NEFC and SSS in turmoil

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100% ^^, NEFC dad has a huge blind spot, or doesn't like data.

not to put words in his mouth but I think the point was to separate NEFC from Selects' (perceived) dysfunctional personality and business practices.

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It's about getting kids to colleges. ECNL has figured out that that is what the customers (parents, players, and college coaches) want. "Player development" only matters as a means to that specific end. This is not about "growing the game," building a "soccer culture in the US," or creating future National Team candidates. It is strictly about attracting families that want their daughters to gain a competitive advantage in the college admissions process through soccer.

It certainly was for our family and all of the ECNL families our kid played with. Yes, the kids love the game, work hard at it, and want to be the very best they can be. But the cost, the travel, the longer commutes, the social sacrifices, the nervous days around tryouts, the fight for maximum playing time, etc. was only tolerable because the goal of playing at the college of her choice was sitting at the end of the road. It worked out beautifully for our kid, so we're supportive of the ECNL platform.

+1 Exact same experience.
No one says the players at other clubs aren’t as good. They ARE and that is exactly the problem. Parents perceive ECNL as offering a better recruiting platform. Most recognize that their kid is good, and club is worth the commitment, but they still fear being over-looked. It has nothing to do with quality, its FOMO. Why taken chance if you don’t have to?

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+1 Exact same experience.
No one says the players at other clubs aren’t as good. They ARE and that is exactly the problem. Parents perceive ECNL as offering a better recruiting platform. Most recognize that their kid is good, and club is worth the commitment, but they still fear being over-looked. It has nothing to do with quality, its FOMO. Why taken chance if you don’t have to?

It's basically a form of risk management. I'm always amazed by the people who cite some extreme outlier as an example of why they choose a lower probability path to their goal. "Player x didn't play any club soccer until she was 16 and now she's on the National Team," or "Player Y on the FSU or UNC roster came from some obscure club league..." Why would I want to choose a path that basically requires my kid to be a complete unicorn in order to succeed? Are there that many parents who look at their kid and see "unicorn" when everyone else sees "good player with potential?" Maybe I'm just too risk-averse.

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It's basically a form of risk management. I'm always amazed by the people who cite some extreme outlier as an example of why they choose a lower probability path to their goal. "Player x didn't play any club soccer until she was 16 and now she's on the National Team," or "Player Y on the FSU or UNC roster came from some obscure club league..." Why would I want to choose a path that basically requires my kid to be a complete unicorn in order to succeed? Are there that many parents who look at their kid and see "unicorn" when everyone else sees "good player with potential?" Maybe I'm just too risk-averse.

It's rather simple: If your kid can play, then you don't need to the league to prop you up. If they can't, of if you are unsure, then you do.

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It's rather simple: If your kid can play, then you don't need to the league to prop you up. If they can't, of if you are unsure, then you do.

Sorry, lots of kids can play. You’re talking about unicorns and even unicorns eventually hit their level, everyone does. I don’t buy the “it isn’t the league” it’s the player BS. The top leagues have a concentration of more athletic, more skilled plyers playing at a faster speed of play (soccer IQ, decision making, pattern recognition).

I personally think GA and ECNL are comparable for girls, but there is no way some stud in NEP Championship is able to play at the same level as ECNL or GA. It just doesn’t happen. So while I agree, there are good players in lots of leagues, I don’t put much faith in the “players will be found” nonsense. Look at D1 commits in New England: DA, GA, ECNL. Very few NPL and nothing out of the lower leagues.

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It's rather simple: If your kid can play, then you don't need to the league to prop you up. If they can't, of if you are unsure, then you do.

There are levels of “your kid can play”. As someone said above—if your kid is a unicorn, they can probably play anywhere (within reason) and be found (though those kids typically seek out a more challenging environment). But there’s a big difference between the real unicorns and the next level of talented kids.

The argument that kids who “can’t play” go to ECNL or GA because they need to be “propped up” is absurd. Are they all teams filled with 18 unicorns? No. But kids who “can’t play” aren’t making those teams.

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It's rather simple: If your kid can play, then you don't need to the league to prop you up. If they can't, of if you are unsure, then you do.

The league doesn't prop up the best players. For those kids, it just make exposure and recruiting more efficient. For experienced families with good knowledge of the recruiting system and how the game works, alternative paths can be taken and work out fine. Those families don't need any help in getting their kid where they belong.

For those of us (like our family) that don't come from a soccer background, don't have experience with high-level recruiting, and are trying to get their oldest child to a good result - being in a league set up to take you through the process is huge. Our kid was apparently a better soccer player than we knew (we thought she was simply very athletic), and the coaches helped her find her way to camps (college camps as well as NT camps) and identify the soccer level that she could play at in college. Without their assistance, I am certain that she would be at a different school having a different experience - for better or worse.

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The league doesn't prop up the best players. For those kids, it just make exposure and recruiting more efficient. For experienced families with good knowledge of the recruiting system and how the game works, alternative paths can be taken and work out fine. Those families don't need any help in getting their kid where they belong.

For those of us (like our family) that don't come from a soccer background, don't have experience with high-level recruiting, and are trying to get their oldest child to a good result - being in a league set up to take you through the process is huge. Our kid was apparently a better soccer player than we knew (we thought she was simply very athletic), and the coaches helped her find her way to camps (college camps as well as NT camps) and identify the soccer level that she could play at in college. Without their assistance, I am certain that she would be at a different school having a different experience - for better or worse.

Here's the thing, and you mention it at the end....yes your experience would've been different, but nothing you mention tells me that isn't accomplished in other situations. It worked, and that's great, but based on what you said...would've worked elsewhere as well. So, you didn't actually need the league.

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Sorry for 99+%. College coaches don't wander around certain league events looking for players. Players need to do the searching, contacting, etc. Find a well run club with good coaching and you will be fine. Most importantly. GET GOOD GRADES in high school!

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Here's the thing, and you mention it at the end....yes your experience would've been different, but nothing you mention tells me that isn't accomplished in other situations. It worked, and that's great, but based on what you said...would've worked elsewhere as well. So, you didn't actually need the league.

I'm doubtful that we get to the same place. I would agree that the league was less instrumental to our outcome than the club and coach. The fact that the coach had a national reputation and the club had a history of placing its top players in good college programs was pretty important. At this particular club, the top coach worked with the top (ECNL) team. If we had decided to play on a lower team in a different league with a different coach at that same club, there's no way that we'd get the same support / push from him that we got.

Also, as complete novices in the soccer world, we relied on the coaches & parents of some of the older players that had gone through the recruiting process to understand what was going on and how to deal with it. If the league hadn't had all the showcases, someone would have had to coach us as to how to play the college camp game in order to get exposure.

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Sorry for 99+%. College coaches don't wander around certain league events looking for players. Players need to do the searching, contacting, etc. Find a well run club with good coaching and you will be fine. Most importantly. GET GOOD GRADES in high school!

Way overstated. Hoping for a lucky sighting from the perfect coach just as your kid makes a great play at a showcase is an AWFUL strategy, but there are plenty of instances where a coach is watching a game to see a player or two and a different kid makes an impact. The coach checks his notes, sees the kid is uncommitted, and makes an inquiry.

One of my D's teammates is a defender. A college coach came to a showcase to watch a stud forward he was recruiting, and she repeatedly shut the kid down. 3 years later they are teammates.

It can happen. But also, get good grades (best advice ever on TS).