Pipeline

[Anonymous]

I'm the PP, and wanted to add that I don't necessarily agree with the idea that bench kids are holding the top players back. With the right coach, and where expectations are laid out, it can work. Maybe you tweak playing time for tournaments, but everyone should get a chance to play.

When my daughter was first starting out, she was on a team where she was one of the best players. There was a huge gap between the top of the roster and the bottom, and yes, I'll admit that in my mind, I dreaded when those bottom girls came into the game. I'm pretty sure that the team lost almost every game that season, but all but one girl came back the next season. The girls are all in high school now and all of them still play soccer, at various levels. Some are on highly competitive teams and others have moved down, but they are all still playing. You absolutely can develop kids the kids in front of you with the right coaching and right attitude. My daughter was lucky to have a coach who did everything right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the PP, and wanted to add that I don't necessarily agree with the idea that bench kids are holding the top players back. With the right coach, and where expectations are laid out, it can work. Maybe you tweak playing time for tournaments, but everyone should get a chance to play.

When my daughter was first starting out, she was on a team where she was one of the best players. There was a huge gap between the top of the roster and the bottom, and yes, I'll admit that in my mind, I dreaded when those bottom girls came into the game. I'm pretty sure that the team lost almost every game that season, but all but one girl came back the next season. The girls are all in high school now and all of them still play soccer, at various levels. Some are on highly competitive teams and others have moved down, but they are all still playing. You absolutely can develop kids the kids in front of you with the right coaching and right attitude. My daughter was lucky to have a coach who did everything right.

Agree, unfortunately as I said previously most of these clubs are about winning because it drives in more "talent" and money when you can say your teams are ranked top whatever in the state based on whatever system. You don't hear a lot of clubs boasting about getting beat 2-9 all year, but being better at developing players vs bringing in talent through tryouts.

Top talent wants to play with top talent immediately and parents sometimes think short sighted of going to the team that is better vs better at developing. If you can find the right coach and the right club that focuses on development and is competitive, especially at the younger ages, it is a win-win, but most of those clubs are few and far between. I think Pipeline is probably "guilty" of the same stuff other clubs do and focus on winning, but that is not necessarily bad. From what I have seen the club seems to generally care about developing winning teams. Some of that may be developing what they have, but unfortunately that also involves bringing in talent from elsewhere. I don't fault them for that one bit and how I want my child's club doing things as well. If that is too harsh or you don't think it's right there are plenty of clubs out there.

Unless you are just being a hater it's hard to say Pipeline isn't a very successful club throughout their entire program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the PP, and wanted to add that I don't necessarily agree with the idea that bench kids are holding the top players back. With the right coach, and where expectations are laid out, it can work. Maybe you tweak playing time for tournaments, but everyone should get a chance to play.

When my daughter was first starting out, she was on a team where she was one of the best players. There was a huge gap between the top of the roster and the bottom, and yes, I'll admit that in my mind, I dreaded when those bottom girls came into the game. I'm pretty sure that the team lost almost every game that season, but all but one girl came back the next season. The girls are all in high school now and all of them still play soccer, at various levels. Some are on highly competitive teams and others have moved down, but they are all still playing. You absolutely can develop kids the kids in front of you with the right coaching and right attitude. My daughter was lucky to have a coach who did everything right.

Agree, unfortunately as I said previously most of these clubs are about winning because it drives in more "talent" and money when you can say your teams are ranked top whatever in the state based on whatever system. You don't hear a lot of clubs boasting about getting beat 2-9 all year, but being better at developing players vs bringing in talent through tryouts.

Top talent wants to play with top talent immediately and parents sometimes think short sighted of going to the team that is better vs better at developing. If you can find the right coach and the right club that focuses on development and is competitive, especially at the younger ages, it is a win-win, but most of those clubs are few and far between. I think Pipeline is probably "guilty" of the same stuff other clubs do and focus on winning, but that is not necessarily bad. From what I have seen the club seems to generally care about developing winning teams. Some of that may be developing what they have, but unfortunately that also involves bringing in talent from elsewhere. I don't fault them for that one bit and how I want my child's club doing things as well. If that is too harsh or you don't think it's right there are plenty of clubs out there.

Unless you are just being a hater it's hard to say Pipeline isn't a very successful club throughout their entire program.

I would agree with you if your kid didn’t try out for pipeline and you as a parent sign a contract with them. It isn’t like they just grabbed 20 random kids off the street and said “go play ball.” I understand it is a business but it is also a group of kids and in our case, young kids, not even teenagers. I am not paying pipeline $3k a year to win, I am paying them that to develop my child - at least at this level. When it comes to the college recruiting stage, I will fight for the winning (although I don’t pretend that most, included my child, will play college soccer). Pipeline is cut throat, pure and simple. They aren’t the only club like this but they didn’t get to the top without being cut throat so my point is that when looking purely at stats, remember what goes into those some time.

[Anonymous]

This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Former Pipeline parent here. I'm telling you-- they do not develop players, they do not develop teams. And it's no wonder, because they have parent coaches with no training throughout their ranks. The teams are made up of a ruling elite class who hang around due to nepotism and god knows what other favors and then they poach all-stars from other organizations like there mini-hunting trophies. Their winning record will fizzle out in time. This is the most toxic organization we've ever seen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Former Pipeline parent here. I'm telling you-- they do not develop players, they do not develop teams. And it's no wonder, because they have parent coaches with no training throughout their ranks. The teams are made up of a ruling elite class who hang around due to nepotism and god knows what other favors and then they poach all-stars from other organizations like there mini-hunting trophies. Their winning record will fizzle out in time. This is the most toxic organization we've ever seen.

I have a few friends who have kids in Pipeline and I think the above statement isn't necessarily true from what I have heard, but I can see where the sentiment comes from. It's hard to objectively say Pipeline doesn't develop players or teams. They have a pretty good track record for a younger club. Almost all of the parents I know have been very happy with the development and the club. HOWEVER, I can see where people have an issue. From what I have seen they appear to very aggressively recruit better teams and players. I have seen that first hand and I'm not sure that's a bad thing, depending. If your child is on a great team and in the top third talent wise I would be excited about more talented kids coming in to train with and play with your child, which makes them better. If you have a "bubble" player and you want your kid to develop into a top player, but Pipeline brings in the shiny new toy and your kid is moved down I can see where that would cause some resentment. I have also seen that with a friend who had their kid moved down for a better new player after the teams were "set". He was pissed and maybe rightfully so, but at a certain level it's about putting together the best team on the field.

It's hard to say, well, Player A you are much better than Player B who we are struggling with on the team, but we want to work on developing Player B and hoping they get better so we are not going to bring you on the team Player A....but please god don't go to a rival club. Like someone previously posted, it's hard to say we lost 2-9, but we are ok with that because we are developing players. At the younger ages I wish more clubs thought and acted like that, but at a certain age that mindset needs to change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Former Pipeline parent here. I'm telling you-- they do not develop players, they do not develop teams. And it's no wonder, because they have parent coaches with no training throughout their ranks. The teams are made up of a ruling elite class who hang around due to nepotism and god knows what other favors and then they poach all-stars from other organizations like there mini-hunting trophies. Their winning record will fizzle out in time. This is the most toxic organization we've ever seen.

I have a few friends who have kids in Pipeline and I think the above statement isn't necessarily true from what I have heard, but I can see where the sentiment comes from. It's hard to objectively say Pipeline doesn't develop players or teams. They have a pretty good track record for a younger club. Almost all of the parents I know have been very happy with the development and the club. HOWEVER, I can see where people have an issue. From what I have seen they appear to very aggressively recruit better teams and players. I have seen that first hand and I'm not sure that's a bad thing, depending. If your child is on a great team and in the top third talent wise I would be excited about more talented kids coming in to train with and play with your child, which makes them better. If you have a "bubble" player and you want your kid to develop into a top player, but Pipeline brings in the shiny new toy and your kid is moved down I can see where that would cause some resentment. I have also seen that with a friend who had their kid moved down for a better new player after the teams were "set". He was pissed and maybe rightfully so, but at a certain level it's about putting together the best team on the field.

It's hard to say, well, Player A you are much better than Player B who we are struggling with on the team, but we want to work on developing Player B and hoping they get better so we are not going to bring you on the team Player A....but please god don't go to a rival club. Like someone previously posted, it's hard to say we lost 2-9, but we are ok with that because we are developing players. At the younger ages I wish more clubs thought and acted like that, but at a certain age that mindset needs to change.

If player identification and collecting are all that matters then we really should just return to ODP.

[Anonymous]

I'm not saying that Pipeline does this, because I don't have first hand experience, but today's "better player" won't always be the best player. That is a huge part of the problem. If a club continues to give the same attention to the bubble players after the shiny new thing comes along, that would be one thing. But demoting late developers to second rate B and C teams and giving them no attention, no opportunity to train with better kids, and having them play against teams who play swarming kickball doesn't really help them develop. I wish more clubs were as selective as they are for their top teams throughout all of the age groups, It's all about the putting the best team on the field when it's the A tem, but the B and C teams are money grabs for most clubs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not saying that Pipeline does this, because I don't have first hand experience, but today's "better player" won't always be the best player. That is a huge part of the problem. If a club continues to give the same attention to the bubble players after the shiny new thing comes along, that would be one thing. But demoting late developers to second rate B and C teams and giving them no attention, no opportunity to train with better kids, and having them play against teams who play swarming kickball doesn't really help them develop. I wish more clubs were as selective as they are for their top teams throughout all of the age groups, It's all about the putting the best team on the field when it's the A tem, but the B and C teams are money grabs for most clubs.

Most teams can't be that selective for their B and C teams because the kids they would select don't want to play for B and C teams. The clubs that can sustain themselves long term have large programs with teams at all levels (including rec). For clubs that try to just be the best while ignoring the rest, one or two down years and they become an after thought

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Part of what makes a great team is having consistency. You see this with kids who play together for years. When you have the constant club hopping, you lose the ability for the kids to learn the style of the coach and the strengths/weaknesses of their teammates. By pipeline encouraging this behavior with rolling tryouts and letting anyone jump on a team at any time, it does not allow for team development, let alone individual player development. As a parent (and a pipeline parent), I am paying a ridiculous amount of money to have a quality coach help to train my child and develop him into a better soccer player. I am not paying pipeline to get another star on their jersey. The wins are nice but not at the expense of my child actually learning how to improve.

As others have said, it is a toxic environment and one that I think will come to kick them in the a$$ eventually. We will be leaving at the end of the fall season after several years with the club.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Part of what makes a great team is having consistency. You see this with kids who play together for years. When you have the constant club hopping, you lose the ability for the kids to learn the style of the coach and the strengths/weaknesses of their teammates. By pipeline encouraging this behavior with rolling tryouts and letting anyone jump on a team at any time, it does not allow for team development, let alone individual player development. As a parent (and a pipeline parent), I am paying a ridiculous amount of money to have a quality coach help to train my child and develop him into a better soccer player. I am not paying pipeline to get another star on their jersey. The wins are nice but not at the expense of my child actually learning how to improve.

As others have said, it is a toxic environment and one that I think will come to kick them in the a$$ eventually. We will be leaving at the end of the fall season after several years with the club.

You are absolutely right, and I agree with what you say. Unfortunately, most other clubs operate in a similar manner, unless you can find a team with a coach committed to keeping players together. Choose carefully. It isn't easy to find what you are looking for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Part of what makes a great team is having consistency. You see this with kids who play together for years. When you have the constant club hopping, you lose the ability for the kids to learn the style of the coach and the strengths/weaknesses of their teammates. By pipeline encouraging this behavior with rolling tryouts and letting anyone jump on a team at any time, it does not allow for team development, let alone individual player development. As a parent (and a pipeline parent), I am paying a ridiculous amount of money to have a quality coach help to train my child and develop him into a better soccer player. I am not paying pipeline to get another star on their jersey. The wins are nice but not at the expense of my child actually learning how to improve.

As others have said, it is a toxic environment and one that I think will come to kick them in the a$$ eventually. We will be leaving at the end of the fall season after several years with the club.

All the clubs in Baltimore do rolling tryouts. And playing time is never a given. You’d be better off in getting your child private training to increase her playing time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a great discussion. I don't know of any of the big clubs that really develop players from the ground up. I think most try to focus on producing winning teams at u16 and older. Those teams produce college players and YNT players, which attracts more kids and money. Bethesda and Pipeline are the only successful teams I know who tend to have players from their youth teams move up to the older clubs. FCV doesn't and I doubt you will find more than four or five players.

This is another easy and tired trope that clubs don't develop players. They certainly do, it's just that players move on more than in the past. The real reason players are so transient is the huge number of options available, and the constant push to play on the best teams.

Former Pipeline parent here. I'm telling you-- they do not develop players, they do not develop teams. And it's no wonder, because they have parent coaches with no training throughout their ranks. The teams are made up of a ruling elite class who hang around due to nepotism and god knows what other favors and then they poach all-stars from other organizations like there mini-hunting trophies. Their winning record will fizzle out in time. This is the most toxic organization we've ever seen.

Another Pipeline parent. Not true that they have parent coaches with no training.

My kid has played for one other club in Baltimore and that club was a hot mess (hint— they sued Pipeline). Most of the original coaches at the other club have left, and they have huge player attrition.

My other child plays another sport club level and has also played for two clubs.

A few observations— every club in every sport wants to recruit the best players. There will be constant jockeying for playing time the closer to college your kid gets.

Pipeline isn’t perfect, but it is a well run club in my opinion, and pretty responsive to parent complaints. Some coaches are better than others. Most of the coaches have been with the club for at least four to five years and many are also coaching local high school teams, same is true for Celtics. My own kid’s age group has seen remarkable consistency in rosters across all teams for the past four to five years. Are there 20 percent new kids each year? Yes, but the core is the same. This is to be expected, not all kids stay at the same ability level, some kids are late bloomers and will surpass them.

[Anonymous]

Interesting thread on pipeline. I think many people have had the same problems. They are great with social media but do not develop the players. I think it's also important to point out their problems with other organizations. They always seem to be the aggressors. There was a lawsuit with an area club that they lost. I think the lawsuit had to do with trying to steal players but I'm sure everyone can look up the case if they are interested. You'd think there'd be a record of it somewhere. If you notice, they also aren't in any area tournaments. I think napoleon likely angered someone?

I felt that a few select players get all the attention. This is on the boys' side and it's likely the same on the girls'. The promises are empty. I wouldn't send anyone there. This organization is for the few close to the owner and the rest just feed napoleon's pocket.

Avoid at all costs.