SpiritVAParent wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any real relationship between the Great Falls NPL team and VA Spirit? The website makes it look like some girls move up, but try-outs were separate last year and I haven’t heard of any movement.

Yes. The Spirit VA coaches would like to use Great Falls Reston increasingly as a feeder for the entry level DA teams. That is not to say they won’t take players from other clubs but they actually help coach Great Falls Reston practices.

This will be very good for Spirit VA. They are at a big disadvantage to the established DA clubs in VA because they don't have the feeder. A few other NWSL based DAs are in a similar spot. This relationship helps to level the playing field for them. Given they have been able to have some limited success with a few of their teams with the huge disadvantage they have had, I can imagine they will be a much stronger club going forward. US Soccer wants the NSWL academies to succeed, so I wouldn't bet against them.

Why do you think DC United has done so well then, given that they also don't have a feeder?

Probably because there wasn’t the established national-level league on the boys side when the DA started for them. On the girls side, the DAs are fighting with the established ECNL teams for player and coaching talent. And Northern Virginia is one of the epicenters of that fun battle.

Good points. Also, the boys and girls sides are like apples and oranges, not straight up comparisons. Girls are much more social than boys in their sports and tend to want to stick with a group that they feel comfortable with or have been part of successfully. Boys are more willing to go it alone and to seek out unconquered territory. It's just a different dynamic that will work itself out over time. It's funny to see someone trying to write the eulogy based on score lines after just a year and change of existence.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any real relationship between the Great Falls NPL team and VA Spirit? The website makes it look like some girls move up, but try-outs were separate last year and I haven’t heard of any movement.

Yes. The Spirit VA coaches would like to use Great Falls Reston increasingly as a feeder for the entry level DA teams. That is not to say they won’t take players from other clubs but they actually help coach Great Falls Reston practices.

This will be very good for Spirit VA. They are at a big disadvantage to the established DA clubs in VA because they don't have the feeder. A few other NWSL based DAs are in a similar spot. This relationship helps to level the playing field for them. Given they have been able to have some limited success with a few of their teams with the huge disadvantage they have had, I can imagine they will be a much stronger club going forward. US Soccer wants the NSWL academies to succeed, so I wouldn't bet against them.

Why do you think DC United has done so well then, given that they also don't have a feeder?

Probably because there wasn’t the established national-level league on the boys side when the DA started for them. On the girls side, the DAs are fighting with the established ECNL teams for player and coaching talent. And Northern Virginia is one of the epicenters of that fun battle.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any real relationship between the Great Falls NPL team and VA Spirit? The website makes it look like some girls move up, but try-outs were separate last year and I haven’t heard of any movement.

Yes. The Spirit VA coaches would like to use Great Falls Reston increasingly as a feeder for the entry level DA teams. That is not to say they won’t take players from other clubs but they actually help coach Great Falls Reston practices.

This will be very good for Spirit VA. They are at a big disadvantage to the established DA clubs in VA because they don't have the feeder. A few other NWSL based DAs are in a similar spot. This relationship helps to level the playing field for them. Given they have been able to have some limited success with a few of their teams with the huge disadvantage they have had, I can imagine they will be a much stronger club going forward. US Soccer wants the NSWL academies to succeed, so I wouldn't bet against them.

Why do you think DC United has done so well then, given that they also don't have a feeder?

DCU has multiple feeder clubs. And their cost structure is about 1/4 what you pay for ECNL and girls DA clubs for their younger age groups and about 1/8 for the older age groups. If Washington Spirit charged $1,500 per year with all travel, training and uniforms included, they also would have had the pick of the best players in the area.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any real relationship between the Great Falls NPL team and VA Spirit? The website makes it look like some girls move up, but try-outs were separate last year and I haven’t heard of any movement.

Yes. The Spirit VA coaches would like to use Great Falls Reston increasingly as a feeder for the entry level DA teams. That is not to say they won’t take players from other clubs but they actually help coach Great Falls Reston practices.

This will be very good for Spirit VA. They are at a big disadvantage to the established DA clubs in VA because they don't have the feeder. A few other NWSL based DAs are in a similar spot. This relationship helps to level the playing field for them. Given they have been able to have some limited success with a few of their teams with the huge disadvantage they have had, I can imagine they will be a much stronger club going forward. US Soccer wants the NSWL academies to succeed, so I wouldn't bet against them.

Why do you think DC United has done so well then, given that they also don't have a feeder?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there any real relationship between the Great Falls NPL team and VA Spirit? The website makes it look like some girls move up, but try-outs were separate last year and I haven’t heard of any movement.

Yes. The Spirit VA coaches would like to use Great Falls Reston increasingly as a feeder for the entry level DA teams. That is not to say they won’t take players from other clubs but they actually help coach Great Falls Reston practices.

This will be very good for Spirit VA. They are at a big disadvantage to the established DA clubs in VA because they don't have the feeder. A few other NWSL based DAs are in a similar spot. This relationship helps to level the playing field for them. Given they have been able to have some limited success with a few of their teams with the huge disadvantage they have had, I can imagine they will be a much stronger club going forward. US Soccer wants the NSWL academies to succeed, so I wouldn't bet against them.