New Arlington Travel Soccer Family

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Many kids leave soccer because of the burnout and I agree that there is a high turnover rate (for various reasons). Kids on the top teams are not excepted. The top teams at big clubs at U16 would have a very different make up from their top team, when they were playing U9-U10.

Yes, but most of the players on that club's top U16 team were at other clubs' top team when they were U9-U10, and many of the kids who were on that club's top U9-U10 team are on now on other clubs' top U16 teams.

The burnout rate of players who were on good A/B teams at U9/U10 is not that high. Most continue to play at some level through high school. A far greater percentage of lower level players will leave the sport, but most will move on to other sports they enjoy more and are better at.

No this is not the what I have seen. The u9/u10 “A” team players at top clubs have a continual turn over rate each year. What makes a “winning” u10 player does not translate to the u14 game. Many u9-u11 players rely on speed and size, not individual skill. The clubs teach individual skill but many of the top team players at u9-u12 do not work on it because it’s hard, boring, they are already doing soccer 4 days a week, 10 months a year and they think they are the best already. Many will get demoted as they move up the age groups. Most of the ones who drop to a lower team leave the sport after a year. They are not playing at another top club. The big clubs attract the the top one or two players from the small or to mid size clubs in the area each year. This is why u9-u12 really does not matter to clubs. You really do not know what you have till u13 or u14.

From U9-U12 they practice 4 days a week, 10 months a year and yet they "do not work on it"? LOL

Look, there are kids at small clubs who train away from club just as there are kids in big clubs who train outside of club. Regardless of where the kid plays it is always the extra work that raises any players skill level overall. Being at any particular club is never a punched ticket to DA or ECNL but the kid will likely be training day in and day out with a higher quality pool and stiffer competition. Doing well in this environment simply means that you are on the right track. It also means that your kid is a more known commodity with coaches at DA and ECNL level. This can be a positive or a negative.

Kids in smaller clubs have some advantages coaching ratio wise that can overcome a smaller talent pool. Also, a small talent pool means lots of game minutes and time on the ball that a large club team with a large bench may not provide.

The bottom line, if your kid is already very talented for age a large club might be best. Playing time will still be assured and the competition may be better.

If you have a talented but potentially late blooming kid, a small club with more attention is likely the best fit. But regardless, extra work away from club is something that ALL top players do regardless of the club or even the team they are on.

If a kid is working hard away from the club team then they will become a top player. If a player is not working on their game away from club, regardless of initial team placement at 9 or 10 years old they will not stay or become a top player. There are rare athletic freaks who simply make it look easy and do very little extra work away from club but they are the exception.

In my estimation, barring elite athletic prowess training 4 days a week is the minimum that it takes to become an eventual high level/starting DA or ECNL player regardless of the club a kid is at. So no, you are not seeing Big Club, A Team level kids getting overtaken by the "little engines that could". What you are seeing at the DA/ECNL level are kids who all had the same level of dedication and hard work regardless of the team or club they started at when they were 9 years old.