located, but there are a decent collection of MoCo girls who play with the team even though there are other clubs that are undoubtedly closer.

Could you tell me how they are or what they do to help with recruiting?

All girls on a u16 or u19 team get a sports recruits account. Players can upload videos, list accomplishments, and email college coaches directly through sports recruits. Sports recruits also has some college specific info that players can use to help narrow down the list of schools they are interested in, things like size, degree, location, division etc.

Additionally, coaches are willing to speak with college coaches or be cc’d on emails.

This is pretty standard for most clubs in this area. As far as I’m aware, the only clubs that take it a step further with recruiting are Freedom and Wolves (based on feedback from DD’s friends.)

For our daughter coach went over daughters list of colleges she was interested in and provided feedback on what was right level. She emailed coaches, these emails resulted in daughter being placed in top/recruit group for a few of the camps she attended. We are not with the above clubs.

This is what we are missing, unfortunately. Even though we've asked, this sort of feedback has not been provided (though I get the impression is has for others).

[Anonymous]

This weekend was the regional club championships and teams from MD and DE compete. Based on the level of play, the top clubs in the local DMV commuting area are Freedom and Warhawks. Watching these teams play in all three levels, there is no comparison on the stellar coaching and athletic ability of the teams. These clubs seem to focus on the fundamentals, conditioning and field IQ. The ball is glued to their stick, they understand passing lanes, and their speed on and off the ball is very strong. Also, the coaches clearly coached constructively on the sidelines. Other teams in the commuting area don’t compare to these 2 clubs. The one thing I noticed was Washington Wolves carried a large roster with atleast 7 plus players warming the bench in each age bracket. I heard numerous parents frustrated about this. The other clubs seemed reasonable with 2-3 active subs and no bench players. If Freedom or Warhawks is too far, one clear up and coming team looks like Next Level’s younger u14 age group as their roster size was not large giving all players the ability to participate and develop and the coaching was clear during the game on how to adjust.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This weekend was the regional club championships and teams from MD and DE compete. Based on the level of play, the top clubs in the local DMV commuting area are Freedom and Warhawks. Watching these teams play in all three levels, there is no comparison on the stellar coaching and athletic ability of the teams. These clubs seem to focus on the fundamentals, conditioning and field IQ. The ball is glued to their stick, they understand passing lanes, and their speed on and off the ball is very strong. Also, the coaches clearly coached constructively on the sidelines. Other teams in the commuting area don’t compare to these 2 clubs. The one thing I noticed was Washington Wolves carried a large roster with atleast 7 plus players warming the bench in each age bracket. I heard numerous parents frustrated about this. The other clubs seemed reasonable with 2-3 active subs and no bench players. If Freedom or Warhawks is too far, one clear up and coming team looks like Next Level’s younger u14 age group as their roster size was not large giving all players the ability to participate and develop and the coaching was clear during the game on how to adjust.

This was the RCCs for region 7 (I think that's the right one).

Region 8 also played in VA Beach. Husel placed pretty well this year in both U14 and U16, considering they play against some powerhouse VA Beach and Richmond Teams and are a pretty small club. Metro did really well, too. Hammers finished at the back of the pack, at least for U16. Mustangs and Nova Extreme didn't place well, either. (Those clubs have some strong suits, though, imo, beyond "wins v. losses.")

The top team (FOCUS) is a HUGE club with multiple club locations and they get to pick/choose the best players for their RCC Team. They won it all. The Nova teams just don't have that same ability, unfortunately.

As for recruitment, I won't say who we play for but they have not helped with recruiting at all. Though I get the sense (hear the gossip) that some of the players get help/promoted. It's extremely frustrating. We've considered other options but we are too far along at this point and think it would not be a positive reflection if we did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This weekend was the regional club championships and teams from MD and DE compete. Based on the level of play, the top clubs in the local DMV commuting area are Freedom and Warhawks. Watching these teams play in all three levels, there is no comparison on the stellar coaching and athletic ability of the teams. These clubs seem to focus on the fundamentals, conditioning and field IQ. The ball is glued to their stick, they understand passing lanes, and their speed on and off the ball is very strong. Also, the coaches clearly coached constructively on the sidelines. Other teams in the commuting area don’t compare to these 2 clubs. The one thing I noticed was Washington Wolves carried a large roster with atleast 7 plus players warming the bench in each age bracket. I heard numerous parents frustrated about this. The other clubs seemed reasonable with 2-3 active subs and no bench players. If Freedom or Warhawks is too far, one clear up and coming team looks like Next Level’s younger u14 age group as their roster size was not large giving all players the ability to participate and develop and the coaching was clear during the game on how to adjust.

This was the RCCs for region 7 (I think that's the right one).

Region 8 also played in VA Beach. Husel placed pretty well this year in both U14 and U16, considering they play against some powerhouse VA Beach and Richmond Teams and are a pretty small club. Metro did really well, too. Hammers finished at the back of the pack, at least for U16. Mustangs and Nova Extreme didn't place well, either. (Those clubs have some strong suits, though, imo, beyond "wins v. losses.")

The top team (FOCUS) is a HUGE club with multiple club locations and they get to pick/choose the best players for their RCC Team. They won it all. The Nova teams just don't have that same ability, unfortunately.

As for recruitment, I won't say who we play for but they have not helped with recruiting at all. Though I get the sense (hear the gossip) that some of the players get help/promoted. It's extremely frustrating. We've considered other options but we are too far along at this point and think it would not be a positive reflection if we did.

It’s never too late to change clubs. I know of plenty of girls who changed clubs in their Junior or Senior year and went on the play in college, at least 1 played at a D1 college.

If you hear the gossip, it’s true. One of the clubs you mentioned lost a ton of girls recently and I don’t think any of those who left regret it. They went to a couple of different clubs and wish they made the jump sooner.

When you are inside the club it’s really hard to see all the issues (or maybe believe them). Once you are outside, it’s much more clear.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This weekend was the regional club championships and teams from MD and DE compete. Based on the level of play, the top clubs in the local DMV commuting area are Freedom and Warhawks. Watching these teams play in all three levels, there is no comparison on the stellar coaching and athletic ability of the teams. These clubs seem to focus on the fundamentals, conditioning and field IQ. The ball is glued to their stick, they understand passing lanes, and their speed on and off the ball is very strong. Also, the coaches clearly coached constructively on the sidelines. Other teams in the commuting area don’t compare to these 2 clubs. The one thing I noticed was Washington Wolves carried a large roster with atleast 7 plus players warming the bench in each age bracket. I heard numerous parents frustrated about this. The other clubs seemed reasonable with 2-3 active subs and no bench players. If Freedom or Warhawks is too far, one clear up and coming team looks like Next Level’s younger u14 age group as their roster size was not large giving all players the ability to participate and develop and the coaching was clear during the game on how to adjust.

This was the RCCs for region 7 (I think that's the right one).

Region 8 also played in VA Beach. Husel placed pretty well this year in both U14 and U16, considering they play against some powerhouse VA Beach and Richmond Teams and are a pretty small club. Metro did really well, too. Hammers finished at the back of the pack, at least for U16. Mustangs and Nova Extreme didn't place well, either. (Those clubs have some strong suits, though, imo, beyond "wins v. losses.")

The top team (FOCUS) is a HUGE club with multiple club locations and they get to pick/choose the best players for their RCC Team. They won it all. The Nova teams just don't have that same ability, unfortunately.

As for recruitment, I won't say who we play for but they have not helped with recruiting at all. Though I get the sense (hear the gossip) that some of the players get help/promoted. It's extremely frustrating. We've considered other options but we are too far along at this point and think it would not be a positive reflection if we did.

It’s never too late to change clubs. I know of plenty of girls who changed clubs in their Junior or Senior year and went on the play in college, at least 1 played at a D1 college.

If you hear the gossip, it’s true. One of the clubs you mentioned lost a ton of girls recently and I don’t think any of those who left regret it. They went to a couple of different clubs and wish they made the jump sooner.

When you are inside the club it’s really hard to see all the issues (or maybe believe them). Once you are outside, it’s much more clear.

Oh trust me, I absolutely believe it. But . . . it's complicated.