The best time to make team is in the middle of the fall season, when coaches are searching for one more player when there are none available.

Just e-mail the club you want to go to and say you just transferred here from Brazil and you wonder if you kid could come out to join a few team practices as you'll be scouting around for clubs.

(Yes this happened at or old club. In reality, the kid only attended 1 5-day Brazilian training camp while on vacation in Brazil on their move to NoVa from North Carolina. Parents know how to use that to their advantage.)

The coach was already convinced they needed this kid and he didn't even have to rock the boat to get her. They made an offer just after 1 practice session.

Anonymous wrote:They are trying to make money. They don't care about giving random kids a fair shake..

It applies to long time players too. Equally frustrating to see new players get opportunities that long timer players grinding away hoping for that support or short which just goes to new additions. See other posts

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GA offers were handed out before ID sessions. Same goes with their MLS Next offers.

SYC? Why would you make offers before ID sessions? Seems like a lot going on behind the scenes.

It's pretty standard practice for clubs to prioritize current players who have consistently performed throughout the year when making offers. These players have already proven themselves and bring a level of reliability to the team. It's a smart strategy to secure their top talent, but it also minimizes the chance of losing them to other clubs that will be more than happy to pick them up.

While it's true that a new player could show up at an ID session and potentially impress, the chances of them outshining top-performing, long-term players are slim. Clubs also face the challenge of building team cohesion and continuity, which is often smoother with players who are already integrated into the system.

This approach might work for established players, but for new players, it’s a frustrating and inefficient process. It wastes time when they could be given a fair shot instead of being overlooked in favor of those already in the system.

Clubs want to lock in strong players before they have a chance to accept offers from other clubs. The ID session is to fill gaps in the roster when players decide to switch clubs. I would also argue that an ID session is more fair than a cattle call tryout with 60 kids trying to fill 2-3 spots.

They are trying to make money. They don't care about giving random kids a fair shake..

It's SYC they have bags full of tricks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GA offers were handed out before ID sessions. Same goes with their MLS Next offers.

SYC? Why would you make offers before ID sessions? Seems like a lot going on behind the scenes.

It's pretty standard practice for clubs to prioritize current players who have consistently performed throughout the year when making offers. These players have already proven themselves and bring a level of reliability to the team. It's a smart strategy to secure their top talent, but it also minimizes the chance of losing them to other clubs that will be more than happy to pick them up.

While it's true that a new player could show up at an ID session and potentially impress, the chances of them outshining top-performing, long-term players are slim. Clubs also face the challenge of building team cohesion and continuity, which is often smoother with players who are already integrated into the system.

This approach might work for established players, but for new players, it’s a frustrating and inefficient process. It wastes time when they could be given a fair shot instead of being overlooked in favor of those already in the system.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GA offers were handed out before ID sessions. Same goes with their MLS Next offers.

SYC? Why would you make offers before ID sessions? Seems like a lot going on behind the scenes.

It's pretty standard practice for clubs to prioritize current players who have consistently performed throughout the year when making offers. These players have already proven themselves and bring a level of reliability to the team. It's a smart strategy to secure their top talent, but it also minimizes the chance of losing them to other clubs that will be more than happy to pick them up.

While it's true that a new player could show up at an ID session and potentially impress, the chances of them outshining top-performing, long-term players are slim. Clubs also face the challenge of building team cohesion and continuity, which is often smoother with players who are already integrated into the system.

Anonymous wrote:GA offers were handed out before ID sessions. Same goes with their MLS Next offers.

SYC? Why would you make offers before ID sessions? Seems like a lot going on behind the scenes.

GA offers were handed out before ID sessions. Same goes with their MLS Next offers.

Anonymous wrote:All true that its mostly marketing, but as a family that has utilized RAMP they were worth every cent and we were only connected because of the SYC connection. Say what you will but its part of the program and like anything in life if you need something more personalized or specialized because of an injury then you have to pay a specialist for additional services. Felt reasanable to me. Pablo is very present and a resource if you know what you are asking for. He's busy and your player just might not be worth his time is likely your experience, I'm sorry bud.

Thanks for chiming in, coach

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Looking at the SYC coaching slate, I see something Alexandria should take note of. SYC lists Pablo Amaya as their Director of Sports Performance. If Alexandria wants to compete at the highest level, and attract the highest level kids, they should go all in on complete development of players. The MLS Next kids are training 4 days a week. Strength and agility work folded into their regular routine would go a long way toward improving performance, building team unity, and convincing parents and athletes that the club wants to field the strongest teams possible and develop individuals.

Director of Sports Performance - all smoke and mirrors. When he first joined, it looked promising but seen nothing offered since. It's just the usual grind of 4 days of training/week and just marketing. Players can pay extra for RAMP.

Thanks for the info. That's disappointing. I've heard good things about RAMP and Pablo but I'm not totally surprised to hear it's mostly just a marketing/"synergy" ploy on behalf of SYC. In that case, Alexandria could offer a real, and integrated, sports performance program to set themselves apart from SYC, since they have the same player pool.

RAMP is a joke. Another one of SYC's gimmick. Pablo came out to our first practice to do agility testing. We were STRONGLY encouraged to sign up for 1 week RAMP training which of course was extra cost.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Its scoop genius

"It's scoop, genius."

If you are going to attempt to put someone down, at least do it correctly.

Asking what the "scoop is," does not constitute a putdown.
He was asking what the story is with the coach having the nic-name Mr. Fantastic.

I'm aware. I believe you missed the point. The correction was for the individual who used the word, "genius."

Dang, I did miss your point...I agree with you now!

Anonymous wrote:Did SYC GA start making any offers yet?

Have not seen any yet

Anonymous wrote:All true that its mostly marketing, but as a family that has utilized RAMP they were worth every cent and we were only connected because of the SYC connection. Say what you will but its part of the program and like anything in life if you need something more personalized or specialized because of an injury then you have to pay a specialist for additional services. Felt reasanable to me. Pablo is very present and a resource if you know what you are asking for. He's busy and your player just might not be worth his time is likely your experience, I'm sorry bud.

Thanks for the additional info. Good stuff. That last sentence seems unnecessary.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Looking at the SYC coaching slate, I see something Alexandria should take note of. SYC lists Pablo Amaya as their Director of Sports Performance. If Alexandria wants to compete at the highest level, and attract the highest level kids, they should go all in on complete development of players. The MLS Next kids are training 4 days a week. Strength and agility work folded into their regular routine would go a long way toward improving performance, building team unity, and convincing parents and athletes that the club wants to field the strongest teams possible and develop individuals.

Director of Sports Performance - all smoke and mirrors. When he first joined, it looked promising but seen nothing offered since. It's just the usual grind of 4 days of training/week and just marketing. Players can pay extra for RAMP.

Thanks for the info. That's disappointing. I've heard good things about RAMP and Pablo but I'm not totally surprised to hear it's mostly just a marketing/"synergy" ploy on behalf of SYC. In that case, Alexandria could offer a real, and integrated, sports performance program to set themselves apart from SYC, since they have the same player pool.