Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP here. I haven't posted much to this thread. Please remember that I did not ask this question because I'm curious as to whether 07s can compete with 06s. What I was asking was whether or not these clubs...SYA and/or Villareal feel that playing 11v11 sooner is beneficial to the development of the kids. I was wondering if this will be more common in the future and will U12 teams start moving up to U13 leagues/tournaments/etc sooner. I'm not concerned on how these two individual teams will do in this tournament although I think they will do just fine. A strong "A" 07 team should do very well against 06 "B" or "C" teams. Thanks
If you are looking for an opinion on when to start transitioning....I think you will get the full spectrum of answers so it all comes down to the talent level of that U12 team and the coach. I personally feel that we tend to rush things in this country and more touches on a small field is always better. I am also very old and remember the days of playing 3rd grade soccer on a full 11 v 11 game where some kids never saw the ball.
Me too. I remember as girl in Kindergarten---drawing in the dirt on defense and turning cartwheels on that big field.
Fortunately, something clicked by 4th grade. But, probably a lot of those early years was sheer boredom of those big fields and tiny kids.