Anonymous wrote:HS soccer is not the highest level of play. It's just fun for the kids. Let DD enjoy the time outside and camaraderie of HS sports. That's really what she's getting out of it.

Yeah--that stops working for them eventually when they have to sit on the bench and watch absolute crap on the field week after week. Most kids would rather be doing something else besides wasting so many hours a day and not playing. Some kids just aren't cut out for the bench or the boosters.

Huh. I'll admit my son isn't in an elite soccer right at this moment, but he has done a good deal of elite-adjacent soccer and is pretty good. His team (a W in MCPS) is competitive and the games look nothing like what you describe. Also their coach is very good. I guess this varies by school or county?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It takes a good coach about 2 months to get a team to stop kicking the ball as hard as possible every time they get it. It takes bravery to coach the kids to play it out of the back with passes and build up the play. --It's exciting and easy to have them kick it long and hard as much has possible... just hear the oohs and ahhhs of some of the parents on the sidelines!

The rub is, if the HS has a good coach, they probably aren't coaching JV!

The kids boot it because it works at the high school level. The highly technical players aren't playing public high school JV. Any coach trying to play 'the right way' without talented enough players is going to lose to a team of athletic kids that plays boot and run. This isn't a club or academy where the goal is development. High school coaches, including JV, play to win.

Oh I agree. But, if you have aspirations of playing soccer beyond high school, you best not play high school soccer.

Anonymous wrote:It takes a good coach about 2 months to get a team to stop kicking the ball as hard as possible every time they get it. It takes bravery to coach the kids to play it out of the back with passes and build up the play. --It's exciting and easy to have them kick it long and hard as much has possible... just hear the oohs and ahhhs of some of the parents on the sidelines!

The rub is, if the HS has a good coach, they probably aren't coaching JV!

The kids boot it because it works at the high school level. The highly technical players aren't playing public high school JV. Any coach trying to play 'the right way' without talented enough players is going to lose to a team of athletic kids that plays boot and run. This isn't a club or academy where the goal is development. High school coaches, including JV, play to win.

HS soccer is not the highest level of play. It's just fun for the kids. Let DD enjoy the time outside and camaraderie of HS sports. That's really what she's getting out of it.

If you don't want to play in college and just want to play for your high school, go ahead.

Otherwise, it is too much of a time commitment to simultaneously play for your club team and high school team and maintain straight As in AP/honors courses.

Anonymous wrote:Really, how much different is this than high level MLS boys or ECNL girls????

Seriously? I have a son playing ECNL and one playing MLSNext.

It's frickin' night and day. The older one left HS after sophomore year and switched over to MLSNext since he had zero plans to play of the school's teachers that, while winning, were god awful coaches. He has committed to play in college while his friends that stayed the HS route have had no bites because they basically don't play Club in the Fall and they fall behind in skill and speed of play playing high school with teammates that are less skilled, some don't even play Club soccer.

My ECNL kid is a starter, plays entire game for his ECNL team and rides the pine on the JV HS team, along with the MLSNext kid while they watch kids that don't normally play soccer boot it down the field. When they do see time, it's an act in frustration since the players around them have no idea of 'space' or where to be or stepping to the ball or making a run.

When you have had UEFA trained coaches and played internationally your entire youth, it's quite a shock to go play for 'American football-type' coaches that have no idea what is happening on the field.

Really, how much different is this than high level MLS boys or ECNL girls????

Anonymous wrote:It's horrible and no fun to watch. Endure if you must attend.

+100

And all the ECNL kids that don’t play that way ride the pine.

It takes a good coach about 2 months to get a team to stop kicking the ball as hard as possible every time they get it. It takes bravery to coach the kids to play it out of the back with passes and build up the play. --It's exciting and easy to have them kick it long and hard as much has possible... just hear the oohs and ahhhs of some of the parents on the sidelines!

The rub is, if the HS has a good coach, they probably aren't coaching JV!

Blame the unqualified coaches (non soccer-licensed gym teachers) for these blasphemies! If some of our counties wanted to improve their sports programs you would think that they could at least get these folks some outside coach training or something. Most are using American football tactics on a soccer field. It’s a shame really because the kids really care about their school’s teams and it wouldn’t be that hard to make the level of play better. Step 1 is to step outside of the 1980s.

I told my DS, they’re not going to teach you anything nor will you become a better player—your just donating your time and skill for a little bit of street cred.

It's horrible and no fun to watch. Endure if you must attend.

This is quite common. Set your expectations and just enjoy watching your kid play. HS sports are supposed to be fun don’t be a soccer snob.

Anonymous wrote:I haven't made it to any games this season but DD asked me to watch a recent game that was taped by the school. I was surprised to see the kids booting the ball over midfield back and forth for half the game. Is it always like this? It makes me want to watch the other games but really who has that much time.

Welcome to America, Prince Akeem!

I haven't made it to any games this season but DD asked me to watch a recent game that was taped by the school. I was surprised to see the kids booting the ball over midfield back and forth for half the game. Is it always like this? It makes me want to watch the other games but really who has that much time.