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Another year, another OBGC.
11v11
- I was generally happy with the refs for my kid who played 11v11 in the top flight.
- Teams in that bracket were excellent, which is great to play against.
- It was, of course, blazing hot. Felt like maybe the hottest OBGC I’ve been to.
uLittle
- It was kind of nice being back at Covenant. I’ll take that over Western Regional any day.
- We had one good ref (who flew up from FL), in a game we lost. Another one was among the worst I have seen.
- One of the refs had to be in his 80s. He did nothing wrong from an attitude perspective, but was completely unable to control the game. I watched a uLittle boys top flight game (not my kid’s team) that involved numerous fouls that would have been straight red cards in an older game, but the ref didn’t even blow his whistle. One was a retaliatory full on football tackle completely off the ball. The ref had zero control of the game.
- The other ref seemed nice enough, but just let the kids play (almost like a pickup game). Ball goes out of bounds, but kid ignores the whistle? He’d shrug and smile like “What can you do?” Kids ignoring the buildout line? Same thing. Kid takes a throw in like he’s throwing a football? Let it go. Half the kids ignored his direction on which team was awarded a throw in, and it just became who grabbed the ball first.
- I also saw way more parents jawing at the refs in uLittle vs 11v11. Part of that could be newer parents, part could be lower level of competition (parents of ECNL players should know better), part may have been ref quality, part may have been the lack of linesmen. Coaches should better control this (but let’s be honest, they’re often part of the problem). If we really want to help address the referee shortage, I think tournament officials need to just walk the grounds looking for this, then speak to offending parents. I’d never put up with it if I was a ref.
- I spoke to a few refs who complained how hard it is to ref 9v9 alone, and I agree with them.
- It would be nice to see Covenant add more shade structures beyond the single pavilion that is always packed, and also enlarge the practice area.
Generally though, a good tournament with good fields, good teams, and the little kid loved the snack shack.
11v11
- I was generally happy with the refs for my kid who played 11v11 in the top flight.
- Teams in that bracket were excellent, which is great to play against.
- It was, of course, blazing hot. Felt like maybe the hottest OBGC I’ve been to.
uLittle
- It was kind of nice being back at Covenant. I’ll take that over Western Regional any day.
- We had one good ref (who flew up from FL), in a game we lost. Another one was among the worst I have seen.
- One of the refs had to be in his 80s. He did nothing wrong from an attitude perspective, but was completely unable to control the game. I watched a uLittle boys top flight game (not my kid’s team) that involved numerous fouls that would have been straight red cards in an older game, but the ref didn’t even blow his whistle. One was a retaliatory full on football tackle completely off the ball. The ref had zero control of the game.
- The other ref seemed nice enough, but just let the kids play (almost like a pickup game). Ball goes out of bounds, but kid ignores the whistle? He’d shrug and smile like “What can you do?” Kids ignoring the buildout line? Same thing. Kid takes a throw in like he’s throwing a football? Let it go. Half the kids ignored his direction on which team was awarded a throw in, and it just became who grabbed the ball first.
- I also saw way more parents jawing at the refs in uLittle vs 11v11. Part of that could be newer parents, part could be lower level of competition (parents of ECNL players should know better), part may have been ref quality, part may have been the lack of linesmen. Coaches should better control this (but let’s be honest, they’re often part of the problem). If we really want to help address the referee shortage, I think tournament officials need to just walk the grounds looking for this, then speak to offending parents. I’d never put up with it if I was a ref.
- I spoke to a few refs who complained how hard it is to ref 9v9 alone, and I agree with them.
- It would be nice to see Covenant add more shade structures beyond the single pavilion that is always packed, and also enlarge the practice area.
Generally though, a good tournament with good fields, good teams, and the little kid loved the snack shack.
Email the club’s TD politely explaining what happened, and ask him if this represents acceptable behavior from a coach in his club.
His own coach (cyan) needs to make room for him. I would be nowhere near ok with this.
His own coach (cyan) needs to make room for him. I would be nowhere near ok with this.
No dice. Baltimore wouldn’t have required a hotel, Philly or NYC definitely will.
The travel part of travel soccer in DC is minimal. Half the games are home games (about a 15 min drive for us), most of the other games are within 30 minutes, and there might be a handful of games per year that are an hour away. This is NCSL.
Choosing between two clubs for a 2014 boy. I have an older daughter that had a good experience starting travel at U9, so assume that I am going to choose one of these (ie. don't want to continue playing house). Both clubs are approximately the same driving distance to practice and games (very close).
Club A
Pros:
- Older daughter has played at every level of the club, and has generally had a good experience.
- Club is pretty large, and has probably twice as many 2014s trying out. I think the age group will be strong top to bottom as they age.
- Club is our local club, and my son goes to public school. He will have friends and classmates who play for the club, and will likely be in the same school (at some point) with his teammates.
Cons:
- I think there is a good chance my son will be placed on the bottom team.
- I'm not a fan of the bottom team coach. I like the other coaches in the age group, though.
- Only the top team practices 3 days a week. My son will get 2 days a week of practice, potentially widening the gap between him and the top team.
Club B:
Pros:
- Friends play for this club on the boys side, and like it.
- My son's best friend will likely play for this club's team. We could carpool, at least to practice.
- I suspect my son would play for one of their middle teams (ie. not the bottom).
- All kids at the club practice 3 days a week.
- We have attended camps at this club before, and liked them better than the camps at our current club.
Cons:
- Close by, but most of the club's kids will likely be in a different school pyramid than mine.
- About half as many 2014 boys, so the club may not be as competitive as they age.
- I feel a little disloyal putting my son in a rival club (they will play each other).
Thoughts?
Club A
Pros:
- Older daughter has played at every level of the club, and has generally had a good experience.
- Club is pretty large, and has probably twice as many 2014s trying out. I think the age group will be strong top to bottom as they age.
- Club is our local club, and my son goes to public school. He will have friends and classmates who play for the club, and will likely be in the same school (at some point) with his teammates.
Cons:
- I think there is a good chance my son will be placed on the bottom team.
- I'm not a fan of the bottom team coach. I like the other coaches in the age group, though.
- Only the top team practices 3 days a week. My son will get 2 days a week of practice, potentially widening the gap between him and the top team.
Club B:
Pros:
- Friends play for this club on the boys side, and like it.
- My son's best friend will likely play for this club's team. We could carpool, at least to practice.
- I suspect my son would play for one of their middle teams (ie. not the bottom).
- All kids at the club practice 3 days a week.
- We have attended camps at this club before, and liked them better than the camps at our current club.
Cons:
- Close by, but most of the club's kids will likely be in a different school pyramid than mine.
- About half as many 2014 boys, so the club may not be as competitive as they age.
- I feel a little disloyal putting my son in a rival club (they will play each other).
Thoughts?
SYC’s 2010 girls first team is very strong, and will be the majority of the VA Union ECNL team in the fall. I don’t know for sure about their other teams, but I would assume that whole age group is competitive.
M
I’m not sure I understand the recent posts. On the girls’ side, based on past results, I would expect more VYS girls to join BRAVE at the younger ages than BRYC.
The 2009 BRYC girls went 0-17 in ECNL, never scored a goal, and gave up 103.
The 2009 VYS Phoenix team finished 2nd in their ECNL-R division, with 24 GF and 7 GA. Yes, a lower league, but those results are wildly different.
For the 2010s, BRYC’s went 1-5-1 in EDP Premier I, with 4 GF and 22 GA
The 2010 VYS Phoenix team finished first in pre-ECNL (6-0-1), with 32 GF and 6 GA.
I’m not sure which BRYC U12 girls team is near the top of the state rankings?
The 2009 BRYC girls went 0-17 in ECNL, never scored a goal, and gave up 103.
The 2009 VYS Phoenix team finished 2nd in their ECNL-R division, with 24 GF and 7 GA. Yes, a lower league, but those results are wildly different.
For the 2010s, BRYC’s went 1-5-1 in EDP Premier I, with 4 GF and 22 GA
The 2010 VYS Phoenix team finished first in pre-ECNL (6-0-1), with 32 GF and 6 GA.
I’m not sure which BRYC U12 girls team is near the top of the state rankings?
M
What is NVUFC? Northern Virginia United? Is this a new club? New combination of existing clubs? Where do they practice?
soccerVA wrote:Arch wrote:I thought the BRYC rec program (.org) was the nonprofit but the BRYC academy (.com) wasn't necessarily a nonprofit. Academy is "BRYC" in name only; the rec program is part of BRYC nonprofit proper, correct? The ECNL and NCSL access the "BRYC" name has is through the .com. Why would there be any board approval necessary for the for-profit side to run their business?
IMO, this move is also looking ahead because while, performance-wise, BRYC may be on notice by ECNL (no idea if that's true or not), there aren't enough players in the 2011 pool to field a team in BRYC partly because there are three bridge teams cannibalizing the 2011 players. This move ensures they will have enough to roster a 2011 team in ECNL when they become age-eligible because they can fill-out the roster with VYS players as well as of course any players from other clubs that wish to try out.
Regarding your obsession with the boys, if BRYC coaches are going to head up the ECNL team they don't have to pick any VYS players if they don't think they're good enough. Just as they don't have to pick any of the BRYC pool players either. There are no player quotas required from BRYC or VYS for the BRAVE rosters.
Also, for the boys, the TD was just hired as an assistant by GMU. Maybe he is going to be moving on anyway.
One clarification on the 2011 Girls - the 3 bridge teams aren't what caused the collapse of the 2011 Girls Elite team. There was a 2011 Girls Elite team, but most of the strongest players left for other clubs (not to the bridge teams). One of the bridge teams is fairly strong (D1 NCSL) but most of the players on the other 2 bridge teams are not at the level of pre-ENCL. My understanding is that the Vienna 2011 Girls pre-ENCL team isn't particularly strong either. So, there will be a gap to fill -- BRAVE is going to have to convince strong players from other clubs to make a move (either clubs that don't have an ENCL team or strong clubs where talented players would be on the second team).
I don’t know the 2011 girls but I do know the 2010 girls teams for both BRYC and VYS.
The 2010 BRYC girls pre-ECNL plays in NCSL D1, and only had 2 wins in the fall, and 6 GF/38 GA. One of the bridge teams was actually better, finishing middle of the table in D1. The other 2 bridge teams played in D4.
The 2010 VYS red girls team played in ECNL-R, and I believe had no losses. The black team finished 3rd in NCSL D1 (above both BRYC teams), and their white team was competitive in D2.
I feel pretty comfortable that for the 2010 year on the girls’ side, VYS is substantially stronger. Without a partnership, things could be really ugly for the 2010 BRYC girls in ECNL next fall. With one, the team could be very competitive.
SoccerD wrote:I've seen emails and letters about this as rumors are flying like wildfire. Here's what I've recently learned. A friend I know has kids in the program and knows kids on both BRYC boys and girls sides.
Seems like BRYC treachery at an all-time high with Soccer Commissioner Dolansky. This is ENTIRELY a move to save bottom-of-the-barrel girls ECNL. They are on probation. The boys program is in good standing and VYS boys is bottom of ECNL-R. It's a joke. Dolansky has gone to ECNL girls and posed the merger -- and it is a merger at the ECNL level. They are creating a new corporation and BRYC ECNL will be gone and called BRAVE (Braddock Road and Vienna ECNL). VYS has already told its membership too. As if this is a done deal. The title of the thread says so, right?
The problem? BRYC's board is illegitimate. They have not had an election since 2019. They are not fully formed even if you ignore the expired terms. And, obviously, they have not gotten approval of the Board, illegitimate or not. The first word any of the paying members got of the secret maneuverings from Dolansky and 2 board members was yesterday. The BRYC Boys TD told Dolansky that VYS is not a good club to partner with/merge with at the ECNL level. Affiliations were preferred. VYS doesn't have the talent and they don't have a surplus of fields. So what are they bringing on the boys side? Nothing.
So without a Board vote, member disclosure (much less, buy-in), and without a Board at all as they're all past term and operating without quorums, Dolansky hatches a plan anyway for both BRYC ECNL boys and girls. It was not needed or wanted on the boys side. They are run separately, as is ECNL. The notion that somehow the Boys program needs VYS is such a joke. How someone could completely disregard BRYC ECNL leadership and basically tell them to shut up and take it, and expect that the staff and the talent would be okay is beyond me. It's insane.
So make no mistake, it's a merger. BRYC ECNL Boys and Girls would be no more. Ethics don't matter. Board by-laws apparently don't matter. I'm guessing COVID will be the excuse. Which also is a crock. This is a dirty deal without any disclosure, support, or sanity. Period. If the talent and staff leave, what makes folks think the license stays?
I hope ECNL sees through this. Apparently, they've been told. You have to feel bad for BRYC ECNL boys families, in particular. Talk about lighting your multi-year investment on fire. The disinformation on this board acting like "all is well" is laughable.
I’m interested in this take. How is getting some new talent a bad thing for existing BRYC coaches and players. The VYS boys may not be lighting the world on fire, but there are some very talented players, especially at uLittle. I have seen the 2012s play futsal at TSJ, and they were very good.
On the girls’ side, the combined top team should be very strong.
See below for the latest from BRYC.
Good afternoon,
The purpose of this email is to address concerns with the BRYC Elite Academy (BRYC) player development program and specifically the ECNL long term strategy that involves Vienna Youth Soccer (VYS).
First and foremost, there is NO merger and there is NOT going to be a merger with VYS. We are in discussions about a partnership with VYS to:
• Improve and sustain the competitiveness of our teams for YEARS to come
• Establish the most competitive teams. There would be no quota for BRYC or VYS players. Teams would be established based purely upon players ability decided by our coaching staff.
• Support the club's long-term strategy to meet the increasing competition demands for ECNL-level players in our area
These issues identified are all encompassing for both the boys' and girls' programs. Solutions require an increased player pool and access to a larger geographic area.
BRYC and VYS would retain their autonomy while independently running and operating their existing programs (e.g., NCSL, Rec). It would be imperative that both clubs continue to evolve individually so that the pipeline of players is both infinite and unparalleled. Players will continue to register with BRYC.
Additionally, BRYC would look to provide a higher level of competition to our 2nd teams and Jr. Academy players (U11-U12), extending their pathway through ECNL Regional League and pathway opportunities to more players. BRYC's U9-U10s as well as our Bridge team will continue to participate in NCSL.
We have every intention to share the details of the partnership and will do so when available.
Best Regards,
Mark Dolansky
Commissioner BRYC Elite Academy (Travel Soccer)
Good afternoon,
The purpose of this email is to address concerns with the BRYC Elite Academy (BRYC) player development program and specifically the ECNL long term strategy that involves Vienna Youth Soccer (VYS).
First and foremost, there is NO merger and there is NOT going to be a merger with VYS. We are in discussions about a partnership with VYS to:
• Improve and sustain the competitiveness of our teams for YEARS to come
• Establish the most competitive teams. There would be no quota for BRYC or VYS players. Teams would be established based purely upon players ability decided by our coaching staff.
• Support the club's long-term strategy to meet the increasing competition demands for ECNL-level players in our area
These issues identified are all encompassing for both the boys' and girls' programs. Solutions require an increased player pool and access to a larger geographic area.
BRYC and VYS would retain their autonomy while independently running and operating their existing programs (e.g., NCSL, Rec). It would be imperative that both clubs continue to evolve individually so that the pipeline of players is both infinite and unparalleled. Players will continue to register with BRYC.
Additionally, BRYC would look to provide a higher level of competition to our 2nd teams and Jr. Academy players (U11-U12), extending their pathway through ECNL Regional League and pathway opportunities to more players. BRYC's U9-U10s as well as our Bridge team will continue to participate in NCSL.
We have every intention to share the details of the partnership and will do so when available.
Best Regards,
Mark Dolansky
Commissioner BRYC Elite Academy (Travel Soccer)