Reply to Can you tell me the pros and cons of playing “up”?

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[quote=Anonymous]My kid played up when he was 7 (played on U9) because there was no team for his age in our club; that year he played on the second team.

The following year, he played U9 again, on the first team.

Over the summer, he played up a year (U11) for a Super Y team, again because there was no option for his age; not sure which team.

My take:

If your kid is big and fast for his age, I think it’s a great way to challenge him to develop his game and compete by improving his technical skill and positioning, rather than rely on his size and speed (and if your kid also has good technical skills, playing up will challenge him to develop those as well).

If your kid is average size/speed, and very strong technically, and if it seems that he’s not being challenged enough in his current age cohort, playing up can be a good way to challenge him to use his technical skills against stronger, bigger, faster kids one year older.

If your kid is below average size/speed, but has strong technical skills, I would recommend against playing up a year, as his size disadvantage may unduly hamper his ability to keep up, and he may get discouraged or start to lose confidence.

I also agree with the general sentiment that in no case is it a good idea to play up a year but on a lower team — the drop off in technical skills will probably not help him develop.[/quote]

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