Say something nice about a local club

[Anonymous]

Thank you for this!

Arlington - I know it’s not perfect, but I love the fact that it has a strong woman leading the GA program.

[Anonymous]

SYC. They are a rival of my kid's club but they made some bold moves to try to reverse course and are giving it a shot. BRYC should look at what they've done and think about whom they want to hire to do something different (you can really tell when teams are just mailing it in - their websites stink and their social media engagement dips substantially).

I'll also add GFR for merging - I think more of the teams in their neck of the woods should do that either across the club or in older ages to present a better competitive alternative to the usual suspects.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you for this!

Arlington - I know it’s not perfect, but I love the fact that it has a strong woman leading the GA program.

I agree. It’s good for the girls to have women as role models in leadership positions. And she is no slouch — I love that my GK daughter gets some training from a former Canadian national team GK.

[Anonymous]

RantingSoccerDad wrote:COVID confinement seems to have made us even more hostile than usual.

I thought about posting a thread in which people could tell me why Club X is horrible and I would write a refutation, as I've been doing in several specific club threads. But I figured I'd let other people do the work.

So pick a club. Any club. More than one, if you like. Then say something nice.

My sons in VYS have played Arlington twice in the last 3 weeks (1st & 2nd teams). Arlington's players and coaches have the highest soccer IQ in the entire area. It is a pleasure to watch their off ball movement.

[Anonymous]

I have been impressed with SYC. They seem to focus on developing younger players. The coaches were really good with the young kids at tryouts. We didn't join, but overall, good communication and coaching.

[Anonymous]

In the middle of a pandemic, DC United Academy is fully funded for the first time (i.e. it's free), and they didn't drop any players from last year (while still adding new players) because they didn't think they'd have a fair chance to find the right team. For all the crap people give them, that was all pretty decent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In the middle of a pandemic, DC United Academy is fully funded for the first time (i.e. it's free), and they didn't drop any players from last year (while still adding new players) because they didn't think they'd have a fair chance to find the right team. For all the crap people give them, that was all pretty decent.

They are fully funded only so they can collect the FIFA payments for players who sign elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Nice idea for a thread. We have been pretty happy with Bethesda soccer for the several years our sons have played there. In our view, they do a very good job teaching technical skills, and their college recruiting results are very impressive.

[Anonymous]

I have nothing nice to say about any of them and it's not due to Covid. : (

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have nothing nice to say about any of them and it's not due to Covid. : (

I know this club too.

[Anonymous]

PAC do a really good job of getting teams to play better than the sum of their parts. Especially considering their resources.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have nothing nice to say about any of them and it's not due to Covid. : (

I know this club too.

I do love that the usual suspects will start singing...

[Anonymous]

RantingSoccerDad wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PAC do a really good job of getting teams to play better than the sum of their parts. Especially considering their resources.

PAC brings in players with wildly diverse talent levels and helps them all maximize their potential. The one criticism I'd have is that they sometimes put kids in tournaments that are over their heads.

Speaking strictly about their organization as a team, players’ individual positioning, and set piece choreography, I’ve always been impressed by them. Like you said, the levels of talent can fluctuate. I’ve seen their teams across many age groups, and even though my teams have never lost to them, they’ve always given us a tough game and I’ve always been impressed by the way they’re able to play as a collective. Sully is a class act and I’ve got a lot of respect for him as a coach.

[Anonymous]

I respect Alexandria’s commitment to playing a possession style and building out of the back. Even if it’s often not done properly and can end up being naive and dogmatic, it’s a much better way to develop players than having them play long ball or speculating as a style.

[Anonymous]

Metro United is an awesome organization. My daughter loves the coaching style and her new friends