The bigger picture

So...this year my '93 graduates...
Thankfully I have many more years ahead of me with my 02 player..Just wanted to give a heads up to those first-timers... My veteran parents will understand..
When my 93 started there was no 'academy'..it was pure God-given talent and the hope that your rec coach was good enough... We found a 'home' team..believe it or not we stayed with them the enire 8 years.. Not typical for a select player but there were several reasons behind that.. I hope that you parents that have to choose for your daughters next year, remember this post..
Our first year of select,the threads were burning up with 93 predictions..there was even a big scandal of Sting Royal Blue 'stealing' a player w/in their own Sting/White team.. slowly year by year the girls changed and the threads dwindled..You prob won't find any news on those girls now..they're all graduating this year..Right now with the Academy teams there are a hundred predictions posted here..who is the best defender, who is the best goalie, who is #1..blah blah.. Next year the whole Lake Highlands experience will be on every thread as well... don't believe the hype! We were there.. Turns out the girls didn't give a crap WHERE they played..it was the parents.. Matter of fact,their senior year they chose to play in Arlington..They wanted their last year to be a competitive but fun year..no driving across the world, playing politics with the league...Just playing their last year together and making memories.
.So first lesson: Dads chill out, your stats don't mean much to your daughter..Make this enjoyable!
Speaking of LH..it's not the end of the world if you don't play there..believe it or not there is competition in Plano and Arlington! My daughter was considered by 8 different colleges..No they weren't all Div 1 schools..but who cares since the point of college is for the EDUCATION..You can have an awesome college program but if it's not an academic match for your daughter then you have wasted your money and her time... Every girl on my dd's team that wanted to play-is going to play next year!And as a matter of fact the coach and his wife orchestrated a college campaign..They were in the face of every scout providing info, pics,stats and info about all of our girls.. (14 signed this year)
Lesson #2- Don't over push your kid into thinking LH is the place to be or don't club jump JUST because of their ranking..Those girls burn out too... We even saw D2 teams scrambling for girls last minute because the girls were sick of it..
Lastly... please find a good coach! This can make/break your daughter's soccer spirit.. We were truly blessed w/our coach..He truly made a difference in my daughter's life..I can totally see the difference between him and the academy coaches... 93 Coach had the girls LOVING soccer..There was plenty of sideline lessons and encouragement..He related a lot of his field predicaments to life and the girl associated..this made them see him more than just a soccer coach but also a mentor and supporter.. This is important because a player should feel good about being under his wing... He did something that NO OTHER COACH in all 13 years of me being a soccer Mom, has ever done..."The Hug'...It was MANDATORY that the player hugged their parents..so after pre-game warm-up he'd say 'Ok..hug your parents'..18 girls would come stampeding across the field..and it wasn't just your kid.. you would get 5-6 hugs from diff girls everytime.. that was your last chance to say something and more importantly that was your kid's way of saying 'Thnak you for driving me here, paying for this and being here'.. Believe me our last hug last weekend was very emotional.. I had girls hug me and tell me they loved me and I was like a Mom to them...I wil miss that hug more than you know.. I hope if there are any coaches out there reading this you take the time to thank your parents! They are the backbone of your team not their daughters...
Select soccer has been a great experience for my family..The friends, memories, educational benefit and joy of watching my kid rock the field every weekend..I still remember her first game like it was yesterday... I get to start all over this year but much wiser than I was when TurfMonster was full of predictions and placements.... chill out and enjoy these next 9..they go too fast..

Thanks for sharing. As the parent of an '01 getting ready to start select soccer, it is nice to hear this perspective. It can be easy to get caught up in the select "positioning" as the team prepares for the qualifying tournaments this summer.

AMEN

THANK YOU!!! I so needed to read that right now!

The hug story had me tearing up...Further more thank you for shareing your story.

Great Stuff! Thank you.

Great story, what coach/team was this? Also what colleges did your girls go to?

skr4life wrote:So...this year my '93 graduates...
Thankfully I have many more years ahead of me with my 02 player..Just wanted to give a heads up to those first-timers... My veteran parents will understand..
When my 93 started there was no 'academy'..it was pure God-given talent and the hope that your rec coach was good enough... We found a 'home' team..believe it or not we stayed with them the enire 8 years.. Not typical for a select player but there were several reasons behind that.. I hope that you parents that have to choose for your daughters next year, remember this post..
Our first year of select,the threads were burning up with 93 predictions..there was even a big scandal of Sting Royal Blue 'stealing' a player w/in their own Sting/White team.. slowly year by year the girls changed and the threads dwindled..You prob won't find any news on those girls now..they're all graduating this year..Right now with the Academy teams there are a hundred predictions posted here..who is the best defender, who is the best goalie, who is #1..blah blah.. Next year the whole Lake Highlands experience will be on every thread as well... don't believe the hype! We were there.. Turns out the girls didn't give a crap WHERE they played..it was the parents.. Matter of fact,their senior year they chose to play in Arlington..They wanted their last year to be a competitive but fun year..no driving across the world, playing politics with the league...Just playing their last year together and making memories.
.So first lesson: Dads chill out, your stats don't mean much to your daughter..Make this enjoyable!
Speaking of LH..it's not the end of the world if you don't play there..believe it or not there is competition in Plano and Arlington! My daughter was considered by 8 different colleges..No they weren't all Div 1 schools..but who cares since the point of college is for the EDUCATION..You can have an awesome college program but if it's not an academic match for your daughter then you have wasted your money and her time... Every girl on my dd's team that wanted to play-is going to play next year!And as a matter of fact the coach and his wife orchestrated a college campaign..They were in the face of every scout providing info, pics,stats and info about all of our girls.. (14 signed this year)
Lesson #2- Don't over push your kid into thinking LH is the place to be or don't club jump JUST because of their ranking..Those girls burn out too... We even saw D2 teams scrambling for girls last minute because the girls were sick of it..
Lastly... please find a good coach! This can make/break your daughter's soccer spirit.. We were truly blessed w/our coach..He truly made a difference in my daughter's life..I can totally see the difference between him and the academy coaches... 93 Coach had the girls LOVING soccer..There was plenty of sideline lessons and encouragement..He related a lot of his field predicaments to life and the girl associated..this made them see him more than just a soccer coach but also a mentor and supporter.. This is important because a player should feel good about being under his wing... He did something that NO OTHER COACH in all 13 years of me being a soccer Mom, has ever done..."The Hug'...It was MANDATORY that the player hugged their parents..so after pre-game warm-up he'd say 'Ok..hug your parents'..18 girls would come stampeding across the field..and it wasn't just your kid.. you would get 5-6 hugs from diff girls everytime.. that was your last chance to say something and more importantly that was your kid's way of saying 'Thnak you for driving me here, paying for this and being here'.. Believe me our last hug last weekend was very emotional.. I had girls hug me and tell me they loved me and I was like a Mom to them...I wil miss that hug more than you know.. I hope if there are any coaches out there reading this you take the time to thank your parents! They are the backbone of your team not their daughters...
Select soccer has been a great experience for my family..The friends, memories, educational benefit and joy of watching my kid rock the field every weekend..I still remember her first game like it was yesterday... I get to start all over this year but much wiser than I was when TurfMonster was full of predictions and placements.... chill out and enjoy these next 9..they go too fast..

That's very cool of you to share. It should make you feel better that some folks have already figured out the system and have started a new forum with that in mind.
http://soccermkultra.forumotion.com/

I don't want to call anyone out by giving club name...But girls are going to such places as Oauchita Baptist, LeTourneau, Neosho, Western, Hill,Howard Payne,Southwestern(to play both soccer and la crosse)TWU, McMurray...and some are going off together...some chose not to play and will be attending A&M and UT...The coach started their freshman year looking for schools.... This year Arlington did a good job with their showcases and combines...that's where a lot of girls got picked up... Coach also made it to at least one high school game for every girl on the team.. Well I'm glad this was a positive post to you...it is possible to find a good soccer family...

As the parent of an 04 and 03 player just beginning the Academy journey I really appreciate this advice. Best of luck to your kiddos. And the hug your parent thing nearly brought me to tears! ;-)

Yay!!!

skr4life wrote:I don't want to call anyone out by giving club name...But girls are going to such places as Oauchita Baptist, LeTourneau, Neosho, Western, Hill,Howard Payne,Southwestern(to play both soccer and la crosse)TWU, McMurray...and some are going off together...some chose not to play and will be attending A&M and UT...The coach started their freshman year looking for schools.... This year Arlington did a good job with their showcases and combines...that's where a lot of girls got picked up... Coach also made it to at least one high school game for every girl on the team.. Well I'm glad this was a positive post to you...it is possible to find a good soccer family...

Ouachita Baptist alumni here.
If I had to go back and do it all over again, I'd go back to Arkadelphia in a second.
Good luck to all those girls and thanks for sharing.

Great stuff.

Thumbs up!

I have never posted before but felt compelled by your post. We just left a team our '02 dd was with for the last 3 yrs. Tough decision. Although the team was a great team...just not what was best for her. She has been guest playing looking for a team and we can already tell we made the right decision. Her joy for the game and confidence in herself is back! So great to see again. Thanks for sharing your experience and hindsight. It was encouraging and enlightening.

twomattiesmom wrote:I have never posted before but felt compelled by your post. We just left a team our '02 dd was with for the last 3 yrs. Tough decision. Although the team was a great team...just not what was best for her. She has been guest playing looking for a team and we can already tell we made the right decision. Her joy for the game and confidence in herself is back! So great to see again. Thanks for sharing your experience and hindsight. It was encouraging and enlightening.

very familiar.

Twomattiesmom....i think we were on the same 02 team...(your Twilight buddy)haha.shhhh...glad to hear you found a good home...gotta find that match so the whole family's happy...make sure Dad reads this so he " can "chill out and enjoy" lol

Dad is chillin' and loving soccer life again. I still think Twilight is goofy though!! Thanks skr4life.

skr4life wrote:Twomattiesmom....i think we were on the same 02 team...(your Twilight buddy)haha.shhhh...glad to hear you found a good home...gotta find that match so the whole family's happy...make sure Dad reads this so he " can "chill out and enjoy" lol

Your so funny. I do miss you. Maybe when Breaking Dawn comes out we can go see it together. We have found 2 great options and are in the processing of making a decision. I think both will be a good fit. I know we will see you at the fields soon. Take care.

@twomattiesmom..........love the avatar pic!!!

Thanks for sharing twomatties.

now far less familiar

Two Thumbs Up!

SKR,

Thanks for the great post!

Welcome!! So glad it's still making the rounds..