http://www.calsouth.com/en/news-detail/254-id.209717808.html#.WMnll28rK70
Stole the link from the girls side.....congrats to all the boys (and coaches)!
Stole the link from the girls side.....congrats to all the boys (and coaches)!
Always great to get recognized.
Have the pool sizes really grown that much in the last 3-4+ or so years? Seems like the initial pool size is ~ double what it once was back when my kids where involved.
Quite interesting that you have 9 or 10 players from one team like Boca. That is essentially their whole starting lineup. Doesn't make much sense.
In other regions of the country, ODP may have become a money maker, but not Cal South. They got Nike to underwrite everything in the Pro+ program (of which ODP is only one component), so the cost is pretty minimal. $100 for the tryout weekend, but $50/day for two full days of scrimmages/training plus a pretty decent full Nike kit is relatively cheap. If you make the ODP team, you get invited to a residential camp in Ojai where the only cost is another $125 or something like that for meals (far less than market for a 3-4 day overnight camp).Can anyone briefly explain what this is? Is it a way to make money off parents?
In other regions of the country, ODP may have become a money maker, but not Cal South. They got Nike to underwrite everything in the Pro+ program (of which ODP is only one component), so the cost is pretty minimal. $100 for the tryout weekend, but $50/day for two full days of scrimmages/training plus a pretty decent full Nike kit is relatively cheap. If you make the ODP team, you get invited to a residential camp in Ojai where the only cost is another $125 or something like that for meals (far less than market for a 3-4 day overnight camp).
In theory, the program is linked with Congress' effort to develop future Olympians when it sanctioned the Olympic Development Program in the 70s for a whole range of sports. So, the focus is on identification of kids, development of them, and showcasing them for possible selection for higher opportunities such as youth national teams etc. They invite a bunch of kids to be part of a player pool, make cuts until they have a team, invite the team to summer training camp to further develop them, and have them compete against other ODP teams from across the country in national competitions. There is a Summer/Spring pool and a Winter pool, so two opportunities per year to get invited.
The problem is that US Soccer created the Development Academy and views ODP and Cal South's Pro+ program as an inferior competitor. So, they don't permit their players to participate. Probably hurts the ability of either program to truly put all the best players in one place.
Boca must be an amazing club? Their 02s had 13 players in ODP...Interesting. That 2004 walked through the West region ODP tournament last year and had the leading scorer of the entire tournament. Not sure why so many Boca kids were invited. Another team that stood out was the DMCV as they had 4 players make the final 40. They all play up in the 2003 SCDSL.
You on one foolWhy don't you explain yourself Troll.
I don't know about that. There are tons of kids at $200 per, it can add up real fast.Nobody is getting rich off this and I am guessing the overwhelming majority of families couldn't afford this on their own.