Travel Soccer teams around NOVA let's discuss

[Anonymous]

I haven't seen anyone post about this yet but more competition in the Loudon area. Wonder what league they will play in. Wonder if they'll get in to one of the top leagues in the area because of name.

http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/fc_barcelona_to_launch_soccer_school_in_loudoun_county432

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spirit DA and VDA are going to be weak. The players they are bringing in are simply not at that level.

It's still too early to tell. My daughter has an open DA offer as does several other players we know. If they all accept, the DA team in her age group would have a solid core just with them. But the question is how many will accept.

I hope the DA will extend the deadline for accepting until they named the team coaches. It would make us a lot more comfortable about joining a new program if we knew who the coach is going to be.

In others words, a rising U14 parent.

If you don't want the slot, give it up and go play somewhere else. You are just hurting the age group by acting like a pre- Madonna. Rosters cant be finalized because of people like you. To be honest, you sound like you are worried about your kid being on the best team vs the best training. I've seen teams put together that I thought were going to stink that ended up being really good AND teams put together that i thought were going to be good that ended up under performing.

You dont have a crystal ball. Get your foot in the door of the program you want. IMO, the training at Spirit will be good. The same if not better then the other DAs

I think the posted meant "Prima donna". I made this mistake a few years back, my co workers haven't forgotten to this day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven't seen anyone post about this yet but more competition in the Loudon area. Wonder what league they will play in. Wonder if they'll get in to one of the top leagues in the area because of name.

http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/fc_barcelona_to_launch_soccer_school_in_loudoun_county432

Based on what they do in Florida they will probably play in an internal league they run themselves, friendlies, and tournaments.

http://fcbescola.fcbarcelona.com/florida/programs/competitive-program/

[Anonymous]

Looks like tryouts start April 22 and 29...

http://www.evergreensportsplex.com/fcb/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't seen anyone post about this yet but more competition in the Loudon area. Wonder what league they will play in. Wonder if they'll get in to one of the top leagues in the area because of name.

http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/fc_barcelona_to_launch_soccer_school_in_loudoun_county432

Based on what they do in Florida they will probably play in an internal league they run themselves, friendlies, and tournaments.

http://fcbescola.fcbarcelona.com/florida/programs/competitive-program/

Looks like BRYC will be playing a lot of friendlies against Evergreen and this new program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't seen anyone post about this yet but more competition in the Loudon area. Wonder what league they will play in. Wonder if they'll get in to one of the top leagues in the area because of name.

http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/fc_barcelona_to_launch_soccer_school_in_loudoun_county432

Based on what they do in Florida they will probably play in an internal league they run themselves, friendlies, and tournaments.

http://fcbescola.fcbarcelona.com/florida/programs/competitive-program/

Looks like BRYC will be playing a lot of friendlies against Evergreen and this new program.

It would be helpful if someone could find some testimonials from Florida and Texas how these escola's functioned. For those that are wondering, I did already look. I think the skipping of league play can only be done by programs with this level of credibility, any other club is just experimenting and charging you full price for a half-ride.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spirit DA and VDA are going to be weak. The players they are bringing in are simply not at that level.

It's still too early to tell. My daughter has an open DA offer as does several other players we know. If they all accept, the DA team in her age group would have a solid core just with them. But the question is how many will accept.

I hope the DA will extend the deadline for accepting until they named the team coaches. It would make us a lot more comfortable about joining a new program if we knew who the coach is going to be.

In others words, a rising U14 parent.

If you don't want the slot, give it up and go play somewhere else. You are just hurting the age group by acting like a pre- Madonna. Rosters cant be finalized because of people like you. To be honest, you sound like you are worried about your kid being on the best team vs the best training. I've seen teams put together that I thought were going to stink that ended up being really good AND teams put together that i thought were going to be good that ended up under performing.

You dont have a crystal ball. Get your foot in the door of the program you want. IMO, the training at Spirit will be good. The same if not better then the other DAs

I think the posted meant "Prima donna". I made this mistake a few years back, my co workers haven't forgotten to this day.

Yes, I think that's clearly the intent. It is nice of you to admit that you made the same mistake. I'm just struggling to understand what you or anyone else would think "pre-Madonna" could mean. On the cusp of becoming a pop star? Pat Benatar-like? Conventionally dressed? Something else?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spirit DA and VDA are going to be weak. The players they are bringing in are simply not at that level.

It's still too early to tell. My daughter has an open DA offer as does several other players we know. If they all accept, the DA team in her age group would have a solid core just with them. But the question is how many will accept.

I hope the DA will extend the deadline for accepting until they named the team coaches. It would make us a lot more comfortable about joining a new program if we knew who the coach is going to be.

In others words, a rising U14 parent.

If you don't want the slot, give it up and go play somewhere else. You are just hurting the age group by acting like a pre- Madonna. Rosters cant be finalized because of people like you. To be honest, you sound like you are worried about your kid being on the best team vs the best training. I've seen teams put together that I thought were going to stink that ended up being really good AND teams put together that i thought were going to be good that ended up under performing.

You dont have a crystal ball. Get your foot in the door of the program you want. IMO, the training at Spirit will be good. The same if not better then the other DAs

I think the posted meant "Prima donna". I made this mistake a few years back, my co workers haven't forgotten to this day.

Yes, I think that's clearly the intent. It is nice of you to admit that you made the same mistake. I'm just struggling to understand what you or anyone else would think "pre-Madonna" could mean. On the cusp of becoming a pop star? Pat Benatar-like? Conventionally dressed? Something else?

To the guy who wants a more "real" soccer forum doesn't understand that these are the real questions we want answers to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven't seen anyone post about this yet but more competition in the Loudon area. Wonder what league they will play in. Wonder if they'll get in to one of the top leagues in the area because of name.

http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/fc_barcelona_to_launch_soccer_school_in_loudoun_county432

Based on what they do in Florida they will probably play in an internal league they run themselves, friendlies, and tournaments.

http://fcbescola.fcbarcelona.com/florida/programs/competitive-program/

Looks like BRYC will be playing a lot of friendlies against Evergreen and this new program.

It would be helpful if someone could find some testimonials from Florida and Texas how these escola's functioned. For those that are wondering, I did already look. I think the skipping of league play can only be done by programs with this level of credibility, any other club is just experimenting and charging you full price for a half-ride.

I seriously doubt any real, Barca coaches will be running this. It will just be a installed curriculum that a coach is trained to implement. The curriculum might be worth the price of admission, but I doubt it.

[PreMadonna]

Since the term was used to describe me, I feel it's only appropriately that I claim the name for posterity,

And I do not see what's wrong with wanting to postpone a decision until you have as much relevant information as you can get, such as you'll be coaching your kid, how good will her teammates be, and if the program will cost significantly more. On the last point, Spirit's emails say the cost will be "competitive" with similarly situated programs so we'll see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spirit DA and VDA are going to be weak. The players they are bringing in are simply not at that level.

It's still too early to tell. My daughter has an open DA offer as does several other players we know. If they all accept, the DA team in her age group would have a solid core just with them. But the question is how many will accept.

I hope the DA will extend the deadline for accepting until they named the team coaches. It would make us a lot more comfortable about joining a new program if we knew who the coach is going to be.

In others words, a rising U14 parent.

If you don't want the slot, give it up and go play somewhere else. You are just hurting the age group by acting like a pre- Madonna. Rosters cant be finalized because of people like you. To be honest, you sound like you are worried about your kid being on the best team vs the best training. I've seen teams put together that I thought were going to stink that ended up being really good AND teams put together that i thought were going to be good that ended up under performing.

You dont have a crystal ball. Get your foot in the door of the program you want. IMO, the training at Spirit will be good. The same if not better then the other DAs

You can't blame anyone for having hesitation about joining the spirit. I'm sure they will hire competent coaches - but if the player pool is weak the training will not be as good or better then the other DAs.

Long term, I believe that the spirit will be good - next year, who knows. The number of open slots per age group (a few posts above) would suggest that they have been happier with the U14 turnout than the other age groups- but is this poster suggesting that the slots per age group is assuming that all offers will be accepted (but haven't already)?

I believe that assessing or projecting how strong or weak the player pool may be is a difficult thing to ascertain if you are not a coach who has seen all of the players who have come to the tryouts. In many ways the way the Spirit have gone about the tryouts is actually better than how traditional tryouts are usually done. The assessment of the players is based on their scale and not relative to a baseline of "known" players. You can learn more about kids in seeing how they play with mostly strangers versus how teammates play together. Teammates have learned to trust one another and this can cover up flaws and can help kids look better because they are playing in a "system" that they are comfortable with versus being in an unknown environment and playing more naturally.

Talent will always shine through but it is exposed one way or the other when a kid is taken out of their comfort zone.

Agree that this mechanism can separate the wheat from the chaff. The issue is that this meachanism does not give prospective players / parents any sort of insight about the level of play that can be expected. Just because it is DA does not mean that the teams will magically be competitive. The teams may be great / may not - would be nice for parents to have some sort of idea before committing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spirit DA and VDA are going to be weak. The players they are bringing in are simply not at that level.

It's still too early to tell. My daughter has an open DA offer as does several other players we know. If they all accept, the DA team in her age group would have a solid core just with them. But the question is how many will accept.

I hope the DA will extend the deadline for accepting until they named the team coaches. It would make us a lot more comfortable about joining a new program if we knew who the coach is going to be.

In others words, a rising U14 parent.

If you don't want the slot, give it up and go play somewhere else. You are just hurting the age group by acting like a pre- Madonna. Rosters cant be finalized because of people like you. To be honest, you sound like you are worried about your kid being on the best team vs the best training. I've seen teams put together that I thought were going to stink that ended up being really good AND teams put together that i thought were going to be good that ended up under performing.

You dont have a crystal ball. Get your foot in the door of the program you want. IMO, the training at Spirit will be good. The same if not better then the other DAs

I think the posted meant "Prima donna". I made this mistake a few years back, my co workers haven't forgotten to this day.

Yes, I think that's clearly the intent. It is nice of you to admit that you made the same mistake. I'm just struggling to understand what you or anyone else would think "pre-Madonna" could mean. On the cusp of becoming a pop star? Pat Benatar-like? Conventionally dressed? Something else?

I guess when I heard others say it, the only thing it sounded like was 'Madonna', the singer. if you see the source of origin for the saying, it is not necessarily a well known past time. In full defense of the person who said it, I don't think we all would have noticed that the person wasn't aware what words they were using if the person hadn't written it down. If we had heard the person speak it, they used the description in the correct context. We would not have known they were saying "pre-madonna' and not 'prima donna'.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^^ Thanks for feedback on U9 tryouts. Assuming I can't change size, speed, or strength, what message do I emphasize technically and tactically? Be selfish and show skilled possession and dribbling moves over passing and 1-2 play? Encourage aggressive tackling over moving to space for counter or cover (and letting closer defender pressure and tackle)? Shooting with power on an open goal from distance, or retaining possession longer to try to demonstrate skills and simply dribble through the cone goals?

I know it is only U9 and maybe nothing really matters, as what little I have seen is simply the same thing on top fields vs. bottom fields, except at the top fields everyone is bigger, older, faster. But if there was some advice to a player to stand out in some way based on what decisions they make with the ball, it would be helpful to know. I have heard parents say shoot and pass more, but wouldn't juking a bigger, stronger, defender with a piece of skill have more impact? TIA.

In all honesty, most of the advice is really for you to keep in perspective. What I would tell your kid is to simply go out and have fun. You might look into getting a little extra help before tryouts on some technical areas for nothing more than to build confidence in your child, but that is the key, confidence. If your kid is having fun and playing hard that is all that matters at this age so just have him/her go in with confidence. Just let your kid know that it is ok to show off some and to have fun.

+1
To add. At this early age I cant give my kids multiple levels for instruction and expect him to recall this information. I limit it to 1-2 pieces of advice and tell him to play hard and have fun. This is usually enough to motivate him and not overwhelm him with instruction.

[Anonymous]

PreMadonna wrote:Since the term was used to describe me, I feel it's only appropriately that I claim the name for posterity,

And I do not see what's wrong with wanting to postpone a decision until you have as much relevant information as you can get, such as you'll be coaching your kid, how good will her teammates be, and if the program will cost significantly more. On the last point, Spirit's emails say the cost will be "competitive" with similarly situated programs so we'll see.

HAHAHA!!

No, there is no problem with it but that information will not be forth coming.

1. Players who accepted are not going to more tryouts.
2. Those that do know kids who have accepted don't see the full picture either. This is like four blind men trying to describe a elephant.
3. Not sure where you're kid currently plays but my advice would be to look at factors like the training opportunity over "keeping the band together". If you have doubts about the training then I get it, but if you are basing your decision based upon the perceived roster I think you are doing it wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

PreMadonna wrote:Since the term was used to describe me, I feel it's only appropriately that I claim the name for posterity,

And I do not see what's wrong with wanting to postpone a decision until you have as much relevant information as you can get, such as you'll be coaching your kid, how good will her teammates be, and if the program will cost significantly more. On the last point, Spirit's emails say the cost will be "competitive" with similarly situated programs so we'll see.

HAHAHA!!

No, there is no problem with it but that information will not be forth coming.

1. Players who accepted are not going to more tryouts.
2. Those that do know kids who have accepted don't see the full picture either. This is like four blind men trying to describe a elephant.
3. Not sure where you're kid currently plays but my advice would be to look at factors like the training opportunity over "keeping the band together". If you have doubts about the training then I get it, but if you are basing your decision based upon the perceived roster I think you are doing it wrong.

PREACH