How is this as a league in terms of compete level? My daughter is planning on making the move to a club team that plays in this league and we’re told this is one of the top leagues in the country. Travel does not look too bad Pennsylvania, Maryland etc. Still on the younger side U13 so just want to have realistic expectations.
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ECRL top league in the country? You’re just trolling right?Originally posted by Unregistered View Post -
Definitely the best league in the world. The current ranking is:Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
1. ECRL
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2. Premier League
3. Bundesliga
4. La Liga/Serie A (tied)
6. ECNL/GAL (fighting it out)
7. MLSComment
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ECRL is made up of B-teams from ECNL clubs. Quality of the teams vary quite a bit depending on the club. A lot of players don't like the stigma of being on "The B Team", so they avoid it like the plague. Others would rather play there because options to join another strong club's "A Team" would require further travel for practices.Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
D fell into the latter category and played ECRL for a number of years (including a couple of years when it was called Northeast NPL). From what I saw of her games over the years, I would say that the top 3-4 ECRL teams in her division would have been competitive with the lower 2-3 ECNL teams in their division; probably more an indictment of the lower ECNL teams than anything about the ECRL league. About half her team ended up playing in college (1 D1, the rest were D2/D3), the rest had no interest in playing college soccer even though all (except maybe 1) had the talent to play in at least good D3-level programs.
Is ECRL one of the "top leagues in the country"? Depends on where your line is, but probably not. It's definitely not to be considered among the very best; by definition, it is B-teams, so already it is a tier below "the very best". But many of the teams are good enough to gain entry into many of the better college showcases (albeit usually in the 5th or lower flights), so it is competitive and a reasonable place to play if your goal is something other than D1 soccer.Comment
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At U13 the ECRL teams would fit in the 2nd or 3rd flights of EDP. As they get older, the teams get stronger and are solidly in the 2nd tier of compeition. If that is the level your kid is at ECRL is fine. There are many leagues below it and if your kid develops on a curve relative to the other players they have a chance to play on the ECNL team.Comment
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As another said it's the B teams, ECNL is the A team group. Some clubs will pull players up from the B teams, others less so.Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
Rather than worry about the league worry about whether the team/coaching/club is a good fit for your player and what they want to do with soccer. If it's good coaching and you don't have a lot of other good options in your area it may be a very good move regardless of the league. OR, you might have other options. Just know that as they get older there's also showcases with multiple overnights and sometimes even flights so the costs really rise.Comment
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Sounds like you are going to PDA South, PDA North or MatchFit since they are the only clubs in NJ with ECRL teams that go to PA and MD. PDA South ECRL is a HUGE MESS, give it a year or 2 and half of these girls will be on the ECRL team pushing out the current players. PDA North is the 3rd team and is the red headed step child for North. MF u13 team is currently a fight between MF Shore 09s moving up and current MF ECNL. If the current players lose then out goes most the current ECRL players.Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
ECRL is mid tier at best. A previous poster said equal to about Division 2/3 in EDP but when these teams were in EDP (last year) they were more 4/5. If you can find a club in the Division 1/2 of EDP you might be better off.Comment
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Spot on no bs feedback about ECRL, it’s pretty much the equivalent of EDP 2/3 divisions. You’re correct in advising to find a quality EDP Div 1 club/team instead (if possible) as the competition is vastly superior as compared to ECRL. Not saying that you can’t have a quality ECRL team but those are usually the exception rather than the rule.Originally posted by Unregistered View PostComment
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Just an example (for what it's worth), the 2006 STA NL team (EDP Div 1) just beat the WC ECRL team in a friendly. And I believe that's one of the better ECRL teams.Comment
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Obviously it's club and coach dependent. If it's a good fit for your player, great. She's still young and if it doesn't work out no big deal. This doesn't have to be a lifetime commitment. Families should always reevaluate every year. Things change with teams and coaching and your player.Comment
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I believe it...there are quite a few EDP Div 1 teams that would beat ECNL teams let alone ECRL. Tells you plenty about the money grab that ECRL really is.Originally posted by Unregistered View PostComment
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"money grab"? Really all clubs could be defined as a money grab if you as the customer feel you're not getting a good value for your $ paid. As for your other statement: a few EDP teams could have competitive games with ECNL teams, close and maybe a few close wins, but that is all. ECLR is more on par with EDP, but it's simply a replacement from what was the NE NPL before. There's plenty of players who should and want to play that level. As many have said it all depends on what your local options are, best fit, coaching etc. One thing ECLR will have is showcases with ECNL, making it one stop shopping for coaches of all levels. That is something EDP and other leagues simply cannot provide. EDP players can get recruited but it will take more effort. For some families having that platform is worth it to them. Their $, their choices.Originally posted by Unregistered View PostComment
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You can always find examples of wins/losses either way. For example, D's ECRL team beat NY Surf's top team in the age group last year. Has also beaten or tied A-teams teams from CSA, PSA, NYSC and others over the years. Also has gotten beat or tied by teams at showcases from leagues that would be considered "lower" than ECRL. Looking at a single game result is not a great way to evaluate league competition.Originally posted by Unregistered View PostComment
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My daughter’s EDP div 2 team played an ECRL team and won 8-0. What are the standards for acceptance in ECRL and how can you have such a wide gap in quality. I know we would beat others based on comparative results too (which is what other parents on the team are telling me) Just makes no sense to me by I’m not a soccer person so perhaps I’m missing something.Originally posted by Unregistered View PostComment
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The issue has and always will be that ECNL/RL are club-based, as in, the entire club (all eligible age groups) are in. There is typically ability variation at different clubs based on age groups (e.g. u14 group is fantastic but u16 stinks), but as the entire club is in ECNL/RL, you'll have teams that are just bad but are still in that league. An EDP div 2 team beating an ECRL team isn't unusual, but it also won't change anything about the system.Originally posted by Unregistered View PostComment
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