Is it really play GA or ECNL or nothing?

[Guest]

How many 6th and 10th bracket wins are you going to reference?

Are you just going to ignore the fact that the top 2 brackets are ECNL and GA only??

Your uLittle mindset about winning is funny. Scouts don't care. They watch players. And they only watch players in the top brackets.

You seem to have misread the long quote above. It's the ECRL teams that are in the 6th and 10th brackets at Jeff Cup. The DPL and NAL teams are in the top brackets.

Similarly, have a look at PDA. MA DPL and NAL teams won the top brackets.
https://public.totalglobalsports.com...tandings/20490
https://public.totalglobalsports.com...tandings/20479
https://public.totalglobalsports.com...tandings/20478

[Guest]

To the OP -

Twice I've posted links to actual data.

The others are offering only emotion. They are either: 1) coaches of lower tier clubs whose financial livelihood depends on your check, 2) parents who are too cowardly to ask the tough question that you are asking. Click the links and look at the data. Ignore the noise. Do what is right for your player.

The point isn't who beats who/a dik measuring contest but can kids from lower leagues get recruited? Yes they absolutely can. Will it be top college teams ? Of course not. But there's 1000-ish college teams D1 D2 and D3. They all need players. Will an entire DPL team get recruited? Unlikely. Usually just a handful. Will it take more work to get in front of coaches? Yes. Can it be done with good targeting? Absolutely.

One thing the op needs to consider is that their child's team could lose a few more players this year, further weakening the team. I'd recommend during the winter they ask to attend practices at a few other teams just in case things blow up in the spring. Be a consistent starter on a solid team with good coaching that goes to good events.

Also

-start accumulating video freshman year for a highlight clip to be used starting sophomore year

-start visiting schools next year for them to start thinking about what they want school wise. See a mix of big, small rural and urban. There's loads of local options they can see but aren't necessarily ones they're interested in.

-keep their grades up. Good players with good grades have more options

[Guest]

From reading posts over past 6 months the theme seems to be centered around playing on the best national team with a pathway to most exposure. My kid 8th grade plays well. Strong defender for a club not in ECNL or GA we have DPL. We are told move kid to a better club as some teammates have because our kid wants to play on a college team one day.The thing is our kid might go to a school like Bridgewater or a school like Holy Cross. We don’t know. Too early but want to have options later. Do we really need to switch clubs to give better opportunities later? Miss the days kids were recruited through high schools like football.

The short answer to your post, no. However, judging by your choice of words, you clearly have a daughter as you only reference GA/ECNL or nothing. From the boys side, MLS Next is above ECNL. To be honest, it's all about what your child wants. Does your child want/have the ability to play D1 or beyond. People get so caught up in D1, D1, D1. But there are great colleges locally that are great for academics, as well as soccer. Williams College, Amherst College, Tufts and Brandeis are all D3 school with stellar academics and top level soccer programs. There are also great D1 schools locally for both academics and soccer. Northeastern, BC, BU and Harvard are those examples. However, if we are being honest, UCLA, Duke, Virgina or Standford are NOT going to the MIAA State Final to see/recruit kids, they did however go to the GA and ECNL playoffs. So to recap, NO it's NOT GA/ECNL/MLSNext or nothing, but if your kids wants a top school NOT from MA, then YES it is those leagues OR nothing.

[Guest]

If you want to play at a top D1 school, yes. Most of the recruits come from ECNL or GA, and/or top prep schools. Yes, there are exceptions, but it’s the pattern every year.

Take a look at the 2007 thread or NESJ’s commitment list (for 2025 grads), as players are starting to commit. It’s mostly the top D1 schools for now, and you can clearly see where those coaches are prioritizing. The majority are Stars Blue, NEFC, and/or top prep schools like BB&N. Then a sprinkle from Aztec, Stars White, and Scorpions.

But for D3 and maybe less competitive (soccer & academics) D1, there are recruits from ECRL (not the new one) or DPL. But it’s clear where the top schools priotize first.

[Guest]

Holy Cross was mentioned, so these are the Mass kids and their clubs -

FC Stars (x4)
Scorpions (x4)
Seacoast (x1)
SSS (x1)
None (x1)

[Guest]

From reading posts over past 6 months the theme seems to be centered around playing on the best national team with a pathway to most exposure. My kid 8th grade plays well. Strong defender for a club not in ECNL or GA we have DPL. We are told move kid to a better club as some teammates have because our kid wants to play on a college team one day.The thing is our kid might go to a school like Bridgewater or a school like Holy Cross. We don’t know. Too early but want to have options later. Do we really need to switch clubs to give better opportunities later? Miss the days kids were recruited through high schools like football.

Don't listen to these fools. You are asking about exposure and you have people telling you about "the team", "development", or my favorite, the person that just said "...the main thing when playing at all levels is that the player puts in the work themselves. Contacting coaches, ID camps, etc." (to this poster) you clearly don't know what you are talking about as the ONLY 2 ways to get invited to an ID camp is to be selected by the local us scout OR by your clubs Director of Coaching.

As far as the OP's question, you clearly have a daughter as you don't mention MLSNext which is significantly better than ECNL. The short answer is NO it's not GA/ECNL/MLSNest or nothing. It all depends on what you child wants. There are great local schools with great soccer programs locally; such as, Williams College, Amherst College, Tufts and Brandeis are all D3 schools that are well known for BOTH Academics AND Soccer Programs. There are also, great D1 schools locally such as Harvard, BC, BU, and Northeastern. However, here's the difference. All the schools i just mentioned may go to the MIAA State Final game to see if there's a quality player or because these schools are from MA, perhaps a player makes the papers alot, so they want to see the player. The power houses such as Duke, Virgina, UCLA, or Standford are NOT going to DPL/ECRL/MIAA State Final Game. However, those schools are going to the GA/ECNL/MLSNext playoffs. So IF your kid just wants to play soccer in college and/or stay local, NO it's not those or nothing. IF your kid does want to play for a D1 "powerhouse" and/or is a 1 percenter that has the ability to play semi/pro then YES it is those leagues or nothing because the powerhouse schools won't see your child play at the MIAA Final game or a DPL/ECRL showcase.

[Guest]

Contacting coaches, ID camps, etc." (to this poster) you clearly don't know what you are talking about as the ONLY 2 ways to get invited to an ID camp is to be selected by the local us scout OR by your clubs Director of Coaching.

.

My goodness this is so completely false. Once you send an e-mail or fill out a recruiting questionnaire, you are invited to every money-making scheme (i.e. ID Camp) going forward.

[Guest]

You can get recruited from a DPL or ECRL team but the team needs to be in the top 5ish DPL or ECRL teams in the nation.

This is why DPL finals are on the same weekend + location as GA quarter finals. Recruiters can watch the top DPL teams play and the top 8 GA teams at the same time / location.

[Guest]

Take a look at the 2007 thread or NESJ’s commitment list (for 2025 grads), as players are starting to commit. It’s mostly the top D1 schools for now, and you can clearly see where those coaches are prioritizing. The majority are Stars Blue, NEFC, and/or top prep schools like BB&N. Then a sprinkle from Aztec, Stars White, and Scorpions.

But for D3 and maybe less competitive (soccer & academics) D1, there are recruits from ECRL (not the new one) or DPL. But it’s clear where the top schools priotize first.

Which is not what the OP asked. Not incomplete lists of where the best players, and earliest commits are.

So, look at complete lists of 2023s.

[Guest]

Which is not what the OP asked. Not incomplete lists of where the best players, and earliest commits are.

So, look at complete lists of 2023s.

I was just pointing out the priorities for the top schools early in the cycle. But okay, let's take a look at the 2023 list. What % of the D1 recruits are outside of ECNL, GA, or prep? As I said, yes there are exceptions. But the general trend still stands, whether you look at the 2023, 2024, or 2025 list. The majority of D1 recruits are ECNL, GA, or prep. So if you really want to play D1, that's your best bet (from a statistical perspective), unless you want to rely on being one of the exceptions.

[Guest]

I was just pointing out the priorities for the top schools early in the cycle. But okay, let's take a look at the 2023 list. What % of the D1 recruits are outside of ECNL, GA, or prep? As I said, yes there are exceptions. But the general trend still stands, whether you look at the 2023, 2024, or 2025 list. The majority of D1 recruits are ECNL, GA, or prep. So if you really want to play D1, that's your best bet (from a statistical perspective), unless you want to rely on being one of the exceptions.

Again with the early commits, 2024, 2025. Those are irrelevant to almost everyone making a decision. That very short list shows that - it matters to literally a dozen players or two each year. So sure, if your 8th grader is one of the top dozen or so players in the state - then have a look at those.

For everyone else, it's commitments by the end of senior year that will shed light on a decision anything like what the OP, and almost all other club soccer players, might be making about choice of club at U14.

[Guest]

I suggest you stop arguing. The coaches of the lesser clubs are heavily dependent on parents being fooled in order to grab their money. Without that money, these folk are looking at minimum wage jobs. So they'll lie and say anything just to keep that cash flow coming in. The conflict of interest is staggering - these coaches care nothing for your kid.

[Guest]

Don't listen to these fools. You are asking about exposure and you have people telling you about "the team", "development", or my favorite, the person that just said "...the main thing when playing at all levels is that the player puts in the work themselves. Contacting coaches, ID camps, etc." (to this poster) you clearly don't know what you are talking about as the ONLY 2 ways to get invited to an ID camp is to be selected by the local us scout OR by your clubs Director of Coaching.

As far as the OP's question, you clearly have a daughter as you don't mention MLSNext which is significantly better than ECNL. The short answer is NO it's not GA/ECNL/MLSNest or nothing. It all depends on what you child wants. There are great local schools with great soccer programs locally; such as, Williams College, Amherst College, Tufts and Brandeis are all D3 schools that are well known for BOTH Academics AND Soccer Programs. There are also, great D1 schools locally such as Harvard, BC, BU, and Northeastern. However, here's the difference. All the schools i just mentioned may go to the MIAA State Final game to see if there's a quality player or because these schools are from MA, perhaps a player makes the papers alot, so they want to see the player. The power houses such as Duke, Virgina, UCLA, or Standford are NOT going to DPL/ECRL/MIAA State Final Game. However, those schools are going to the GA/ECNL/MLSNext playoffs. So IF your kid just wants to play soccer in college and/or stay local, NO it's not those or nothing. IF your kid does want to play for a D1 "powerhouse" and/or is a 1 percenter that has the ability to play semi/pro then YES it is those leagues or nothing because the powerhouse schools won't see your child play at the MIAA Final game or a DPL/ECRL showcase.

Sigh. This guy just doesn't understand the question.


"ONLY 2 ways to get invited to an ID camp is to be selected by the local us scout OR by your clubs Director of Coaching."

Buddy. We're talking about college ID camps. You're talking about USWNT ID camps. Wholly different. Answer the question that was asked.

[Guest]

How many college coaches does your club have on staff? There are more ways to get exposure than what team you are on.

[Guest]

How many college coaches does your club have on staff? There are more ways to get exposure than what team you are on.

You're right, Stars has a Duke Coach on staff. NEFC has (2) UNC coaches. Scorpions has (1) UCLA and (2) Penn State. YOU'RE an idiot!