Tryout for Flight 2 team only?

Your comment has most relevance at the older level (11v11) Flight 1/Premier/NPL/CRL/ECNL/DA, but the context of the OP's question is at the 7v7 and 9v9 age group. This is a development level and at this level the "game IS [NOT] played to win," rather, its played to "have fun" and learn, which is why US Soccer mandates that this age group not keep standings and only play in tournaments in a showcase format (i.e. no winner). Individual player development is the primary goal.

That said, the best teams will have good talent and no weak players and be able to switch style of play and personnel to throw off their opponent and exploit weaknesses. Run a 4-4-2 then switch it up to a 3-4-3 or 3-4-2-1 or 3-5-2 or whatever formation will dictate success. Press the right side then switch to the left because they are weak and easily exploited.

Alas, at the 7v7 and 9v9 level we are more focused on skill/individual development because without technique there are no tactics.
I don't understand your reply. Learning to perform under pressure and learning to win are very vital components of personal development.

My kids are older now that they started playing 11v11 at U12. It was 8v8 at U10, so the new format of keeping smaller field until older is not something I can comment on. That said, there are some good coaches out there teaching basic tactics to kids at U8 on. These kids, by the time they reach U12 are head and shoulder above those that have not been exposed to tactical knowledge. The basic tactical knowledge is above and beyond the technical skills. Fundamentally, its always about individual development at any age.

All that said, my original reply is still valid for younger. Your perspective is very defensive biased and hiding the weakest players outside is doing that player disservice. Since its all about development, teach them how to play rather than hiding them on the field so that they just get their playing time. Give them opportunity at different positions, especially when they are younger. At older, they do need to specialize as there are so many nuance and intricacy to playing different positions.

As 46n2 noted, gotta play on the field. Completely agree with that statement. One of the key things we've done with our kids is to put them always in a situation to succeed on the field. We never cared what tier our kids played at. We just cared that our kids are in the top 1/3 to 1/2 of the squad on the team to ensure minutes on the field. It just so happened that our older kid was DA caliber player now playing in college, and the younger started off by playing in Flight 3. The younger is playing Flight 1 at U16 now, but was Flight 2 for two years prior and flight 3 before that. With more playing time, he improved and gained soccer IQ as well as puberty helping him grow. The younger kid has no interest in playing in college and just enjoys playing soccer.
 
Back
Top