I've never seen that.
DA/ non DA pro and cons checklist
- Thread starter galaxydad
- Start date
I've never seen that.
I don't know any.
Great stuff. I agree with alot of this information. I believe that besides coaching ability but the coaches personality must be considered. Your daughter/son will be with the coach 3/4 times a week, that's alot of time. If a coach blames/denegrates your kid/teammmates, run for the hills. I couldnt imagine having to go to practice at this age this much over a 10 plus month period, and the coach is a hot head or not level headed. I wouldnt want to do that, basically making practice a drag to go to. Also, does the coach change practice up a lot? This keeps practice more interesting, and makes it more fun. Ive heard this alot.
Not True- not trying to stir the pot- Its funny how much lack of real information is out there. Meetings, ppt presentation on what BOTH side of the isle sell you is all you get. A checklist of real experiences is one of the best ways to make a proper decision on whats best for your kids and that is different for every family.
I am not in socal but have a strong tie to the area. Currently back in AZ but worked with players in Ca and a handful of parents are considering making the jump to DA. I was asked by one to make a pro and con sheet for the family to sit and make the decision about the direction they want to take.
younothat
PREMIER
The info is out there but its all personal opinion for the most park so I will offer mine based on my sons experience playing 3 years going on 4. I'm just a parent will two kids who love soccer.
First of all there are pro/cons of "Organized club" soccer that can't be separated from ussda which is just a derivative of club soccer , see my post on page 1 for those:
http://www.socalsoccer.com/threads/da-non-da-pro-and-cons-checklist.4403/#post-126695
On top of those two of the biggest "Cons" of all club soccer is
#1) Pay to Play,
#2 Lack of Promotion/Regulation (CSL does attempt but its Political charged still... new clubs/teams moved straight the top brackets of they switch league for example.
#3 Closes Circuits and Leagues.
I'm going to include a neutral checklist also since my son has played club soccer since he was very young with 5 years of experience playing CSL, CRL, SCDSL, and other leagues prior to DA.
YMMV will vary and the ages we're talking about differ so the pro/cons change a bit younger to older
DA neutral
1) Coaching; maybe we've been lucky but my player has always had a "A or B" coach & they have all been good
2) Referees/ Officials: Same some claim top referees are in DA, haven't seen that or noticed any difference and most do both kinds of leagues
3) Short sided <=U12. The competition in my players day was more concentrated /w fewer leagues and he started playing 11x11 was he was U11, after playing short sided for so many years he wanted to go to bigger field really badly, felt he did all he could 5x5,7v7,9v9 or whatever. I can't really see a pro/con of short-sided in U12 for DA.
4) Style of Play: My kids teams have always been taught and played procession style so no different.
5) Home fields: Almost always had great turf for his home games DA or not.
DA pros:
1. Training is 4x a week with more focused training plans
2. Additional Resources made available to the teams: Additional trainers, conditioning, video reviews, water/power-aid at games, financial scholarships more readily available.
3. Player pool; DA attracts more players overall, easier to recruit, players for other teams can be promoted, moved or DP'd
4. Playing better competition; All is watered down now with so many leagues but for the teams #4-13 the competition is better for most teams compared to other leagues.
5. Away fields: normally better as the DA teams have access to better playing surfaces
6. Playing and training alongside top players
7. DA , college, and some pro scouts present at some games and showcases
8. Additional playing opportunities; Dallas Cup, Disney, Gen Adidas, International Tournaments; /wo DA my player most likely won't be attending these due to availability, resources, or home town club not being competitive enough to get in.
9. One game a weekend for the most part; breaks after two games consecutive with a rest day between for tournaments or showcases
10. Ten month season with a winter break
DA cons:
1. Costs: in terms of time required and $ it cost to pay and travel which can be large once you hit U15+
2. FIFA sub rules: No body else does this in the youth game and really does nothing but limit playing time for sub and sometimes results in potential injuries as coaches are out of subs late in the game(s)
3. Win at all costs; The #1 priority is to win games and everything else comes secondary including development and playing time.
4. 4-3-3. Telling everybody to play the same formation doesn't work all that well. All the teams know this so they train, and just use tactics to counter the 4-3-3 with a 3-5-2 of whatever when a team is good at 4-3-3
5. No HS soccer for most w/wo wavier. There is a built in break anyway so why not let the kids play?
6. No guest playing
7. Large rosters & keeping teams together and chemistry. Players coming and going each game and the combined age groups don't help
8. Competition for the Teams: #1-3 is very uneven overall. Top teams don't get enough consistent comp week in and week out and it shows when they go play the bigger or international tournaments
9. Politically charged selection process for the YNT, BNT, pools, camps, training center stuff. The director's pretty much decided who they want to send even when scouting reports may highly recommend or not certain players.
10. MLS calling the shots for the most part, some teams are spending $4 million on there academy a year will other not even a fraction of that so overall not good balance
Lambchop
GOLD
Number 9 is really important since it is a path to serious recognition and is definitely a negative.
I thought you were with LAG South Bay.... Was that your nephew maybe? I recall many posts by you on the old forum site, especially boys younger boards.
DA has changed over the years and not necessarily for the better. Frankly, I think its a mistake to go down to U12. They should have stayed with the old age groups of U14, 16/15 and 18/17s. The problem is having U12, 13, 14 is focusing the kids too soon on soccer. And, USSF creating charged environment for the local clubs who are member of DA versus non-DA at much earlier age groups.
@youknowthat's list is fairly accurate with some exception based on our experience. Here are some alternative thoughts/experiences. Where no comments are made, we agree.
Neutral:
1 - While USSF require A (or B license working towards A) coaches, its a mixed bag. There are A licensed coaches that are excellent (as well as D licensed), and there are A license coaches that should not be coaching at all. And because its political, no family speaks up against and there are lack of improvements.
3 - Have no idea. Only know about the old U14 and above. There were nothing younger when our son was playing DA.
Pros:
1 - Training differs from DA club to DA club. A day may include video breakdown of games, others can include sports psychology sessions. Some clubs may only do 3 days most of the time.
2 - Financial support varies all over the map. Some clubs will help pay for travel to league games, whereas some not at all. Some have fully funded teams and other completely pay to play.
4 - Because its political, not all teams are as good as some of the non-DA teams. Our experience is that many DA players are not short on attitudes and arrogance but may lack talent found outside of DA system, especially once you get to U16+ because so many good players want to play HS.
Cons:
2 - FIFA sub rules are actually good. It teaches players to moderate their energy and endurance for full 90 minute games. And game day roster limitation makes all player work harder at practices but the dark side is some of the players don't know when to back off during practice to prevent injuries.
3 - Not necessarily true. Many DA clubs will play younger players into the older group and take the loss. Additionally, learning to win is a part of development - very important part. Players needing to compete to get playing time has to be tied to their ability to execute in games.
4 - Not every team plays 4-3-3. Our son's last DA team played 4-4-2 most of the time and changed to 4-2-3-1 depending on who they were playing. It was originally insisted upon but it has changed over the years and clubs are given more flexibilities.
5 - There is no built in break other than at Christmas time after the Florida showcase. Games pick up in mid to late January and training just after the new year. I can't imagine how this timeline works with HS schedule when their league games are in January~February and CIF in February~March.
6 - Guest are DPs. Anyone can be registered with USSDA as DP.
7 - Large roster are symptom of parents wanting their kid on DA team. I forgot the right number but its around 60 players combined between 15, 16/17 and 18/19 and clubs can manage to the total number of players. Most clubs will run skinny 18/19 age group and pull up players from 16/17 and 15 teams on the game day. The combined age is good in that at the older ages, it makes not much difference and skills will make the difference and not the age, since these are all post puberty, about equally sized players.
10 - MLS should spend more money and probably should have their own academy league. Its their business to grow players in their system.
One thing parents should keep in mind is that DA offer such a significant exposure compared to anything else that its no wonder the college coaches feed on it. It has taken the hard leg work away from coaches and have filtered the top 1% for them by local clubs. Each year, there are more DA players graduating from HS than total number of recruited players into college. While not all DA players are suited for college, so many are and it just makes it that much harder for non-DA players to get recruited by college (D1~D3 and NAIA). On the Girls side, having DA and ECNL probably makes the college coaches job more difficult now that they have to cover both for the next year or two. After that it will be all DA.
They should have started with U10s 10 years ago. Of course, that would have made it harder to tell whom to recruit - they would have had to actually develop some players.
FIFA sub rules were founded in the old days when there were no subs, even for injuries, and small rosters were money-savers for club owners. Limiting subs so severely in DA interferes with good coaching and thus hinders development.
Shocking.... Unsurprisingly we disagree.
soccermama213
SILVER ELITE
I will say that I know personally some players who are in their senior year who are regretting playing DA because now that HS soccer is about to start they want to play. There is something to be said about playing HS (like a Previous poster said) and even though it's not a great game - it's fun and something special for the kids (in most cases) My dd passed on DA because the 4 days plus commute wasnt worth it to her plus she is already committed and that was just playing flight 1 competitively. It all comes down to the coaches and team. Your child can achieve many great things playing both secenarios and I believe it comes down for that's beat individually for Your player
SOCCERMINION
SILVER ELITE
I believe we need a single elite league system like a DA. But we need DA to be more flexible to allow for alternative activities for the athletes to explore if they choose. At the end of the day the talent the athlete displays on the pitch should dictate if they are a DA Quality player. It shouldn't be based on them being willing to give up all other activities and commit to the Program. If they play HS Soccer, Lacross , swimming, track, futsal or play for other teams who cares. As long as they make it to the tryouts and make the practice and game obligations set by the coach. And if the athlete cant cut it then they should be the ones to make their own decisions on what alternative activities to limit to ensure they focus enough on soccer to make the DA grade.
eastbaysoccer
GOLD
So the MNT or YNT will turn down a non DA standout player? No way.
Choose non- DA . It will give more flexibility .
I’ll argue training 2x per week with a good team, guest playing and training with an excellent soccer trainer will be sufficient to get you where u need to go.
Bottom line—-there is no secret sauce or exact path anyone has to take!
Choose non- DA . It will give more flexibility .
I’ll argue training 2x per week with a good team, guest playing and training with an excellent soccer trainer will be sufficient to get you where u need to go.
Bottom line—-there is no secret sauce or exact path anyone has to take!
If they truly like the kid then they should like that the kid is athletic. two or three sport athletes are rare now but those are the kids you should be looking for
USC
SILVER
I know right, they got destroyed! Fight On!
That doesn’t fit the narrative. My favorite is when you have technical soccer players who can’t run or sprint and these club coaches allow this, or 14 year olds who have a ten foot touch. These girls won’t pass a beep or get a look but they are queens of club. Club vs college is a joke. Again focus on your player and what you have to do to get her to where you want her because if you want to rely on a track suit she’s going to be living in a van down by the river .
It’s too subjective. Someone who is DA at one club is definetly not at another. I would love there to be a single tryout and then assigning to a team based on Geographical location even. Some coaches hold to standards some coaches are all about “development”. This system is way too watered down and there is too much parity. The system didn’t change anything and in actuality we are more focused in privates than ever before.
There is so much that is great about the DA but the lack of standards of play/fitness is one thing that I wish they could get a handle on
Looking at my son's HS schedule, I don't think it's possible to play DA and do another HS sport. He has 2 to 3 games per week during the season and practice every day there isn't a game, plus weightlifting 3 days a week. I just don't see how he could combine HS sports schedule with DA 4x a week practice plus games on the weekend with the DA travel. There are so many conflicts you would essentially have to miss practice for DA and only play DA games. There are some club teams willing to do this for star players but I don't think DA teams, especially fully funded DA teams, will accept anything less than full commitment.
Plus, the kid has to rest and do homework. Maybe Eagle 33's son could handle it, but most kids definitely can't.
Every team my kid tried out the coaches loved his athleticism and him being good at hockey and lacrosse in addition to soccer. I will say that playing multiple sports has its benefits but it also had severe drawbacks when it came to soccer. Soccer footwork is so intricate and different from any other sport, and it's hard to perfect soccer footwork if you play other sports.