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[quote=Anonymous][quote=RantingSoccerDad][quote=Anonymous]So a rec Coach is bashing the methods of professional coaches at FCB? Ummm...[/quote]

[b]Nope. I have no opinion on their methods. I haven't seen their training, nor would I have the expertise to tell you how good it is[/b].

All I'm saying is that if you spend $3,000 on training and end up, after one year, playing at an NCSL Division 8 level, you need to ask yourself whether your child is making the progress to justify that price tag. (I frankly think every parent on an NCSL Division 8 level at U12 should ask the same question, no matter the club or the price tag. It's not good soccer.)

I'm not saying I have the answer. I don't.

I'm suggesting a question you should ask. That's it.

The fact that people resort to ad hominem arguments rather than even entertain the question, well, that might be the answer you need.[/quote]

I agree with you about the ad hominem arguments so I'll try to steer clear.  Since you're a journalist though, I humbly and respectfully suggest that you do some actual journalism here.   Get in your car, drive out to Evergreen, and watch a session.   From the top level you can see all the fields and really get a sense of how their training sessions are conducted.  You might even want to introduce yourself to some of the parents and ask for their feedback about the program.  Enjoy a barbecue sandwich from the snack bar while you're there.  The brisket is especially mouth watering.

It would also be well worth your while to sit down and have a 15-20 minute conversation with their CEO John Nash.  I think you would like him.   The emphasis on values education along with soccer education is refreshing, maybe even inspiring.

I get your point about the price tag.  At $3000/yr it's not cheap.  On the other hand, I don't think it's fair to judge them on their tournament results.  Their sales pitch is not - "we're going to create winning teams" or "we're going to develop professional players," or even "we're going to get you scouted to play in college."  Their sales pitch is all about providing a good soccer education.  As with any other type of education (academic, music) the performance level of the student doesn't always tell you everything about the quality of the teacher.

The one thing I disagree with that you wrote above is your assertion that you don't have the expertise to assess the quality of training.  Yes, it's good to recognize your own limitations (and you've always been open about the fact you've never played/coached at a high level), but you've been around the game long enough, seen enough of it played at every level, have some experience trying to teach it yourself, ... I think you are more than qualified to give a general assessment as to whether a training session is productive and teaching kids the skills they need to improve in the game, and a training session that is either (1) a complete waste of time, or even (2) not significantly different from anything they could get at an NCSL D8 level team, for a whole lot less $$.

Last point  - I too am skeptical of the Euro-branding in US Youth Soccer.  I remember when Team America 1st affiliated with Barca - complete with official looking FCB stuff on their web site, FCB uniforms, ... the works.  They had the same old coachs and and still played kick-ball for the most part.  I suspect the same with the Annandale ---> Villarreal re-branding, the Sporting CP club that started up last year in Fairfax (without a Portugese coach anywhere to be seen - let alone one from Sporting), and the vast majority of the other Euro (or SA) branded clubs that seem to be proliferating everywhere.   It would be an interesting and valuable piece of investigative journalism to learn whether the FCBEscolas that are cropping up all over the country now are more of the same, or are really something different.

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