SCDSL loses Silverlakes Norco...

If you add the IE, the LA area, and teams north of LA (SCV) close to half those teams are in SCDSL. San Diego and OC make up the other half.


I thought the creation of DSL would be good for the game.... it’s been a few years now. What are your thoughts?
You have pros and cons to everything so let’s hear them all
 
I thought the creation of DSL would be good for the game.... it’s been a few years now. What are your thoughts?
You have pros and cons to everything so let’s hear them all
Ok. Here you go. My opinions are not based how either league is run. I do not have experience in CSL to make a comment in that area. Having watched many games (in the several hundreds) through league play, tournaments, CRL for the last 7 years it has come down to which league has stronger teams from top to bottom. Now I can not comment past the U13 age group which most currently is the 06 birth year. Overall SCDSL on the girls side from U8 (11's) to U13 (06"s) have the majority of the stronger teams. On the boys side it is fairly even with CSL taking a slight lead when you compare head to head at each age group.

Do I think SCDSL is better for the game than CSL. Probably not. Both uniquely offer something to each club. Much like the presidio league in San Diego. SCDSL does seem to attract more talent, but that's potentially the direct result of having the larger and brand name clubs as affiliates.

However, I do think Cal South needs a make over and new leadership.
 
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I thought the creation of DSL would be good for the game.... it’s been a few years now. What are your thoughts?
You have pros and cons to everything so let’s hear them all
Hard to place all pros and cons squarely on SCDSL. You have DA/ECNL/DPL/ENCL2 and Birth Year change that have also had a major impact on the game.

SCDSL has allowed for the mega-clubs to become even more mega with mergers/takeovers/affiliations. Still not sure if this is a pro or a con.
Now you have clubs with 4-6 (maybe more if you include affiliates) in an age group. (Example: Girls 2004 you have 16 teams with ""Slammers" in their name across the various flights. Probably something similar with Strikers on the boys side. And Pats and Surf across the board)
For teams in OC, SCDSL has minimized travel.
The "self selection" of flights have pretty much gone away. Flight 2 and 3 - no scrutiny. Flight 1 - you need to prove that you belong there. And then you need to prove if you belong in Champions or Europa. I think it's too many divisions in Flight 1. But overall, it seems that the competition is about right. There are some outliers that kill everyone. And some outliers that get killed more often.

Has the soccer improved because of SCDSL? Hard to say. DA and ECNL probably have more to do with the quality. But I'm sure there is some trickle down effect. The smaller community based club is a dying breed. I think that is due to SCDSL. Coast has some small clubs with some really competitive teams. In SCDSL - small clubs don't fare as well. (Look at all divisions of State Cup/National Cup for examples.)

Are more kids playing soccer? I'd say more kids are playing CLUB soccer. But overall, I think less kids are playing soccer around town. Kids that would probably be best served playing AYSO for $150 a yer are now playing on a flight 3 team for $2,500 a year. But I dont think is because of SCDSL. Seems to be the norm across the country. And not just soccer (basketball, baseball, etc).
 
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Hard to place all pros and cons squarely on SCDSL. You have DA/ECNL/DPL/ENCL2 and Birth Year change that have also had a major impact on the game.

SCDSL has allowed for the mega-clubs to become even more mega with mergers/takeovers/affiliations. Still not sure if this is a pro or a con.
Now you have clubs with 4-6 (maybe more if you include affiliates) in an age group.
For teams in OC, SCDSL has minimized travel.
The "self selection" of flights have pretty much gone away. Flight 2 and 3 - no scrutiny. Flight 1 - you need to prove that you belong there. And then you need to prove if you belong in Champions or Europa. I think it's too many divisions in Flight 1. But overall, it seems that the competition is about right. There are some outliers that kill everyone. And some outliers that get killed more often.

Has the soccer improved because of SCDSL? Hard to say. DA and ECNL probably have more to do with the quality. But I'm sure there is some trickle down effect. The smaller community based club is a dying breed. I think that is due to SCDSL. Coast has some small clubs with some really competitive teams. In SCDSL - small clubs don't fare as well. (Look at all divisions of State Cup/National Cup for examples.)

Are more kids playing soccer? I'd say more kids are playing CLUB soccer. But overall, I think less kids are playing soccer around town. Kids that would probably be best served playing AYSO for $150 a yer are now playing on a flight 3 team for $2,500 a year. But I dont think is because of SCDSL. Seems to be the norm across the country. And not just soccer (basketball, baseball, etc).
You brought up some good points.
 
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Isn't there a referee association in riverside or San Bernardino that would be closer to the Silverlakes fields than Long Beach? I completely agree about the 1 hr early - most of the time we end up standing around for 20-30 mins just wasted time.

There is. Although, I doubt those associations can cover the state/national/ tournaments altogether by themselves. What I would prefer to see as a referee would be to just have clubs host matches at Central locations, or just have a home and away setup. Most are already driving ridiculous amount of miles.
 
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