Boys 05

[Unregistered]

According to the press release, scouts were at the San Diego showcase last fall. One wonders if they went to see any of the Oregon DA teams, or assumed all the worthwhile talent was at Timbers Academy.

Timbers Academy is a National Level DA program. Oregon club teams using DA label for competition locally doesn't get them the same treatment as a full fledged MLS DA in Oregon.

This is a structural thing, if a player was special in Oregon, the current US Soccer setup mandates that our local club player be sent up to the only DA's in our area: the MLS Timbers or NWSL Thorns. They (US Soccer Scout) would never expect a local neighborhood club to keep a kid playing in a US Club league or USYS league vs the local club promoting them to the elite MLS or NWSL Academy. That would be pretty disingenuous and self serving of the local club/coach and disregard the kid's potential and growth.

So of course they weren't scouting the local clubs, why would they?

[Unregistered]

Timbers Academy is a National Level DA program. Oregon club teams using DA label for competition locally doesn't get them the same treatment as a full fledged MLS DA in Oregon.

This is a structural thing, if a player was special in Oregon, the current US Soccer setup mandates that our local club player be sent up to the only DA's in our area: the MLS Timbers or NWSL Thorns. They (US Soccer Scout) would never expect a local neighborhood club to keep a kid playing in a US Club league or USYS league vs the local club promoting them to the elite MLS or NWSL Academy. That would be pretty disingenuous and self serving of the local club/coach and disregard the kid's potential and growth.

So of course they weren't scouting the local clubs, why would they?

Oh crossfire dad... I mean opfc dad... Here fishy fishy!

[Unregistered]

Timbers Academy is a National Level DA program. Oregon club teams using DA label for competition locally doesn't get them the same treatment as a full fledged MLS DA in Oregon.

This is a structural thing, if a player was special in Oregon, the current US Soccer setup mandates that our local club player be sent up to the only DA's in our area: the MLS Timbers or NWSL Thorns. They (US Soccer Scout) would never expect a local neighborhood club to keep a kid playing in a US Club league or USYS league vs the local club promoting them to the elite MLS or NWSL Academy. That would be pretty disingenuous and self serving of the local club/coach and disregard the kid's potential and growth.

So of course they weren't scouting the local clubs, why would they?

Look at who the coach is. He sees all of the local DA teams play regularly. Scouting happens all the time. The lack of knowledge on her is astounding.

[Unregistered]

Oh crossfire dad... I mean opfc dad... Here fishy fishy!

Hahaha, unfortunately none of those 3 are very good nor are they the best 3 on even the TA roster. and if the selections were from Oceanside scouting then us soccer is in an even bigger chit show than anyone could believe

[Unregistered]

Congratulations to Javi, Yojany, and Luke Y, for being invited to the US NT west regional talent ID camp!

https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/201...ional-minicamp

Had to have someone from Oregon to save face...the TA D got torched in Oceanside a yojany just does not see the field even though he is quick and can dribble

[Unregistered]

One could argue that zero boys from Oregon are worthy of this particular honor; however, not having seen a lot of the talent named, it's hard to say that sort of thing conclusively.

Keep in mind--US Soccer is looking for players, not teams. We all know that 05TA stinks compared to other West Coast academy teams, that doesn't mean the team lacks talented players (though the depth compared to a club like LAFC or Quakes or even PacNW may not be there). The OPFC honks like to suggest that the team formerly known as Crossfire could beat the TA in a competitive 11v11 match. A bunch of WT kids actually did beat a bunch of TA kids (including both Javi and Yojany, reportedly) in the indoor holiday tournament, but how a 20-minute 6v6 indoor game extrapolates to a regulation outdoor game, is an interesting question. (Probably not well at all).

That said, both Javi and Yojany are talented players. I know far less about LY, so cannot comment on him. But are they the top three 05 players from Oregon? I honestly have no idea. Are there three other kids that are so obviously better that one should rule these three out? Probably not. Are there other kids who should be in the conversation? Definitely. Are all those kids at TA? No.

[Unregistered]

A bunch of WT kids actually did beat a bunch of TA kids (including both Javi and Yojany, reportedly) in the indoor holiday tournament,

Pretty sure that's not true. The 06 TA walked on 'em pretty good though

[Unregistered]

Pretty sure that's not true. The 06 TA walked on 'em pretty good though

Standings here: http://www.tualatinindoor.com/divisions/u14

"Real Futsal" is the team that contained about 5 05TA players (though quite a few others as well, and one of the 05TA players was Malfoy). Westside beat them 5-3.

"Frankfurt" was mainly composed of 06 TA players, and won the whole thing. The only team to give them any trouble was another 06 team, from ADF.

[Unregistered]

One could argue that zero boys from Oregon are worthy of this particular honor; however, not having seen a lot of the talent named, it's hard to say that sort of thing conclusively.

Keep in mind--US Soccer is looking for players, not teams. We all know that 05TA stinks compared to other West Coast academy teams, that doesn't mean the team lacks talented players (though the depth compared to a club like LAFC or Quakes or even PacNW may not be there). The OPFC honks like to suggest that the team formerly known as Crossfire could beat the TA in a competitive 11v11 match. A bunch of WT kids actually did beat a bunch of TA kids (including both Javi and Yojany, reportedly) in the indoor holiday tournament, but how a 20-minute 6v6 indoor game extrapolates to a regulation outdoor game, is an interesting question. (Probably not well at all).

That said, both Javi and Yojany are talented players. I know far less about LY, so cannot comment on him. But are they the top three 05 players from Oregon? I honestly have no idea. Are there three other kids that are so obviously better that one should rule these three out? Probably not. Are there other kids who should be in the conversation? Definitely. Are all those kids at TA? No.

Time for a reality check: Oceanside showed the gap and the problem at the same time. I will go out on a limb and guarantee some of those kids were not born in 2005 and also that population base matters. As for the 3 Oregon players selected don’t fool yourself into thinking that Timbers and their reputation did not play into the selections. Several “little DA” defenders showed better than TA kids (according to contacts) Javi is nothing more than someone who physically developed earlier than other players and had Jamie hype him. He is neither more skilled or mentally better than any others. LY is at least technically advanced now but has topped out physically and athletically and will now get left behind and YE has no chance long term physically and mentally unless a “light” goes on

[Unregistered]

Time for a reality check: Oceanside showed the gap and the problem at the same time. I will go out on a limb and guarantee some of those kids were not born in 2005 and also that population base matters. As for the 3 Oregon players selected don’t fool yourself into thinking that Timbers and their reputation did not play into the selections. Several “little DA” defenders showed better than TA kids (according to contacts) Javi is nothing more than someone who physically developed earlier than other players and had Jamie hype him. He is neither more skilled or mentally better than any others. LY is at least technically advanced now but has topped out physically and athletically and will now get left behind and YE has no chance long term physically and mentally unless a “light” goes on

It's Jaime, not Jamie.

Are you suggesting that some of these players are not legit 05s? Based on what? Unless they have high-quality fake identification, sufficient to fool the registrars at clubs such as Westside and ADF as well as the Portland Timbers, I doubt that any of the three players selected are overage. Plus, I know that at least two of the three players mentioned are currently in enrolled in middle school. (The academic status of the third I do not know).

If you are referring to players from elsewhere who played at Oceanside as being over-age, then I have no comment, not knowing any of the clubs involved.

Which little DA defenders do your "contacts" rate highly, and without outing them, are said contacts qualified to make judgments we should take seriously (i.e. having attended quite a few games, and have the soccer knowledge to simply not pick the biggest fastest kid regardless of touch?)

[Unregistered]

It's Jaime, not Jamie.

Are you suggesting that some of these players are not legit 05s? Based on what? Unless they have high-quality fake identification, sufficient to fool the registrars at clubs such as Westside and ADF as well as the Portland Timbers, I doubt that any of the three players selected are overage. Plus, I know that at least two of the three players mentioned are currently in enrolled in middle school. (The academic status of the third I do not know).

If you are referring to players from elsewhere who played at Oceanside as being over-age, then I have no comment, not knowing any of the clubs involved.

Which little DA defenders do your "contacts" rate highly, and without outing them, are said contacts qualified to make judgments we should take seriously (i.e. having attended quite a few games, and have the soccer knowledge to simply not pick the biggest fastest kid regardless of touch?)

Age comment had to do with many of the so cal kids. I understand the law of large numbers and that kids develop at different rates but common sense tells me some have “doctored” documents. It has routinely happened in all youth sports in a multiple of ways. And do you really think JB has excellent “touch”? Get over yourself...

[Unregistered]

Age comment had to do with many of the so cal kids. I understand the law of large numbers and that kids develop at different rates but common sense tells me some have “doctored” documents.

Thanks for the clarification. I'm sure there's cheating that goes on in youth sports, including Oregon. I have no reason to suspect any of the players discussed here, however, and would object strongly to any such suggestions made against them.

And do you really think JB has excellent “touch”? Get over yourself...

Hard to say these days (for your truly); haven't seen him play much recently. He was one of the top players at Copa 2 years ago, and I thought deserving of the TA spot. Since joining the Timbers he has changed position (from right wing to defense), which is interesting, if nothing else.

At this point, there doesn't appear to be any clear-cut standout in the local 2005 class. A year or two ago, TM was often identified as the Best 05 Player, but his development appears to have stalled, and he's not among the three who were selected. Early bloomers that don't grow tall are a longstanding problem in scouting and developing players at this age, which is why it's a crapshoot. Possible that this class will produce nobody of note. Or that some late bloomer somewhere, flying under the radar, will burst past the ceiling of the annointed players. Or that one of the annointed players will re-assert themselves post-puberty.

While the funnel is narrowing, it's too early for it to be closed.

[Unregistered]

Everyone knows talent selection is rife with favoritism and politics. US Soccer is the parent of DA so of course they are going to choose from their own DA “children”. Try not to get caught up in all the politics. Everyone knows the selections are biased. At least we got three from Oregon though! Good luck to the Oregon boys selected!

[Unregistered]

Everyone knows talent selection is rife with favoritism and politics. US Soccer is the parent of DA so of course they are going to choose from their own DA “children”. Try not to get caught up in all the politics. Everyone knows the selections are biased. At least we got three from Oregon though! Good luck to the Oregon boys selected!

Picking the best players out of a group of similarly-skilled kids, is far from an exact science. Even if ulterior motives and agendas were completely removed from the equation, different coaches would likely disagree on who is the best. And in an environment when you have to decide which of a bunch of similar snowflakes is most special, the other snowflakes are gonna complain.

But like I said--the absence of a clear-cut dominant player probably is not a good sign. It's like the old adage from pointy football: Show me a team that has two starting quarterbacks, and I'll show you a team that has none. (The 49ers back in the day, with Joe Montana and Steve Young, are the exception that proves the rule).

[Unregistered]

Thanks for the clarification. I'm sure there's cheating that goes on in youth sports, including Oregon. I have no reason to suspect any of the players discussed here, however, and would object strongly to any such suggestions made against them.



Hard to say these days (for your truly); haven't seen him play much recently. He was one of the top players at Copa 2 years ago, and I thought deserving of the TA spot. Since joining the Timbers he has changed position (from right wing to defense), which is interesting, if nothing else.

At this point, there doesn't appear to be any clear-cut standout in the local 2005 class. A year or two ago, TM was often identified as the Best 05 Player, but his development appears to have stalled, and he's not among the three who were selected. Early bloomers that don't grow tall are a longstanding problem in scouting and developing players at this age, which is why it's a crapshoot. Possible that this class will produce nobody of note. Or that some late bloomer somewhere, flying under the radar, will burst past the ceiling of the annointed players. Or that one of the annointed players will re-assert themselves post-puberty.

While the funnel is narrowing, it's too early for it to be closed.

Any idea why he changed position? Not good enough anymore for winger spot? Or less competition out of state at defender so added chances of being selected for elite teams and/or college? Or simply playing other positions to be more versatile? Are there any pros to switching to defense?