ECNL All Conference teams

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Not an expert on other ages, but the NE Conference U18/19 team would get killed by an All GDA team

Anyone have any opinions on other age groups ?

[Unregistered]

Not an expert on other ages, but the NE Conference U18/19 team would get killed by an All GDA team

Anyone have any opinions on other age groups ?

Link...

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Except they don't do these things do they? Closest I have ever seen are PDP invitees.

[Unregistered]

Not an expert on other ages, but the NE Conference U18/19 team would get killed by an All GDA team

Anyone have any opinions on other age groups ?

Follow the World Cup...much more relevant and you won’t look like such an a-hole at a 4th of July party

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Link...

https://www.soccerwire.com/notes/gir...ams-northeast/

[Unregistered]

Follow the World Cup...much more relevant and you won’t look like such an a-hole at a 4th of July party

Keep hearing how the ECNL has all the best players. These teams suggest otherwise. This si the great advantage the ECNL have. here is a pretty good summary from the R4 board. Bit long, but hits some key points

Those kids that want balance, should go one way. Those that want to commit to soccer, should go the other way. This really ought not be hard.

But the "balance" side seems to want the "commitment" option to go away. And it's not hard to see why--to protect the "sport as leisure" mentality. After all, if the "commitment" option is available and viable (has a critical mass of talent so that e.g. training sessions are useful and the teams are reasonably well-balanced), then sooner or later, the "commitment" side will win out when it comes to the most prestigious and lucrative opportunities, and we'll get to the situation where the "balance" option isn't an option for anyone who wants a shot at the big time. After all--all else being equal, the players who are training year round (with suitable time off for recovery and things) will be better than the players who train part-time and seek "balance".

This is, after all, how it works in most fields of endeavor. It's how it works in men's soccer pretty much worldwide, including the US. (And to be fair, many of the best players come from full-time academies, not things like TA and Thorns where it's still four evenings a week, even though they have a weight room near the field). It's that way in music, in drama, in many sectors of the entertainment industry. You work your ass off to hone your craft and maybe you might "make it". Probably you won't. But if you approach your craft casually, you'll never be anything more than an amateur. (Which is fine, unless you want to be a pro).

And it's how it is starting to work in women's soccer all around the globe, where the upper-class entitlement mentality of sport-as-leisure has never taken root. The US may be in for a rude awakening in 2019 when a bunch of ECNL-spoiled girls who have been training for and focusing on a spot at UNC or UCLA discover that global soccer is yet another level.

The only way that "sport-as-leisure" can persist is either a) to accept second-class status (which is how it is in boys soccer; everyone understands that HS and college is an unlikely path to the pros--but these things are fine on their own merits, if played simply for the love of the game), or b) to try to strangle the "commitment" option in its crib--to either ban it outright (as rugby union did decades ago, leading to a schism that crippled the sport, and led to the workingman's sport of association football to come to dominate the world's attention), or to keep it from getting the "critical mass" of raw talent necessary to mount a challenge.

ECNL, in their full-court press to recruit top clubs back and paint the remaining GDA teams as second-class, is going for option b. They know the threat posed by a more professional training model to the sport-as-leisure model, and that if it is ever perceived by the soccer community that a high-level career requires full-time commitment as a youth, their current way of doing things is toast. And they have strong allies--HS likes ECNL because the girls still play on prep teams; the colleges like ECNL because the showcase model makes their job easier. Clubs like it because it is cheaper (coaches can take the fall or spring off, and no need to spend money on Gatorade). And unlike the boys' side, there aren't lucrative pro contracts arguing otherwise, and well-funded pro academies around the world demostrating just how it is done.

The problem is--for this to work, they pretty much have to kill GDA completely. Not just lure a few top teams, but ALL the top teams. They have to ensure that in four or five years or so, when the first crop of GDA players who started in middle school are graduating from the program, that these players aren't turning heads and wowing scouts and coaches with their level of play. And to do that--they have to make sure the top talent never signs up in the first place, as no amount of coaching or training will turn a player who lacks talent to begin with into a star. Thus the press to keep the blue-chip clubs in the ECNL fold.

Here in Oregon, it probably doesn't matter much. We're lucky if we produce one full-team pro on the men's side per year, but that trickle is like the Amazon River compared to local production of top women players. UP's success as a college program hasn't done squat for the local youth scene--we had Tiffeny Milbrett, who came of age before there really was a youth soccer scene here (and at a time when nobody gave a sh!t about soccer), and that's really it.

So, if your daughter has talent and wants to live and breathe soccer, consider GDA. If she has talent but wants a more diverse life, including playing high school, choose an ECNL program, or even stay in OYSA if travel is an issue (quite a few OYSA clubs are of similar quality to ECNL programs, no matter what the honks here might say). If she's one of the lucky few who might be NT material, she'll be found no matter which club she plays for--in Oregon, the club choice doesn't really matter much. (If you really want her to have the best possible competition--move to Texas or California, don't screw around here if you're that dedicated to her career). If she's not that good, but good enough for college, any of these are a path to NCAA ball. Don't believe any coach who tells you that you have to play for ECNL to have a shot at a college career; that's a lie.

[Unregistered]

Keep hearing how the ECNL has all the best players. These teams suggest otherwise. This si the great advantage the ECNL have. here is a pretty good summary from the R4 board. Bit long, but hits some key points

Those kids that want balance, should go one way. Those that want to commit to soccer, should go the other way. This really ought not be hard.

But the "balance" side seems to want the "commitment" option to go away. And it's not hard to see why--to protect the "sport as leisure" mentality. After all, if the "commitment" option is available and viable (has a critical mass of talent so that e.g. training sessions are useful and the teams are reasonably well-balanced), then sooner or later, the "commitment" side will win out when it comes to the most prestigious and lucrative opportunities, and we'll get to the situation where the "balance" option isn't an option for anyone who wants a shot at the big time. After all--all else being equal, the players who are training year round (with suitable time off for recovery and things) will be better than the players who train part-time and seek "balance".

This is, after all, how it works in most fields of endeavor. It's how it works in men's soccer pretty much worldwide, including the US. (And to be fair, many of the best players come from full-time academies, not things like TA and Thorns where it's still four evenings a week, even though they have a weight room near the field). It's that way in music, in drama, in many sectors of the entertainment industry. You work your ass off to hone your craft and maybe you might "make it". Probably you won't. But if you approach your craft casually, you'll never be anything more than an amateur. (Which is fine, unless you want to be a pro).

And it's how it is starting to work in women's soccer all around the globe, where the upper-class entitlement mentality of sport-as-leisure has never taken root. The US may be in for a rude awakening in 2019 when a bunch of ECNL-spoiled girls who have been training for and focusing on a spot at UNC or UCLA discover that global soccer is yet another level.

The only way that "sport-as-leisure" can persist is either a) to accept second-class status (which is how it is in boys soccer; everyone understands that HS and college is an unlikely path to the pros--but these things are fine on their own merits, if played simply for the love of the game), or b) to try to strangle the "commitment" option in its crib--to either ban it outright (as rugby union did decades ago, leading to a schism that crippled the sport, and led to the workingman's sport of association football to come to dominate the world's attention), or to keep it from getting the "critical mass" of raw talent necessary to mount a challenge.

ECNL, in their full-court press to recruit top clubs back and paint the remaining GDA teams as second-class, is going for option b. They know the threat posed by a more professional training model to the sport-as-leisure model, and that if it is ever perceived by the soccer community that a high-level career requires full-time commitment as a youth, their current way of doing things is toast. And they have strong allies--HS likes ECNL because the girls still play on prep teams; the colleges like ECNL because the showcase model makes their job easier. Clubs like it because it is cheaper (coaches can take the fall or spring off, and no need to spend money on Gatorade). And unlike the boys' side, there aren't lucrative pro contracts arguing otherwise, and well-funded pro academies around the world demostrating just how it is done.

The problem is--for this to work, they pretty much have to kill GDA completely. Not just lure a few top teams, but ALL the top teams. They have to ensure that in four or five years or so, when the first crop of GDA players who started in middle school are graduating from the program, that these players aren't turning heads and wowing scouts and coaches with their level of play. And to do that--they have to make sure the top talent never signs up in the first place, as no amount of coaching or training will turn a player who lacks talent to begin with into a star. Thus the press to keep the blue-chip clubs in the ECNL fold.

Here in Oregon, it probably doesn't matter much. We're lucky if we produce one full-team pro on the men's side per year, but that trickle is like the Amazon River compared to local production of top women players. UP's success as a college program hasn't done squat for the local youth scene--we had Tiffeny Milbrett, who came of age before there really was a youth soccer scene here (and at a time when nobody gave a sh!t about soccer), and that's really it.

So, if your daughter has talent and wants to live and breathe soccer, consider GDA. If she has talent but wants a more diverse life, including playing high school, choose an ECNL program, or even stay in OYSA if travel is an issue (quite a few OYSA clubs are of similar quality to ECNL programs, no matter what the honks here might say). If she's one of the lucky few who might be NT material, she'll be found no matter which club she plays for--in Oregon, the club choice doesn't really matter much. (If you really want her to have the best possible competition--move to Texas or California, don't screw around here if you're that dedicated to her career). If she's not that good, but good enough for college, any of these are a path to NCAA ball. Don't believe any coach who tells you that you have to play for ECNL to have a shot at a college career; that's a lie.

Honestly, get a life and a job!

[Unregistered]

Keep hearing how the ECNL has all the best players. These teams suggest otherwise. This si the great advantage the ECNL have. here is a pretty good summary from the R4 board. Bit long, but hits some key points

You lost me at the first line. No one league has all the best players, and that's even more true today than a year ago.

[Unregistered]

You lost me at the first line. No one league has all the best players, and that's even more true today than a year ago.

Just reporting what I hear.

[Unregistered]

Honestly, get a life and a job!

Hahahh just spit my drink out reading this

[Unregistered]

You lost me at the first line. No one league has all the best players, and that's even more true today than a year ago.

Admittedly I skimmed that endless post, but I think he just made an argument for no waivers even for the prep school crowd. Or maybe they should not have a private education because to have one means they are not committed. The poster is trying a little too hard.

[Unregistered]

Just reporting what I hear.

What you hear? Are you serious tool? What you hear within the other NEFC discussions.

My goodness you're a loser.

[Unregistered]

Admittedly I skimmed that endless post, but I think he just made an argument for no waivers even for the prep school crowd. Or maybe they should not have a private education because to have one means they are not committed. The poster is trying a little too hard.

I admire your fortitude.

[Unregistered]

https://www.soccerwire.com/notes/gir...ams-northeast/

That's actually nice to see. A little heavy on forwards, imo, but definitely a step in the right direction.

[Unregistered]

Hahahh just spit my drink out reading this

Exactly, and you don't need to read any of to know this person needs a life. Just seeing the enormous post is enough. We don't do anything that important on here to warrant that