Player moves?

[Unregistered]

At u13 and up, what is the typical time frame where a player would switch clubs between the fall and spring seasons?

I know there will be some players from relegated teams that will look for a new home. I know that there will also be some players that move for a greener pasture. Is there a point in the calendar year where these moves must occur by? Has anyone heard of any changes?

[Unregistered]

June tryouts. Go to a couple of practices during the spring, to see if it's the correct fit.

[Unregistered]

At u13 and up, what is the typical time frame where a player would switch clubs between the fall and spring seasons?

I know there will be some players from relegated teams that will look for a new home. I know that there will also be some players that move for a greener pasture. Is there a point in the calendar year where these moves must occur by? Has anyone heard of any changes?

Players can move anytime. Some even move during a season, if they're unhappy. Usually winter training starts in December - players can contact the coach/team manager of the team they're interested in and ask to attend training sessions. This would be a way for coaches to see how players fit with the team.

[Unregistered]

At u13 and up, what is the typical time frame where a player would switch clubs between the fall and spring seasons?

I know there will be some players from relegated teams that will look for a new home. I know that there will also be some players that move for a greener pasture. Is there a point in the calendar year where these moves must occur by? Has anyone heard of any changes?

First, e-mail the coach, then practice with the teams that you are interested, If you get the coach's promise, tryout in June. Lots of those things already decided before tryout. Also You can attend some Winter Clinic now. Let the coach know your daughter. everything you need to connect the coach before tryout at U13 and up age group. Good Luck!

[Unregistered]

First, e-mail the coach, then practice with the teams that you are interested, If you get the coach's promise, tryout in June. Lots of those things already decided before tryout. Also You can attend some Winter Clinic now. Let the coach know your daughter. everything you need to connect the coach before tryout at U13 and up age group. Good Luck!

"The coach's promise"?

[beentheredonethat]

At u13 and up, what is the typical time frame where a player would switch clubs between the fall and spring seasons?

I know there will be some players from relegated teams that will look for a new home. I know that there will also be some players that move for a greener pasture. Is there a point in the calendar year where these moves must occur by? Has anyone heard of any changes?

Changing teams is never easy, particularly for 12-13 year old girls where the "fit" can make or break a player's view of everything from satisfaction in the game to self image. Let's face it, at that age if your player doesn't like the girls on the team you are just going to end up making another move 6-18 months from now. The issue really becomes the later you wait to change the more entrenched teams become and the more difficult it is to find an acceptable spot and fit. There are also financial considerations to take into account since most clubs get their fees paid up front. Few clubs, if any, will rebate a player's fee unless there is some extraordinary circumstance. Most though, if not all, will prorate the fee coming in.

It is not unusual for kids that are going to stay in the game for the long term to make at least 2-3 team changes during their career. Assuming that kids don't get cut from a team at some point, the first move typically is just around U13 when teams start disbanding and parents start figuring out how the whole club soccer environment comes together. There tends to be a lot of players leaving the game that year and a lot realigning themselves for competitive and philosophical reasons. There still are a lot of choices out there, and unfortunately this seems to be the age when parents make mistakes selecting clubs. The next move typically happens around U15 when parents begin to seriously posture their player for a possible college career. At that point the choices are very well defined and everyone pretty much knows what they are looking for. The biggest issue at this point is whether or not a player has the talent to either stay with or move to a specific team. The bottom line is you don't want to be jumping all over the place. A reasonable number of moves is OK but changing every year is not a good thing.

Back to the original question. All things considered, I personally believe that a midyear move tends to be a better move than a June move. In June the coach typically only gets to see the player in a tryout environment and the player and family end up knowing next to nothing about the other players and families on the team whereas with a midyear move the tryout usually takes place over several practices so everyone gets an opportunity to feel each other out. The trick is to take advantage of the opportunity and really feel the situation out before you commit to make a move. Make sure your daughter feels comfortable with the girls (don't forget that 12-13 year old girls can be very cliquey and unwelcoming) and you should sound out a few of the parents to get a feel for them and the overall attitude on the team. Most of all make sure you understand the team philosophy. The worst thing you can do when selecting a club at this stage is try and jamb a square peg into a round hole. If you are a developmentally focused parent, you'll be miserable on a super competitive team and vice versa. Good luck with your journey.

[Unregistered]

Most of the time the coach has probably seen the player and knows something about them. In my kids case it was a really hard decision to move. She liked her coach, team and the organization was good but at the time she had several considerations for making the move. The other club knew ahead of time that she was planning on moving so when she went to tryout in June it as just a formality. It all worked out fine. She really liked the new team, coach & players and it was good and the right time to change.

[Unregistered]

It is not unusual for kids that are going to stay in the game for the long term to make at least 2-3 team changes during their career.

It may not be unusual, but the vast majority of the top players have made no more than one switch in their entire youth career.

[Unregistered]

It may not be unusual, but the vast majority of the top players have made no more than one switch in their entire youth career.

This is blatantly false.

[Unregistered]

It may not be unusual, but the vast majority of the top players have made no more than one switch in their entire youth career.

Uh oh, we're back to the TOP players again...

[beentheredonethat]

It may not be unusual, but the vast majority of the top players have made no more than one switch in their entire youth career.

You are absolutely 100% correct in that the TOP players typically don't move around all that much. We are talking about what essentially are the "franchise players". In this context who that really is, is the regional and potential national level players. This is a very important point to understand when trying to project which teams will likely end up the most dominant ones in the future. Those teams are usually built around franchise players who don't move around all that much.