If you had to pick between the top teams at VRSC and the B team at LS, Which one would you pick?

Honestly my kid on the second team is better coached than the first team, both technically at practice and during games. They train sided by side and often play back to back.

If the top team has better coaching and better practice sessions, it might be worth it; even if it means your kid doesn't start in games and hopefully, they get to play half a game.

They should get some growth out of the better practice sessions.

It is not always best to be on the first team. At that age, they should be playing and developing.

Only one coach in DMV - and we made the rounds Bethesda, Potomac, et al actually developed my kid past U13 so I wouldn’t hold my breath and assume greener grass at larger club. Not going to say club b/c will give away identity -but will offer hint EDP1- closer to Baltimore than DC and foreign trained. Caveat emptor for development past U12.

The game is the best teacher, so wherever you land, make sure you're confident in the child getting field time during games. There is no point in moving to a "top" team somewhere and watching from the bench.

Our children have been at various clubs at top, second and third teams. I would not go below second if you are looking to change unless your child is really unhappy. The third teams even at bigger clubs get overlooked. Plus it is easier to move up from outside than within the club (in our experience).

Are you happy with their development thus far? Are you going to have the same coach next year?

Most smaller clubs have the biggest struggles when it comes to U13 and fielding good 11v11 teams, especially if they only had 1 U12 (9v9) team the previous year feeding into it.

Player consistency from top to bottom seems to be better at clubs with access to larger player pools as well.

That being said, I'd start with the coach. Find the best coach you can, and then in the best environment you can, playing at the right competition level for the team/your child. Something in that order...

What is your DS goal? Do they want to get to the next level or try to get on MLSNext/ECNL teams? If they just want to be competitive to get on a high school team, he’s fine where he is.

But if he wants a chance to be competitive to get to top teams at big clubs (where they usually will be MLSNext or ECNL), he needs to be doing more outside of his club. That is, u can’t rely on your club to make sure he is developing. He needs to be working on his own individual skills. And then at ur current club, he needs to be a star on his current team, possibly playing up as well.

Try to attend a practice session at another club to see if their 2nd team receives the same coaching at the 1st team. And or if the 2nd team will provide the growth and challenge. Then, by U13, the roster sizes will grow again for the 1st team.

It's a good question and as with anything depends on the situation. Is DC getting good minutes on the current top team? Is the coaching good? Are the families good? Does your DC want to challenge himself/herself and take a crack at achieving more? If he/she is developing well then maybe ok to stay.

With that being said, breaking into top teams at bigger clubs is hard and seems to get harder as the years go by. People always say if they are good they will get noticed. But it's not always easy to get noticed at the big tryouts unless you are super fast or super strong.

It might help to go be on the second or third team at a bigger club so that the coaches there are aware of your DC. It's not guaranteed he/she will get moved up but a better pathway than attending a large tryout later? Maybe you can talk to parents and see if that bigger club has a history of promoting from within.

Personally, if your kid is one that needs to be challenged I think a new environment always helps them learn something. In my opinion, you can probably always go back to the smaller club if you leave on good terms...

In your particular situation, staying on the same team makes more sense. Maybe find outside challenges like ODP or training to supplement but being valued is pretty critical to development. Maybe if he’s u13 and clearly the top player will it make it an easier decision.

Anonymous wrote:Its always best to be on the top team.

No it’s not especially if the player has 5-10 minutes per game or sits on the bench the entire game.

Its always best to be on the top team.

Title says it all. DC plays on the top team at their club. They aren’t the star of the team but seem to be pretty valued. DC is happy with the current situation.

The concern is that the club is not one of the bigger and more high level clubs in the area. This may mean it’s not the best place for long term development. The club isn’t as likely to attract the coaches/leaders that the “big name” clubs get, and the best players may start to leave for the opportunity to go to that next level.

DC will be U11 next year, so rosters will get a bit bigger. Is now the time to move to a better club for long term development? Realistically DC would not make top team at these clubs (we have played these teams and they are clearly better). Would second or third team at a bigger/better club be better than top team at a smaller/lesser club? Or would DC be sort of forgotten there if not on top team? Are there any NoVA clubs where second or third team is still a good place to be because coaching is strong across the board? Some tryout dates conflict so we need to decide what direction to go.