Reply to Travel teams now 4-5 teams deep? Is this for real?

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[quote=Anonymous]The typical advantages of travel:
-More training sessions
-Play more of the year
-More engaged/similar skilled players
-More engaged/similar skilled opponents
-Better quality surfaces
-Better quality/more committed coach

All of the above aid in a player’s development. This is not to say that you can’t get some of the above in a rec program, but you would be lucky to get half of them. At the younger age groups all of them are important. I have coached rec as a volunteer, travel as a paid coach, and rec as a parent. It takes a special player and situation for a rec player to develop on the same trajectory as a player in a decent travel program, typically the gap widens exponentially. You just can’t do the same sessions with a few travel-caliber kids, a few not-ready players, a few disinterested players, and a few new-to-soccer players as you can with a group of travel-level players, that’s not debatable.

I will agree that the travel distance and the cornucopia of “elite” leagues is a huge detriment to development, but until there is money at the top of the system we are stuck in the pay to play model where there is no incentive for a true player development model where players get pushed up as necessary with play at neighborhood/local/regional/national tiers. [/quote]

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