That kissing up to the coach will help your kids, and being hands-off and respectful will hurt them.

Anonymous wrote:That the manager's kid plays the same position as my kid and that the coach and manager are friends.

Amen

That the manager's kid plays the same position as my kid and that the coach and manager are friends.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If I had a really talented child, which I never did, I would consider sending him-her to one of the New England boarding schools. If she is really good, scholarships are available. The practice fields are a five minute walk. Travel time for games is minimal. The coaches are great. NO PARENTS. If she blows her knee she will leave with a great education. If she is not that great, I'd stick with recreational soccer.

Drop the 'New' part and it's a great idea.

English boarding school football is now the darling of scouts in Europe. The finals of the private school championship series are a must attend for all scouts in the UK.

That is if you really want to go all out for football.

No way in hell would I send a boy to a British boarding school where he would get buggered. Horrible idea. And there is a sex abuse scandal as big as the C Church in English soccer.

Yep. People are clueless

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On top teams in big clubs, one day you’re the darling, the next day you might be out regardless of you and your DD’s past contributions.

What are YOU contributing? Spots on the top team should never be given due to a parents volunteer or monetary contributions. They usually are though up until a certain age and then thus happens...talent wins out.

This is why US soccer sucks.

Politics and expected favors.

None of that should matter, including whatever you (are you serious??) or your daughter contributed previously.

The only relevant question is : is she talented enough to be in the top 15-16 kids to fill the roster? If somebody better comes along or is below and has developed better, then she rightfully should be cut for the better player.

Anonymous wrote:On top teams in big clubs, one day you’re the darling, the next day you might be out regardless of you and your DD’s past contributions.

+1000 and not just on the girls side. This is true for the boys too.

Anonymous wrote:On top teams in big clubs, one day you’re the darling, the next day you might be out regardless of you and your DD’s past contributions.

What are YOU contributing? Spots on the top team should never be given due to a parents volunteer or monetary contributions. They usually are though up until a certain age and then thus happens...talent wins out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If I had a really talented child, which I never did, I would consider sending him-her to one of the New England boarding schools. If she is really good, scholarships are available. The practice fields are a five minute walk. Travel time for games is minimal. The coaches are great. NO PARENTS. If she blows her knee she will leave with a great education. If she is not that great, I'd stick with recreational soccer.

Drop the 'New' part and it's a great idea.

English boarding school football is now the darling of scouts in Europe. The finals of the private school championship series are a must attend for all scouts in the UK.

That is if you really want to go all out for football.

No way in hell would I send a boy to a British boarding school where he would get buggered. Horrible idea. And there is a sex abuse scandal as big as the C Church in English soccer.

good luck, im sure its easy to earn minutes with kids who could be in pro academies but opted out for the free ride private school

Anonymous wrote:If I had a really talented child, which I never did, I would consider sending him-her to one of the New England boarding schools. If she is really good, scholarships are available. The practice fields are a five minute walk. Travel time for games is minimal. The coaches are great. NO PARENTS. If she blows her knee she will leave with a great education. If she is not that great, I'd stick with recreational soccer.

Drop the 'New' part and it's a great idea.

English boarding school football is now the darling of scouts in Europe. The finals of the private school championship series are a must attend for all scouts in the UK.

That is if you really want to go all out for football.

Anonymous wrote:If I had a really talented child, which I never did, I would consider sending him-her to one of the New England boarding schools. If she is really good, scholarships are available. The practice fields are a five minute walk. Travel time for games is minimal. The coaches are great. NO PARENTS. If she blows her knee she will leave with a great education. If she is not that great, I'd stick with recreational soccer.

That's a terrible idea.
I played soccer at one of those schools, and quality isn't even close to DAs. And all the DA kids are going to get into the colleges you want your kids going to.
Short term thinking.

On top teams in big clubs, one day you’re the darling, the next day you might be out regardless of you and your DD’s past contributions.

If I had a really talented child, which I never did, I would consider sending him-her to one of the New England boarding schools. If she is really good, scholarships are available. The practice fields are a five minute walk. Travel time for games is minimal. The coaches are great. NO PARENTS. If she blows her knee she will leave with a great education. If she is not that great, I'd stick with recreational soccer.

- that the money from the tournament we had to work went to the club general fund for all sports and not only to the sport which provided all the labor

- that players cannot move up from B to A or C to B etc if there is an outside player willing to pay for the spot instead

- that coach/TD ego boost is primary goal and player development is not a priority

- that DA/ECNL would end up having more teams from DMV than WAGS D1 used to before the switch and are weaker and less exclusive

- how hard it is to recruit players to a small club without a rec program to draw from

- that the boys side would get preference when allocating coaches, field space, trainers, equipment, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the smaller clubs people like? We’re in Arlington so nearby would be nice

Premier AC has a lot of kids from Arlington

Agreed. Draws Arlington, Falls Church, McLean, Vienna, Fairfax. Good, dedicated coaching and very happy family and club culture. We are no longer there but really enjoyed our time there and have kept in touch with the families and kids.