Reply to Loudoun Boys dropping DA for ECNL

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[quote=Anonymous]I am a soccer insider with knowledge of Loudoun's recent move to ECNL.  Many think that college D-1 soccer teams are comprised of boys only from the US Development Academy (DA).  Apparently, this is a "zero sum " game right?  If you aren't in the DA, then your college soccer dreams are up in smoke... WRONG!  The DA's goal is to find the top 1% player for the USMNT, and everyone else is simply a "filler."  Simply put, the DA is overly restrictive (cannot play High School, cannot substitute once you leave game, cannot, cannot, ....etc.) and their model is flawed in the UNITED STATES. D-1 College soccer rosters are made up of approx. 30 players- half of D-1 Rosters are comprised of International Players and the other half is typically a mix of DA & ECNL/High School players.  YES- ECNL/HS Players!  Why so?  Because the DA simply doesn't have the best players -some kids cannot afford to play there, and others prefer to not to travel to godforsaken DA training sites like Howison Park in Woodbridge, or risk their lives traveling down to a poorly lit DCU auxillary field parking lot.

Therefore, your best bet is to play ECNL, and encourage your son to play HS soccer for the collective spirit of the school he represents.  Within 2 years, the DA will be a distant memory, and ECNL will be the top boys league.  Clearly, the USMNT has not progressed as the result of our DA system and the MLS teams will further detach themselves from this "watered down" league and are starting to build stronger affiliate programs.  [/quote]

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