The only club or program that has selected Oregon's elite class of players is the USSDA league.
Yes, the MLS Timbers Youth Academy has cherry picked and recruited what they consider to be the best available 14 to 18 year old boys in the greater Portland and sw Washington area, even reaching to central and southern oregon for a few as well.
We all bear witness to the tangible, dramatic impact on the residual level of play at HS Boys and Boys U15 to U18 club soccer in Oregon. Much more parity and less quality of play on the field. Not unlike the differences between an all-star team and the rest of the league, what remains after the rapture is a team that theoretically has Oregon's best players and a league for those not chosen to make do amongst themselves. For better or worse.
Don't ever confuse that reality with the personal election of a local Oregon club(s) to join a different league. Be it the OPL, OYSA, FWRL, USYS National League or ECNL. It's real simple the local teams are choosing different types of leagues because our state has no leadership (Leaders) or vision to see the sport grow at the only level possible, at the grass roots through local organized comprehensive best level competition. A training or proving ground so to speak that prepares teams to branch out to higher level competition after they have demonstrated they are in fact Oregon's best team(s).
Searching out other forms of competition, be it tournaments or truncated regional leagues is part of the 10 month club program ala carte menu for all states in the US. It use to be that way in Oregon.
Nowadays having Oregon clubs joining "XYZ" league is simply what they must feel they are forced to do since this state has gone sideways with no available magnet league for the best to play in.
Our state is a train wreck of fractured leagues with meaningless acronyms for both leagues and clubs. It's a straight Cluster&#!#. Instead of figuring out how to solve this giant hot mess, the selfish and foolish ones just elect to leave the state level of play and join another league.
We choose the path that takes us places we really don't belong and say 'we' know what is best.
God Bless You.
Yes, the MLS Timbers Youth Academy has cherry picked and recruited what they consider to be the best available 14 to 18 year old boys in the greater Portland and sw Washington area, even reaching to central and southern oregon for a few as well.
We all bear witness to the tangible, dramatic impact on the residual level of play at HS Boys and Boys U15 to U18 club soccer in Oregon. Much more parity and less quality of play on the field. Not unlike the differences between an all-star team and the rest of the league, what remains after the rapture is a team that theoretically has Oregon's best players and a league for those not chosen to make do amongst themselves. For better or worse.
Don't ever confuse that reality with the personal election of a local Oregon club(s) to join a different league. Be it the OPL, OYSA, FWRL, USYS National League or ECNL. It's real simple the local teams are choosing different types of leagues because our state has no leadership (Leaders) or vision to see the sport grow at the only level possible, at the grass roots through local organized comprehensive best level competition. A training or proving ground so to speak that prepares teams to branch out to higher level competition after they have demonstrated they are in fact Oregon's best team(s).
Searching out other forms of competition, be it tournaments or truncated regional leagues is part of the 10 month club program ala carte menu for all states in the US. It use to be that way in Oregon.
Nowadays having Oregon clubs joining "XYZ" league is simply what they must feel they are forced to do since this state has gone sideways with no available magnet league for the best to play in.
Our state is a train wreck of fractured leagues with meaningless acronyms for both leagues and clubs. It's a straight Cluster&#!#. Instead of figuring out how to solve this giant hot mess, the selfish and foolish ones just elect to leave the state level of play and join another league.
We choose the path that takes us places we really don't belong and say 'we' know what is best.
God Bless You.
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