Anonymous wrote:ECNL RL Boys 15-19 Club Standings.


RVA Blue 30 3 1
GFR 24 6 6
PWSI 23 7 2
VA Reign 22 5 9
VA United 21 7 6
Arlington 20 7 5
VSA 18 13 5
Beach 16 13 7
Herndon 14 18 4
Valor 14 17 5
RVA Red 13 16 3
RVA Ora 12 18 1
Vienna 13 14 5
Villareal 11 16 3
Stafford 10 20 6
DCSC 9 26 1
Soca 8 23 1
LMVSC 8 20 4
BRYC 0 36 0

U19 Final
VA Reign vs GFR

U17 Final
Richmond Blue vs GFR

U16 Final
Villareal vs Beach / Reign

U15 Final
Richmond Blue vs Valor

Will be interesting to see how this changes after the NCFC tourney this weekend. At the U15 level PWSI and RVA are in the 2nd from the top bracket with some MLS and ECNL teams.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think its kind of crazy how a small club like GFR is the second best behind the biggest club in VA

The field is more wide open at the RL level. A smaller club has a better chance to hold onto players and build for the future. At big clubs the rosters are radically different from U11 to U15 and the best players often leave for the next level.

Sounds like an argument for staying at a club that tops out at RL if you’re not playing NL.

At some point you have to make a realistic decision about what the investment in time and money is getting you. For most kids, playing at the RL level for a coach & club you like is the best decision. Being on an MLS HG or ECNL team and not starting or playing significant minutes is a sucker's bet.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think its kind of crazy how a small club like GFR is the second best behind the biggest club in VA

The field is more wide open at the RL level. A smaller club has a better chance to hold onto players and build for the future. At big clubs the rosters are radically different from U11 to U15 and the best players often leave for the next level.

Sounds like an argument for staying at a club that tops out at RL if you’re not playing NL.

Anonymous wrote:I think its kind of crazy how a small club like GFR is the second best behind the biggest club in VA

The field is more wide open at the RL level. A smaller club has a better chance to hold onto players and build for the future. At big clubs the rosters are radically different from U11 to U15 and the best players often leave for the next level.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think its kind of crazy how a small club like GFR is the second best behind the biggest club in VA

It’s also crazy that their pre ECNL boys teams are at the bottom of the rankings. Seems like the older teams are stronger because they formed before all the recent drama and have opted to stick together, whereas younger families probably felt no loyalty to the club or teammates.

Does it matter if pre ECNL teams are not good or even 13-14. If they are not high school aged it’s all about getting better not results.

Correct. It does not. But don’t tell people in this forum that.

Sure, but I can’t imagine it’s a competitive training environment if the team is losing like that every week. It suggests they don’t have kids ready to play at that level. What was happening with the more successful teams when they were U11-U12? I would bet they weren’t getting crushed every game.

There are ways you can coach to win at those ages — kickball, take advantage of physical development differences, pure aggressiveness, too early dedication to GK position, teaching set plays that don’t translate, eg, on corners— that don’t necessarily mean that the kids are developing technical skills or learning playing styles that will lead to winning at high school ages. The American obsession with playing up to 9v9 or 11v11 too early instead of continuing small sided play is part of this. Sure, a team getting blown out every week may not be developing well, but there is little reason to think a team that is 10-0 at u12 will necessarily be better at u15 than a team that is 6-4 at u12. You need to see how they are playing to get a sense of whether there’s a focus on individual development. For instance, a team that is learning the develop play from the back under pressure might lose some games as a result but will learn more than a team that has the goalie punt every time even if that wins games.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think its kind of crazy how a small club like GFR is the second best behind the biggest club in VA

It’s also crazy that their pre ECNL boys teams are at the bottom of the rankings. Seems like the older teams are stronger because they formed before all the recent drama and have opted to stick together, whereas younger families probably felt no loyalty to the club or teammates.

Does it matter if pre ECNL teams are not good or even 13-14. If they are not high school aged it’s all about getting better not results.

Correct. It does not. But don’t tell people in this forum that.

Sure, but I can’t imagine it’s a competitive training environment if the team is losing like that every week. It suggests they don’t have kids ready to play at that level. What was happening with the more successful teams when they were U11-U12? I would bet they weren’t getting crushed every game.