Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Metro travel teams are already set. They've been practicing on the DL already for over a month. It's really no secret and the try outs are a formality.
Pretty much true. Not necessarily unique to Metro but this is pretty true. The thing that I don't like about Metro is that they don't really develop their players. Yes, they have some freak athletes, but a lot the players they get are not homegrown and are poached from other clubs.
Metro practices are like lord of the flies - full on intensity but next to no technical training. That causes problems at college, where coaches have to deconstruct bad habits. They also play kids in the position that suits metro and not where the kid will likely play at college. This means some of their players have to start a new position from scratch, which doesn’t always work out. There is no perfect club.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:U14 mom, is your daughter in 8th grade?
Yes.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Metro travel teams are already set. They've been practicing on the DL already for over a month. It's really no secret and the try outs are a formality.
Pretty much true. Not necessarily unique to Metro but this is pretty true. The thing that I don't like about Metro is that they don't really develop their players. Yes, they have some freak athletes, but a lot the players they get are not homegrown and are poached from other clubs.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Re: playing time. I would certainly suggest asking if there's a principle of percentage playing time, say 25% or 50%, during matches. One can get a sense of how big the roster is. If a roster is about 10 girls, I think it's safe to say there should be at least 25%. If it is a roster of 12 or more (not counting practice players who do not play during tournaments), then that may be a sign of a different story.
I could be wrong but I thought earlier posts, perhaps here or in other places, suggested that Metro may have 12 girls per team and that there may be some girls who primarily sit on the bench. If there are any Metro parents, can you confirm?
Metro Travel teams will basically all have 15 players on each team (15 is the max amount of players that USAV allows on a roster). I haven't seen a Metro travel team the last few years that had less than 14 players on it. So, yes, Metro's travel teams each tend to have about 4-5 players who rarely see play time (and some literally get zero playing time). Metro's Regional teams do not tend to have more than 10-12 players per team, and as other posters have mentioned, these are low-budget teams that are intended to pad Silvia's pockets and to subsidize her travel program. VAE never really ever puts more than 13 kids on a team, VAJrs will do what Metro does and stick 15 kids on a team, Paramount has some variability as their 17s team last season had 15 players, but none of their other teams had more than 13 players last season.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Metro travel teams are already set. They've been practicing on the DL already for over a month. It's really no secret and the try outs are a formality.
Pretty much true. Not necessarily unique to Metro but this is pretty true. The thing that I don't like about Metro is that they don't really develop their players. Yes, they have some freak athletes, but a lot the players they get are not homegrown and are poached from other clubs.
Anonymous wrote:Metro travel teams are already set. They've been practicing on the DL already for over a month. It's really no secret and the try outs are a formality.
Anonymous wrote:Metro travel teams are already set. They've been practicing on the DL already for over a month. It's really no secret and the try outs are a formality.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would mention that, if your DD manages to get a 14s offer as late as this, the chances are high she is a roster filler and may spend a lot of time on the bench. IMHO, better to find a lower tier team where she would play. She has plenty of vball time ahead of her, but technical coaching and playing are the most important things at this age.
Would you recommend that when U14 mom starts calling teams to make inquiries, she ask about play time (i.e. can the clubs that are reputable but full recommend other clubs where her daughter would get both good coaching and actual playtime, and not ride the bench the whole season? A few parents are reaching out to me by text (parents I knew and ran into during tryouts) and I hadn't been advising that but thinking maybe I should if they ask me?
VAVA and STJ are still looking for U14 players. I've heard decent things about STJ, but most people I talk to say the guys who run VAVA are good guys (which can't be said for some of these other clubs). If your daughter is still looking for a team, I recommend reaching out to VAVA.
I think the main reason a lot of these clubs are still looking for players in the U14 age group (including even VAE) is because Paramount is having two 14s teams this season. I've heard a good chunk of players turned down offers from VAE, Jrs., VAVA and EC Power to accept spots on Paramount's 14-2 team.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would mention that, if your DD manages to get a 14s offer as late as this, the chances are high she is a roster filler and may spend a lot of time on the bench. IMHO, better to find a lower tier team where she would play. She has plenty of vball time ahead of her, but technical coaching and playing are the most important things at this age.
Would you recommend that when U14 mom starts calling teams to make inquiries, she ask about play time (i.e. can the clubs that are reputable but full recommend other clubs where her daughter would get both good coaching and actual playtime, and not ride the bench the whole season? A few parents are reaching out to me by text (parents I knew and ran into during tryouts) and I hadn't been advising that but thinking maybe I should if they ask me?
VAVA and STJ are still looking for U14 players. I've heard decent things about STJ, but most people I talk to say the guys who run VAVA are good guys (which can't be said for some of these other clubs). If your daughter is still looking for a team, I recommend reaching out to VAVA.
Metro South, too.
U14 mom here. What is VAVA. We don’t know all the acronyms. Yet.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would mention that, if your DD manages to get a 14s offer as late as this, the chances are high she is a roster filler and may spend a lot of time on the bench. IMHO, better to find a lower tier team where she would play. She has plenty of vball time ahead of her, but technical coaching and playing are the most important things at this age.
Would you recommend that when U14 mom starts calling teams to make inquiries, she ask about play time (i.e. can the clubs that are reputable but full recommend other clubs where her daughter would get both good coaching and actual playtime, and not ride the bench the whole season? A few parents are reaching out to me by text (parents I knew and ran into during tryouts) and I hadn't been advising that but thinking maybe I should if they ask me?
VAVA and STJ are still looking for U14 players. I've heard decent things about STJ, but most people I talk to say the guys who run VAVA are good guys (which can't be said for some of these other clubs). If your daughter is still looking for a team, I recommend reaching out to VAVA.
I think the main reason a lot of these clubs are still looking for players in the U14 age group (including even VAE) is because Paramount is having two 14s teams this season. I've heard a good chunk of players turned down offers from VAE, Jrs., VAVA and EC Power to accept spots on Paramount's 14-2 team.
Sounds like a rumor to me - nobody’s turning down a spot at particularly Jnrs and VAE to play for paramount’s B team.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would mention that, if your DD manages to get a 14s offer as late as this, the chances are high she is a roster filler and may spend a lot of time on the bench. IMHO, better to find a lower tier team where she would play. She has plenty of vball time ahead of her, but technical coaching and playing are the most important things at this age.
Would you recommend that when U14 mom starts calling teams to make inquiries, she ask about play time (i.e. can the clubs that are reputable but full recommend other clubs where her daughter would get both good coaching and actual playtime, and not ride the bench the whole season? A few parents are reaching out to me by text (parents I knew and ran into during tryouts) and I hadn't been advising that but thinking maybe I should if they ask me?
VAVA and STJ are still looking for U14 players. I've heard decent things about STJ, but most people I talk to say the guys who run VAVA are good guys (which can't be said for some of these other clubs). If your daughter is still looking for a team, I recommend reaching out to VAVA.
I think the main reason a lot of these clubs are still looking for players in the U14 age group (including even VAE) is because Paramount is having two 14s teams this season. I've heard a good chunk of players turned down offers from VAE, Jrs., VAVA and EC Power to accept spots on Paramount's 14-2 team.
Anonymous wrote:U14 mom, is your daughter in 8th grade?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would mention that, if your DD manages to get a 14s offer as late as this, the chances are high she is a roster filler and may spend a lot of time on the bench. IMHO, better to find a lower tier team where she would play. She has plenty of vball time ahead of her, but technical coaching and playing are the most important things at this age.
Would you recommend that when U14 mom starts calling teams to make inquiries, she ask about play time (i.e. can the clubs that are reputable but full recommend other clubs where her daughter would get both good coaching and actual playtime, and not ride the bench the whole season? A few parents are reaching out to me by text (parents I knew and ran into during tryouts) and I hadn't been advising that but thinking maybe I should if they ask me?
VAVA and STJ are still looking for U14 players. I've heard decent things about STJ, but most people I talk to say the guys who run VAVA are good guys (which can't be said for some of these other clubs). If your daughter is still looking for a team, I recommend reaching out to VAVA.
Metro South, too.