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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]What is your goal for your kid?

I mean, seriously. What is the end game here? Do they love this sport and want to make it their one true calling? Does this kid have the genetic disposition to play college-level sports? Were you a college-level athlete? Just what is your goal is with soccer?

I ask because this will determine so much of the answer. If you are seeking to take this to a high level, than by say 12 years old you are talking a minimum 3 or probably 4 practice sessions per week, one game per week, and probably one day of fitness or private coaching, along with a Summer camp. By 14 this will be their only sport. 
[/quote]

This person is right, I think.  My kid was naturally talented at soccer, and his dad was a college athlete.  He has an athletic build and natural "smarts" at the game.  But he really likes to hang out with friends, read books, etc.  He is just not a kid that wants to go to a structured practice 5 days a week and be placed on a team based on skill level rather than friendship.  He plays Classic, which is probably the right result for him.  (Rec starts to fall apart starting in around 5th grade, as the better players move up and then it gets hard to field a consistent team or one with a decent quality of play.)  I know lots of kids that have dropped out of all other sports to train daily in soccer by 6th grade.  At least some of them end up with knee braces by 8th grade and knee surgery in HS.  I think the current trend towards really competitive athletics is a real grind for little kids.  But I also know that some kids REALLY want that -- they are focused enough to want to do their chosen sport every day in a competitive, structured way.  I feel bad for their parents, because I think they have tough decisions about when to tell their kids that they need to scale back for health or balance reasons, versus when to support them in their passion.  Kids like mine, that like to play but aren't particularly driven, are a lot easier, although they won't get any sports scholarships.[/quote]

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