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Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you everyone for your input. If you have personal experience with any of these teams I'm all ears! esp if any of them maybe looking to add more defender
Arlington
Brave
McLean/ Union
NVA
VDA
My daughter plays for one of these clubs. DM me and will be happy to share our experience.
llama wrote:We're currently house hunting in northern Virginia (moving from a different state) - we've narrowed down our search to a few areas given the very limited inventory. What rec soccer leagues should we look at for ES-aged girls in the following areas:
Oakton (Miller Heights neighborhood, Waple Mills ES)
Fairfax (Franklin Farm, Franklin Glen neighborhoods - Navy, Crossfield, Lees Corner ES)
Vienna (not sure of the neighborhood names here - Westbriar, Vienna, Wolftrap ES)
Specifically looking for casual/rec leagues, not travel leagues.
Look for Vienna Youth Soccer in the Vienna area. Oakton too, in that area you'll also find Fairfax Police Youth Club (FPYC), Mclean, or Braddock Road (BRYC) depending on exactly where you end up.
https://www.fpycsports.com/sports/soccer
https://www.vys.org/house-league
https://www.brycsoccer.org/
https://mcleansoccer.org/recreation/
In the Fairfax (Chantilly) areas you mention, a few programs to consider might be FC Dulles, Chantilly, or Southwest Youth (SYA). FC Virginia recently announced a free rec program in Loudoun/Chantilly to serve as a feeder for their travel program, so this could be an easy way to start off too.
https://fcdulles.demosphere-secure.com/recreational-soccer
https://www.syasports.org/soccer/program-information/recreation-soccer
http://www.cyasoccer.org/
https://www.fcvirginia.com/recsoccer
There's crossover in those regions and probably some other clubs too. In terms of size, I think BRYC, Mclean, VYS, and Chantilly are the largest rec programs will the others ranging a little smaller, but all are pretty good. They also offer a number of different sports beyond soccer as well. Like any rec sports, the experience is all highly dependent on the experience and passion of the parent coaches and volunteers, but overall pretty good in this area.
lojack74 wrote:novasoccer15324 wrote:If you want yelling coaches on the girls side, just go to Maryland. From my experience most of the worst offenders of yelling girls coaches in northern VA have been flushed out, aged out, or moved on.
Or FCV United South. Not sure about now, but that effer would berate his players to tears and humiliation.
God, whoever made the comment about "hard nose coaching"! It's like this country isn't in the midst of the worst mental health epidemic we've ever seen, and fools like this are a large part of that problem.
Who is FCV United South? Is that the St James based teams? Or is there another version of FCV somewhere else?
anonimouswon wrote:At showcases/tournaments, college coaches know talent whether the player is on a winning or losing team. That's why you see even B team players being recruited because a college coach may have a need for a certain type of player.
I've seen A team players who aren't the stars of the team get recruited to college over star players because they are technical, athletic, have a high soccer IQ and fit the teams style of play.
I've seen star players get passed over because they have no soccer IQ or know how to play team soccer.
Some of it is luck and timing too. A coach might be looking for a certain player and your kid might be what the team needs at that time. If your kid is interested in a particular college you should begin to attend those college summer soccer camps and do what you can to get on that college coach's radar.
Ultimately, college coaches can spot talent when they see it so if your kid is playing in showcases/tournaments college coaches are already looking at them.
I agree with all of this. I would add that most scouting is still done regionally, with the exception of those few national showcases, because soccer recruiting doesn't have a huge budget to travel around the country. You should also identify where those college coaches will be and focus on getting in front of them, rather than just trying to get them to come to you. A result of those budget constraints is that most of their recruiting will be done at their camps and the few events where they can see multiple kids they're recruiting at the same time. Make it easier for them to see your kid and their interest.
Numero1latino wrote:We have been looking at new clubs this season. I heard some conflict between BRYC/FX Brave that caused Welsh to break out teams to NVU. Not sure whats going on since I heard 3rd party but nonetheless I was curious how was the FX Brave tryout turn out in general? Sounds as if for those teams/players that want to remain in ECNL would have to go with Brave right?
I can't add anything about the conflict you reference, but you're correct that the only ECNL teams will be the joint BRAVE effort, or choose another club from VDA, Mclean, Arlington, Bethesda, or Loudoun for ECNL. Boys would have additional options for MLS Next with SYC and Alexandria, while girls could also choose GA teams in FC Virginia or Metro. NVU has no affiliation with any of those.
RantingSoccerDad wrote:I'm renewing my safety certification for referee training, and I'm once again watching the scary (fictionalized) video of a kid collapsing and needing CPR and an AED like Christian Eriksen did at the Euros.
I don't think I've ever seen an AED at any soccer field other than the stadium field at the Maryland SoccerPlex.
Has anyone else ever seen one?
Saw one at a small field up in Maryland, I don't remember the name of the field, but wasn't the soccerplex, it was much smaller with only 3, maybe 4 fields. I remember being surprised and don't think I've seen them other than that one.
soccerx3kidsss wrote:OR someone who spent several years with the club and had enough. We lived through it. She is now committed to playing soccer in college. She's no Ronaldo but she's pretty darn good. I'm more of a Messi fan anyways. This is just a straight-up personal experience that almost wrecked another kid who loves the game.
Looking for the positive, where did your DD move and what's the insider perspective on the new club that might be helpful to other kids considering options? Were there any clubs under close consideration that might be helpful for others considering a move?
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 not sure we have the same definition of "good standing" unless you just meant with the ECNL board as opposed to their results. It's not hard to see that the BRYC ECNL boys are fairing slightly better than the girls, but every team with exception of U14 has a losing record and is near or at the bottom of the table. A merger or affiliation that convinces a few new players to check them out instead of Mclean on the other side of them doesn't mean the current BRYC boys have to leave. The whole point in the BRYC is expanding the reach for talent in order to compete better.
https://public.totalglobalsports.com/public/event/2365/conference-standings/12
retiredref wrote:If you really want to explore your options don't wait for tryouts. See what teams are around you with coaches you might be able to work with and reach out to the coach or the manager. Most teams will let you come to a practice or two to see what it's like. If they are playing futsal or indoor you could guest play with them then or during a preseason tournament coming up soon. Tryouts may help coaches evaluate players but they don't give parents or players any insight into the coach or the team. You need to go to a couple practices and ideally have an opportunity to guest with them to really get a feel for the team and how DD would fit.
I definitely agree with with checking out a practice, although also think about what you're looking for and why you're looking to leave after just 1 year of travel soccer. Better team and no challenge? School friends on a different team? You don't like the coaching style? You've moved and its not as convenient? Identify a couple clubs near you that you're interested in, grab coaches contact info from the website, and email them asking to come to a practice. Depending on where you live at BRYC, you have several options. VYS is one direction, Springfield the other, Go Premier or Villareal in the Annandale/Falls Church direction, Burke Athletic Club, and FPYC in Fairfax City. Many other options just on the other side of those clubs or starting to go west also. The downside is that coaching announcements won't have come out yet, but it's still helpful to get a feel for practice and test out the different drive from your house.
clt-dad wrote:Are ENCL tryouts invite only typically? If you aren't in a Pre-encl program, how do you raise your hand to indicate interest in trying out?
Register for one of their ID sessions happening now or tryouts later this spring. Depending on the club you're interested in, some are currently hosting ID sessions for the upcoming sessions (2010), but there will also be a tryout at or near the end of the spring season. Recommend reaching out to the contact listed on their webpages to express interest though. Depending on the area you live, there are likely a couple clubs similarly distanced to consider.