Re: Solar East 07 Boys Ackerson - Looking

by Ant_Knee 17/07/18, 09:35 pm

Sorry for jacking your thread! Go support J. Ackerson and Solar East! Ackerson is a solid coach and a great person.

by Guest 17/07/18, 11:09 pm

Ant_Knee, you might be right, but please note that they cannot just add U13 next year. As I read the rules, they would also have to add U14 at the very least. I am not sure if that will change anything but it might.

“Boys' Applications: New clubs can apply for one of three options: U-12 only, U-12 to U-14, and full Academy (U-12, U-13, U-14, U-15, U-16/17 and U-18/19). Existing Academy clubs can apply for one of three expansion options depending upon their current status: U-13 & U-14, U-13 to U-18/19, and U-15, U-16/17 & U-18/19. Existing Academy members are encouraged to contact their Technical Advisor to discuss the plans for the market.”

by Ant_Knee 18/07/18, 01:05 am

Gotcha. But also look at last years examples and you will see clubs that only had a u12 DA team request and receive the request for only a u13 DA team for this following year. Look at Star Academy FC in NorCal as one of those examples.

From the link below you can see both examples of clubs adding multiple age groups in the subsequent year and some adding just one age group despite the rule or policy you just mentioned/quoted.

http://www.ussoccerda.com/20180309-news-16-new-clubs-added-for-2018-2019-season

It will be just as interesting to see what happens next year as it has been this past year with the addition of new “clubs” to North Texas.

*****Rant warning*****

Frankly (my opinion) all USSDA has really done for North Texas is heap the added expense of travel for probably the same level of competition, IMO. Let’s be honest, our 07s traveled to the same place every week this past year for games in classic league. NOw we will drive to each teams location. Ok no big deal. Now for out of town top level teams we have to travel 50% of the time to their location. Heck top level teams use to all travel to DFW to test their teams against North Texas talent in our tournaments. It used to all come here. Now I have to travel for one game, weekend after weekend. Anyone else feel this is back asswards for development? I get the additionally training with DA, I just fear my BB will have had more/same top level competition this past year in classic league and top level tournaments throughout the US then what he will face regionally in u12 DA this next year.

Probably need to move this to another thread.

by DoubleDown 18/07/18, 06:09 am

Before DA came around, the U13 year when Classic D1 went down to 10 teams was as concentrated a level of talent as DA will be at that same time, now. Granted our giant soccer market of NTX is an exception to the norm. Most markets didn’t have the luxury of putting more than a couple teams together of that quality, so they couldn’t just form 2 or 3 teams and play each other every weekend.
Also, DA tends to concentrate further as the ages increase, and the U17/U18 age has kids moving across the country to join DA teams.

You can’t tell me that the 12 “DA” teams we just formed are any better than the top 12 teams from Classic. Most are direct pull outs, and some are compilations that might be In the relegation zone. Doesn’t mean that they won’t be better in a couple years...but it won’t be the same players then, either. Solar East’s A team might be one of the few that is actually better than the team at its core, because it is basically LP Owen plus the very top kids from Kennington, Volkan, and a sprinkle of McKinney.

by SidelineTan 18/07/18, 09:16 am

Ant Knee - not all U12 DAs that applied for U13 were granted them. Just look at Rise in Houston. Their application was rejected.

Your assumption that all three in DFW will apply for U13 next year is also not what their DOCs have been saying. Right now the talk is that U12 is a big funnel and intro year that will get trimmed down considerably at U13. Maybe they catch a kid or two that would have missed the U13 DA, but the expectation isn't that these are all long term DA players.

They basically agree with your rant. Meaning that they know the expansion of U12 DA for the 07s is little more than Classic League with more driving. It is why they are putting so many 08s in the groups. The 07 talent just isn't there. Those trips to Houston and San Antonio, weekend after weekend, will have folks wondering about what they're doing!

The big caveat will be if one of them does try to expand at U13 & U14, the other ones will probably be forced to expand as well. Which is how they all ended up with an extra U12 in the first place.

by LongTimeFirstTime 18/07/18, 11:10 am

I disagree the DOCs were trying to expand the U12 player pool to capture more diamonds in the rough. They only really care about the top 10-13 players anyway.

The motivation for expansion was to reduce the amount of travel at the younger age groups, which is why you saw expansion in each market. I believe U13 definitely falls under the same thought process...not sure whether it changes for them at U14 or U15. I expect the expansion to roll to at least U13 and I'm 50/50 on U14. I do think at U15 it will consolidate back down to 3 clubs.

This past year the '06s travelled less than 10 times on average including showcases. Not an insignificant amount but hardly "weekend after weekend". That could easily get cut by half this year with the addition of 3 local clubs that will replace matches vs the out of town clubs.

by soccerfan09 18/07/18, 11:54 am

LongTimeFirstTime wrote:

The motivation for expansion was to reduce the amount of travel at the younger age groups, which is why you saw expansion in each market.

This past year the '06s travelled less than 10 times on average including showcases. Not an insignificant amount but hardly "weekend after weekend". That could easily get cut by half this year with the addition of 3 local clubs that will replace matches vs the out of town clubs.

Isn’t half of 10 more than say........zero (extra kids/teams this year traveling with DA vs staying in D1)

by SidelineTan 18/07/18, 12:03 pm

FCD U12 had a stretch through the winter/spring where they were on the road 7 out of 8 weekends. Very much weekend after weekend....

They did 8 trips to Houston, 2 to San Antonio, and 2 to Austin. 12 total before any tournaments.

by LongTimeFirstTime 18/07/18, 12:51 pm

soccerfan09 wrote:
LongTimeFirstTime wrote:

The motivation for expansion was to reduce the amount of travel at the younger age groups, which is why you saw expansion in each market.

This past year the '06s travelled less than 10 times on average including showcases. Not an insignificant amount but hardly "weekend after weekend". That could easily get cut by half this year with the addition of 3 local clubs that will replace matches vs the out of town clubs.

Isn’t half of 10 more than say........zero (extra kids/teams this year traveling with DA vs staying in D1)

I'm not going to argue with your math but I'm not sure what your point is? Are you saying DA is a waste of time because of the travel aspect being greater than other local leagues? Going back to last year before any leagues were diluted of talent, the top teams only played a handful of competitive games. At least with DA, the higher degree of competition will be more consistent throughout the season which is beneficial for development...and to some that benefit outweighs the rigors and expense of moderate travel.

Its obvious that the barrier to entry to get into DA this year is lower than previous years due to the club expansion. I won't dare to argue there currently aren't 150 DA caliber kids in the '07 age group right now. But it will be interesting to me to see where these kids end up at the end of the year...will those additional 50 kids benefit from additional organized training? Training with higher caliber players? Playing more consistently against better competition? For me the answer is fairly simple...if the kid is able to weather the tough times and keep a positive attitude and confidence level then a resounding yes. If not, it will be a rough year.

by AlittleBitofSanity 18/07/18, 01:02 pm

The kids playing in DA are guaranteed to.get better than kids in classic. Playing tougher competition and the addition of extra practices will make them better. Think the only question is if they will want to play after so much soccer.

by 1a2b3c 18/07/18, 02:44 pm

AlittleBitofSanity wrote:The kids playing in DA are guaranteed to.get better than kids in classic. Playing tougher competition and the addition of extra practices will make them better. Think the only question is if they will want to play after so much soccer.

Guaranteed???? You might as well guarantee life too.
I'm willing to bet you anything. There will be at least 2 teams better than most DA teams. And their players will be better than a vast majority of the DA players.

"Playing tougher competition and the addition of extra practices will make them better" - Agreed. But what if the training is not that good, because the coach is not that good? Just because you're doing more, doesn't mean you're doing better!

"The only question is if they will want to play after so much soccer" if the training is as good as advertised, they will want to be there 24/7. But if it continues to be what it appears to be, they will seek other adventures!

There are classic league teams training as much or more and better than the DA teams. And their players are flourishing.

The league is the SMALLEST factor when it comes to player development.... If you don't agree, I'll happily explain (:

by AlittleBitofSanity 18/07/18, 02:54 pm

1a2b3c wrote:
AlittleBitofSanity wrote:The kids playing in DA are guaranteed to.get better than kids in classic. Playing tougher competition and the addition of extra practices will make them better. Think the only question is if they will want to play after so much soccer.

Guaranteed???? You might as well guarantee life too.
I'm willing to bet you anything. There will be at least 2 teams better than most DA teams. And their players will be better than a vast majority of the DA players.

"Playing tougher competition and the addition of extra practices will make them better" - Agreed. But what if the training is not that good, because the coach is not that good? Just because you're doing more, doesn't mean you're doing better!

"The only question is if they will want to play after so much soccer" if the training is as good as advertised, they will want to be there 24/7. But if it continues to be what it appears to be, they will seek other adventures!

There are classic league teams training as much or more and better than the DA teams. And their players are flourishing.

The league is the SMALLEST factor when it comes to player development.... If you don't agree, I'll happily explain (:

wow, slow down buddy. maybe it was too broad of a statement. you are probably correct that there are a few classic teams that are getting better coaching and more opportunity. was speaking more in general. I am curious by what you mean "if it continues to be what it appears to be". sounds like you have a lot more experience with this stuff.

by dragonstryker 18/07/18, 03:02 pm

Why don't we move this to a DA focused thread, seems unreasonable to hijack Solar Ackerson's D1 (errr I mean PPL) recruiting thread.

by Dwight 18/07/18, 03:12 pm

dragonstryker wrote:Why don't we move this to a DA focused thread, seems unreasonable to hijack Solar Ackerson's D1 (errr I mean D2) recruiting thread.

Apparently, not even D2. Classic does not list them in D1 or D2.

https://events.gotsport.com/events/teamlist.aspx?eventid=67558

by ntxsoccerwire 18/07/18, 06:23 pm

I'll say this.... It doesn't really matter what league your kid is competing in, as long as they are with the right coach. If your kid is playing D1 this year, they should be on track to compete with/against the DA level players (notice I said "DA Level" not "DA registered " .. Laughing

Training is the only place where there will be gaps for most. Classic D1 Kids will average two 1.5 hr team practices each week, where as the DA kids will practice 3-4 days each week for 2 hours or more. DA kids will get twice the training, which could accelerate their development. If you BB is a Classic Player this season, I really hope the decision you made on 07/01 accounts for the gaps in training. Coaches like McKinney and Pedro have already adjusted their programs to provide their players options to gain more touches with additional practice days and training. Otherwise, you'll have to incur the additional cost of skill training... Understand that if you are paying select fees, and skills training fees (assuming the training averages $40/hr), you're basically paying the same amount on soccer as the DA parent. They are just driving further and their kid is playing better competition more consistency. There are no bad options, just find the best one for your BB and continue supporting him.

I'd like to finally point out that most of the local DA expansion benefits the 08 player pool. 4 of the 6 local DA groups are showcasing a heavy amount of 08 players on their 2nd teams:
1. FCD North - 8 or more 08 players
2. FCD South - 10 or more 08 players
3. Solar West - 12 or more 08 players
4. Texans North - 8 or more

I believe that most of the club's DOCs are using this expansion to both jumpstart their U12 DA program's exposure and promote elite 08 players into better competition in hopes of retaining the players. I'd be shocked if any of the local expansion groups dont' apply for U13, and I'd be even more surprised if those are not granted. DA isn't for everyone, it's a much larger commitment financially and time-wise. Those of us with BBs in DA understand that commitment, so the travel is a mute point. It is what it is.

I still believe that it will be a great season for all the boys as long as we Parents stay seated on the sidelines... Laughing

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