Changes to age groups

[Unregistered]

But those are not the school year cutoffs for the entire country. What I heard is that ECNL is going to consider is to use "graduation year" which is what college coaches have to use anyway. They are recruiting for a certain incoming class, regardless of your age (and what cutoff in your local area required you to be in a certain grade).

Straight grad year will lead to major abuses within the next 5 years ... mark my words if they do that. You will start seeing 17 year old freshmen and lots of them.

[Unregistered]

Straight grad year will lead to major abuses within the next 5 years ... mark my words if they do that. You will start seeing 17 year old freshmen and lots of them.

Stop being dramatic... you think people are going to hold kids back 3 years?

The reality is that graduation year would cause players who were held out of school at the start, or who repeated a year (as kids going from public to prep sometimes do) to play with those that are a year younger. For ECNL it makes total sense. They promote college placement as the main goal of the league. Colleges recruit by grad year.

Grad year solves the trapped player problem in 8th grade and senior year and makes it easier for college coaches.

[Unregistered]

Stop being dramatic... you think people are going to hold kids back 3 years?

The reality is that graduation year would cause players who were held out of school at the start, or who repeated a year (as kids going from public to prep sometimes do) to play with those that are a year younger. For ECNL it makes total sense. They promote college placement as the main goal of the league. Colleges recruit by grad year.

Grad year solves the trapped player problem in 8th grade and senior year and makes it easier for college coaches.

Easily 2 year differences when parents hold their kids back when starting kindergarten and then have them repeat freshmen year when they send them to a private school. Either your kid can play or not. School year is the best solution. Just pick a date around the start of the school year and be done with it.

[Unregistered]

Easily 2 year differences when parents hold their kids back when starting kindergarten and then have them repeat freshmen year when they send them to a private school. Either your kid can play or not. School year is the best solution. Just pick a date around the start of the school year and be done with it.

They don't even need a specific date... Lacrosse just uses grad year. Age groups are 2022, 2023, etc.

[Unregistered]

Easily 2 year differences when parents hold their kids back when starting kindergarten and then have them repeat freshmen year when they send them to a private school. Either your kid can play or not. School year is the best solution. Just pick a date around the start of the school year and be done with it.

Exactly... Most players who have a desire to play after high school (whether they actually play HS soccer or not) have college as their goal, not the NT. Even if there are kids that are 2 years older in your graduating class, you're still competing against them when you are being recruited. College coaches are looking at players in a specific recruiting class. Whether a 2020 grad is 17 or 19 when they graduate makes no difference to them.

[Unregistered]

Easily 2 year differences when parents hold their kids back when starting kindergarten and then have them repeat freshmen year when they send them to a private school. Either your kid can play or not. School year is the best solution. Just pick a date around the start of the school year and be done with it.

That's the problem...school age cutoffs are different throughout the country. NY is December, some are August, etc. Private schools are different than public schools. Using graduation year equalizes that since colleges are recruiting for their incoming class years anyway. It doesn't matter how old you are -- just what year you will be entering college.

[Unregistered]

That's the problem...school age cutoffs are different throughout the country. NY is December, some are August, etc. Private schools are different than public schools. Using graduation year equalizes that since colleges are recruiting for their incoming class years anyway. It doesn't matter how old you are -- just what year you will be entering college.

No date will ever be perfect but the old date of 8/1 worked well before with very few kids impacted. Someone suggested a 2 month flex date around that if there is proof of grade enrollment.

[Unregistered]

Exactly... Most players who have a desire to play after high school (whether they actually play HS soccer or not) have college as their goal, not the NT. Even if there are kids that are 2 years older in your graduating class, you're still competing against them when you are being recruited. College coaches are looking at players in a specific recruiting class. Whether a 2020 grad is 17 or 19 when they graduate makes no difference to them.

I completely understand where you are coming from with such a thought process, however competing from U9 - U19 in club soccer is not all about getting a college scholarship. That may be the goal for most but along the way the kids learn, develop, have fun and compete to win. Allowing a big giant 14 year old to compete against 11 year olds is unfair and not fun. There needs to be dates as cut offs to prevent this.

[Unregistered]

I completely understand where you are coming from with such a thought process, however competing from U9 - U19 in club soccer is not all about getting a college scholarship. That may be the goal for most but along the way the kids learn, develop, have fun and compete to win. Allowing a big giant 14 year old to compete against 11 year olds is unfair and not fun. There needs to be dates as cut offs to prevent this.

The old system had a birthday cutoff 8/1. Really this isn't that hard people. Don't over think it. Go back to what it was before. Most kids can play with their classmates (play up if need be but you can't play down if you were held back), no more trapped 8th or 12th graders, easier college recruiting for those that go that far. Done.

[Unregistered]

They don't even need a specific date... Lacrosse just uses grad year. Age groups are 2022, 2023, etc.

Yes let's model soccer after a sport that 0.7% of kids play.

[Unregistered]

Yes let's model soccer after a sport that 0.7% of kids play.

Nearly all other sports are school year. Lax is also growing, soccer is dropping. Th age change isn't the only reason soccer participation is falling but its definitely contributing

[Unregistered]

Yes let's model soccer after a sport that 0.7% of kids play.

Lax is the fastest growing youth sport in the US and soccer is declining.

[Unregistered]

Lax is the fastest growing youth sport in the US and soccer is declining.

That wont last. Lax is the most boring sport there is, especially for girls.

[Unregistered]

That wont last. Lax is the most boring sport there is, especially for girls.

Totally agree - So freakin boring!

[Unregistered]

The Logical Voice

Yes let's model soccer after a sport that 0.7% of kids play.

Exactly.

If so few kids are impacted, then why not model the sport in a way that benefits the vast majority of them?


You attempt at cynicism here just made the case for what you had hoped to belittle.