Plano Youth Soccer or Plano Sports Authority

I have an 07 DD who is becoming interesting in soccer.  I want to get a full year of rec in before considering academy.  Looking for recommendations on Plano Youth Soccer vs. PSA.  Does it matter?

I suggest going right into academy. Several excellent programs like Sting and FCD for the younger girls. They focus on skills and the correct way to play the game. Occasionally you will be lucky and get a good rec coach but most are Dads and she will need to learn the right way. You can pay monthly so if you don't want a long term committment you can get out.

I totally disagree with starting soccer at the academy level.  Your daughter will be in the U7 age group, which has a tendency to keep things simple and fun at the recreational level.  If she has never played soccer, this is where you as a parent can identify if she has the desire to play the game, and the skill needed to move to the next level of academy.  

Sure rec soccer will involve kick-ball, running in herds, and the occasional picking of flowers, but it's much easier to transition to academy from rec than simply starting in academy.  Most of the '07 academy players have been playing soccer for at least 4 seasons already.  If your desire is to keep her interested, don't start your newbie at a disadvantage, plus it's easier on your wallet.

As for PSA vs. PYSA, it really doesn't matter for that young an age group; however, PYSA is a North Texas sanctioned league whereas PSA isn't.  If I lived in Plano and had a choice, I would pick PYSA.

We had exceptionally bad luck with coaches in rec/PSA and PYSA. A waste as it seemed coaches were most interested in 'showcasing" their DD. Switched to academy and it was like night and day. If you start in rec and don't like you can leave after the fall for another team or academy. However, depending on the team rec can decrease interest level. Sorry travelin light but did not have good experience with rec.

Sideline, I tend to agree with you, however each family/child may have a different path to success so it's hard to recommend a right strategy without knowing the kid and her ability. That said, our experience was we did rec soccer starting in 2nd grade (PSA) and played rec for 2 years. At the end of 3rd grade we made the move to academy and while we were behind most kids skill level in 6-8 months we're pretty much caught up. Now we're in U11 I'm pleased with where my dd is at this point in time. My dd is so excited about her select team and working hard towards qualifying tournaments.

In retrospect....knowing what I do now I would have started with academy straight up. Having soccer coaches who actually know how to teach skills because they've played the game is important...do it right the first time. But even if you choose rec, and your kid is athletic then a year or 2 in PSA/PYSA won't kill them and they will be able to catch up.

Finally, I might pick PYSA over PSA becaues as a PSA team we had a hard time getting into tournaments due to not being part of a sanctioned league.

Best of luck to you what ever you choose.

so here's yet another perspective...

Either PYSA or PSA will provide your daughter an opportunity to play.  The reason one would choose PSA over PYSA at a young age is at PSA the coach has more control over their roster.  That's not quite the case at PYSA.  So if you come from a team created by school friends, PSA is better.  At your DD's age, she'll likely want to play with friends if she's just getting started.

Regarding tournament, yes, at PYSA you are an NTSSA sanctioned league, so you can play tournaments, but your team can still pay the $5/per fee and play.

As for academy at this age, my advice is to not pursue.  Get her into a weekly skills program, e.g. Coerver or Ferdie.  Then use these boards to join a small sided 3v3 or futsal team to supplement the rec/skills.  She'll develop good foot skills and learn how to really play possession-style soccer.  Leave the rec games for a time for her to just have fun and enjoy the sport.  By the time your DD hits 3rd grade, after a year or 2 of 3v3 & Coerver under her belt, any coach would be foolish to pass-up a quality, skilled, possession-type player.

Once 3rd grade rolls around, shop around the various clubs and coaches, talk to parents, and watch games and see how the coach acts around the kids.  There's a lot of movement in fourth grade, just prior to signing.  There are good clubs and bad clubs and everything in-between.  There are coaches who act like "used cars salesmen" and those who generally car about teaching your DD soccer.  At the end of the day, it's about finding the right fit for your DD so they get plenty of touches, develop and have fun -- of course winning doesn't hurt either.

To answer your initial question: choosing between PYSA or PSA, unless you're playing with school friends, shouldn't really matter.  I've coached in both leagues and have found no real difference.

Just my $0.02.

PSA is all about the money, no birth certificates, relaxed rosters, low management to player ratio, young and inexperienced referees. Good for being flexible if you are on a team that is making changes, guesting, etc. Also, lets you put your own team together and offers more competition. Now, you will see some of the biggest kids around for your age group, because kids playing down seems to be a constant issue, and since it is done by grade, not age, there really isn't much to do.

PYSA is a standard NTSSA organization. Mostly, fair rosters, teams strict by age, birth certificates required. Referees are volunteers early, and then they get the more serious refs that aren't good enough to do competitive games yet. Also, the league officials are probably more incompetent then PSA, but at PYSA they think they run the soccer world. Very polictical, and they target discipling people who coach and improve their team at a faster ratio then the other incompetent rec teams. You will get reported if you start trying to work in anything tactical - they want the herd ball early so more kids are engaged.

So, if your kid wants a truly rec experience, go PYSA - if you can get on with a well coached put together squad go PSA. If you have no idea what to do, I would lean to PYSA as you can get put on a terrible PSA team and go against squads full of ringers.

TripDDs wrote:PSA is all about the money, no birth certificates, relaxed rosters, low management to player ratio, young and inexperienced referees. Good for being flexible if you are on a team that is making changes, guesting, etc.  Also, lets you put your own team together and offers more competition.  Now, you will see some of the biggest kids around for your age group, because kids playing down seems to be a constant issue, and since it is done by grade, not age, there really isn't much to do. 

So, if your kid wants a truly rec experience, go PYSA - if you can get on with a well coached put together squad go PSA.   If you have no idea what to do, I would lean to PYSA as you can get put on a terrible PSA team and go against squads full of ringers.

The above was exactly what we experienced with PSA.  And my DD was on both ends of the spectrum.  One year she was on a rec team (parent coached) and they had some rough games against teams that were far above her level.  Then, the majority of her rec team moved to academy together (paid coach), added a few outsiders and were coached by a quality coach.  Our next season in PSA my DDs team seemed like the team full of ringers.

From what I remember, during the outdoor seasons (fall and spring) there were three divisions for our age group.  The top division was made of academy teams.  The bottom division was rec teams.  The middle division was a mix of both.  The indoor seasons (winter and summer) had two divisions.  The top division was academy and brave rec teams.  The bottom division was just beginning rec teams.

So, if you do go PSA try and get in the right division for your team's ability.

TripDDs wrote:  So, if your kid wants a truly rec experience, go PYSA - if you can get on with a well coached put together squad go PSA.   If you have no idea what to do, I would lean to PYSA as you can get put on a terrible PSA team and go against squads full of ringers.

This is good advice. PYSA seems to more balanced from a player perspective. PSA will have the various divisions with definite teams stocked with "ringers" -- very painful to play against.

Yes, when we played in PSA we frequently played a team called the Greenhill Hornets. At the time I always wondered why some of the players had slightly different uniforms. After a few games I realized that after the game half their team would change and head to their Academy team game.

Seemed their PSA "rec" team was a feeder to their academy teams or others. I will say their coach at the time was an excellent coach and she always demonstrated the very best in sportsmanship. They were modest victors every time they beat us so I did appreciate that.