# ECNL Boys



## FootballParent (Jun 21, 2019)

My son has been offered a spot in a 2007 ENCL team. From conversation with another parent, looks like there will be at least a trip to Las Vegas and another to Arizona. Most of the games will still be in Socal?

Other than the crazy travel, is there anything that I should know?

How about the level of play compare to DA or Flight 1/Gold?


----------



## vegasguy (Jun 21, 2019)

I can only tell you about the Vegas trip and AZ trip.  The Vegas trip will be just for one game as we do not have another ECNL team here.  The AZ trip and there are 4 teams (Arsenal, RSL-AZ, Phoenix Rising and Tucson) so that would be two trip.  Rumor is there is a national event in Vegas this year too.


----------



## Ilikefutbol (Jul 29, 2019)

Anyone know when the 19/20 schedule will come out?


----------



## vegasguy (Jul 29, 2019)

Heard it is being worked on.  I don't think we had our first league match until September but our ECNL season also runs through our High School Season.


----------



## jpeter (Jul 29, 2019)

FootballParent said:


> My son has been offered a spot in a 2007 ENCL team. From conversation with another parent, looks like there will be at least a trip to Las Vegas and another to Arizona. Most of the games will still be in Socal?
> 
> Other than the crazy travel, is there anything that I should know?
> 
> How about the level of play compare to DA or Flight 1/Gold?


U13? $$$ not sure how many that young group attends showcase wise but for 10x games fall 10x spring premium expensive league.

Out of state showcases 3x + potential playoffs for the olders can really get expensive, adds up.  For youngers not sure it's all that attractive anymore with the new college rules unless your a high school going to be a Junior

2nd year league for boys going on 3 but would say it's comparable to the top flight in some other calendar year age groups leagues.

Another usclub offering new this year for fall U12, U13  Nplwest.com is comparable if your playing for a academy club but maybe not ready for DA or they don't offer that age yet?


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Jul 29, 2019)

FootballParent said:


> My son has been offered a spot in a 2007 ENCL team. From conversation with another parent, looks like there will be at least a trip to Las Vegas and another to Arizona. Most of the games will still be in Socal?
> 
> Other than the crazy travel, is there anything that I should know?
> 
> How about the level of play compare to DA or Flight 1/Gold?


How many kids on the roster? Parents always say "offered" a spot. Kids are "offered" spots all the time when they need the extra $$$$. Doesn't sound like your kid is playing on scholarship. Parents I know get asked every year to put their kids in ECNL - often not based on talent but because they are willing to pay the money. One of kid's best friends is fighting to get off an ECNL team right now after seeing no real difference playing for a strong flight1 team or discovery team. If your child is "ECNL" quality, no reason they can't walk on to a good flight1  team.


----------



## futboldad1 (Jul 29, 2019)

ECNL boys is a solid option but far less established than ECNL girls. It may eventually get to the same level, but it has a long ways to go.


----------



## FootballParent (Jul 29, 2019)

Not_that_Serious said:


> How many kids on the roster? Parents always say "offered" a spot. Kids are "offered" spots all the time when they need the extra $$$$. Doesn't sound like your kid is playing on scholarship. Parents I know get asked every year to put their kids in ECNL - often not based on talent but because they are willing to pay the money. One of kid's best friends is fighting to get off an ECNL team right now after seeing no real difference playing for a strong flight1 team or discovery team. If your child is "ECNL" quality, no reason they can't walk on to a good flight1  team.


He will get some scholarship but just not enough to cover everything, I still have to fork out at least $1500 (including uniform). Not going to make the move this season, maybe next.
He is in a good Flight 1 team now, just that there is political things going on in the team which I dont like.


----------



## FootballParent (Jul 29, 2019)

futboldad1 said:


> ECNL boys is a solid option but far less established than ECNL girls. It may eventually get to the same level, but it has a long ways to go.


My son's Flight 1 team just beat an ECNL team, I am questioning if ECNL boys is a higher level than Flight 1.


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Jul 30, 2019)

FootballParent said:


> He will get some scholarship but just not enough to cover everything, I still have to fork out at least $1500 (including uniform). Not going to make the move this season, maybe next.
> He is in a good Flight 1 team now, just that there is political things going on in the team which I dont like.


Politics everywhere, often a question of how it affects your child. Grass isn’t usually greener but they ask for a lot of green for “higher” level. Clubs will also scholarship a child until they can replace them or will ask for money year #2. ECNL rosters are very large for a reason. Most kids who stop playing is due to being kid #24 on the depth chart. Had four kids from a friends flight 1 team taken by a coach who left to coach at a club that had DA and ECNL teams. Two kids Fed ECNL sales pitch and two DA Pitch. One quit before seeing field, two didn’t play much on ECNL and one was DA but not rostered half the games. He got replaced. ECNL kids paid and other two scholarship. At end of year DA team got new players in, displaced kids from DA placed on ECNL team and ECNL kids moved down further on the bench. Now kids aged out of DA and formed flight1 team. Now team has only 18 spots . At  least 12 players from two teams were discarded in one year - not including kids who moved to other teams. Read the boards and you see this stuff everywhere. If you like your current coach, stick with him and try to isolate him from politics as best you can. Unfortunately the number of these “higher” level leagues for younger kids are growing so don’t see any change in the near future. Just have to be aware few places aren’t trying to hit a budget or set the budget as priority 1 thru 10. Unless your travel expenses + $1500 is less than cost to remain a good flight 1 team (given a good coach and child is playing) then better off saving money. You can put that money into private training. If the kid is serious and improves there will be plenty of teams he can tryout for - strong discovery team, DA, ODP, etc. Most expensive option isn’t always the better option


----------



## vegasguy (Jul 30, 2019)

[QUOTE=" One of kid's best friends is fighting to get off an ECNL team right now after seeing no real difference playing for a strong flight1 

Fighting to get off a team?? Please explain that.   Also, many ECNL teams are built to win and be competitive.  The SW Conference is one of the toughest conferences in the ENCL/ENPL model.   Yes they lose to non-ECNL teams but so do other acronymed (sp) squads.  So beating an ECNL squad is great for that team on that day. 

ECNL like all other leagues has to be the right coach and right fit for your player.  For my player it works and works well.   We have MLS academy teams looking players and we have colleges from throughout the country looking at  players.  Moving into u16 and u17, you start seeing the difference in coach attendance.  They do not go to league games but the National Events and playoffs you are starting to see the attention grow.  It is a second year league and for those in it we hope the growth continues.  The big expense is the travel.


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Jul 30, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> [QUOTE=" One of kid's best friends is fighting to get off an ECNL team right now after seeing no real difference playing for a strong flight1
> 
> Fighting to get off a team?? Please explain that.   Also, many ECNL teams are built to win and be competitive.  The SW Conference is one of the toughest conferences in the ENCL/ENPL model.   Yes they lose to non-ECNL teams but so do other acronymed (sp) squads.  So beating an ECNL squad is great for that team on that day.
> 
> ECNL like all other leagues has to be the right coach and right fit for your player.  For my player it works and works well.   We have MLS academy teams looking players and we have colleges from throughout the country looking at  players.  Moving into u16 and u17, you start seeing the difference in coach attendance.  They do not go to league games but the National Events and playoffs you are starting to see the attention grow.  It is a second year league and for those in it we hope the growth continues.  The big expense is the travel.


Once you sign and club has your money, clubs usually don’t let you walk to another club will never give your money back. More expensive options usually come with real hard sales pitches and experience kids get after they sign can be different than “tryout” period. 

As far as competition So Cal in general is a highly competitive area. The best flight 1, discovery, premier, CRL teams aren’t built to win and be competitive? All clubs are competitive on recruiting best players...thus all the drama you hear about on here. Truth is in places that do not have true DA or only only have teams up to u14 - best kids in those areas aren’t in ECNL. That is why you will see top flight 1 teams beat some ecnl teams - not a fluke as suggested. As kids get to u16+ this might make more sense depending on the goal and kid’s level - but there are still very good teams in discovery, premier, etc that ALL scouts attend. Clubs sell word “exposure” but scouts are at all the highest competitions teams congregate at. Same scouts also go to ODP games, so plenty of paths to get exposure. Again the child’s path but the parent is the one who gets the sales pitch. If it makes sense competitively and financially go for it. This would not be a discussion if we were talking girls but options for high level comp in So Cal isn’t limited


----------



## RedCard (Jul 30, 2019)

FootballParent said:


> My son's Flight 1 team just beat an ECNL team, I am questioning if ECNL boys is a higher level than Flight 1.


Was it a good competitive game or was it an ass whopping??? Every league has great teams on top, ok teams in the middle and then the bottom feeders. And sometimes teams have off days. My DD team the last 2 seasons was one of the top flight 1 teams and beat ECNL teams at tournaments and friendlies with no problem. This year, they just moved to ECNL and only won 1 game in this weekend's Surf Cup against other ECNL teams and DA teams. So basically, it is what it is...as long as the coaches develop the players correctly and the game was competitive, I can deal with an ECNL or DA team losing to a flight 1 team, or a flight 2 beating a flight 1, and so on and so on...


----------



## vegasguy (Jul 31, 2019)

I did not suggest it was a fluke as much as you suggested ENCL is forcing a player to stay.  You sign contracts with all clubs and we have heard DA  stories, ECNL stories, Club CRL, Club  NPL.  As I said the expense is in the travel not the club.  It may be different in set up SoCal in regard to club and coaching fees CRL v DA v ECNL v NPL.  I do not even know how much the average club dues at any age are in CA.  I assume like most things in life CA is more expensive than other areas.

There are also top non-"acronym teams" that will beat DA and ECNL so are you saying players should not play those leagues or is it only in SoCal those leagues should not exist.  Best kids are not always identified.  I think US Soccer misses out on many talented players to look at because they are myopic in scope. 

I am saying DA and ECNL probably get more attention in recruiting and it is growing more in ECNL because of the National Events and Championships.  My players played ODP and we determined our money is best spent at college ID camps as opposed to ODP because of the lack of coaches at ODP.  There were a few and a couple I truly respect but we went to a multi-college id camp over ODP last year and found that more fruitful.   We all have budgets.  It is where you choose to spend the allocated money.  We choose our squad based on the coach and the team not  the letters behind it.


----------



## myself (Aug 4, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> I did not suggest it was a fluke as much as you suggested ENCL is forcing a player to stay.  You sign contracts with all clubs and we have heard DA  stories, ECNL stories, Club CRL, Club  NPL.  As I said the expense is in the travel not the club.  It may be different in set up SoCal in regard to club and coaching fees CRL v DA v ECNL v NPL.  I do not even know how much the average club dues at any age are in CA.  I assume like most things in life CA is more expensive than other areas.
> 
> There are also top non-"acronym teams" that will beat DA and ECNL so are you saying players should not play those leagues or is it only in SoCal those leagues should not exist.  Best kids are not always identified.  I think US Soccer misses out on many talented players to look at because they are myopic in scope.
> 
> I am saying DA and ECNL probably get more attention in recruiting and it is growing more in ECNL because of the National Events and Championships.  My players played ODP and we determined our money is best spent at college ID camps as opposed to ODP because of the lack of coaches at ODP.  There were a few and a couple I truly respect but we went to a multi-college id camp over ODP last year and found that more fruitful.   We all have budgets.  It is where you choose to spend the allocated money.  We choose our squad based on the coach and the team not  the letters behind it.


You're in Nevada? What are the costs associated with ODP in your area?


----------



## vegasguy (Aug 5, 2019)

It has been a couple of years but I think there is a cost to tryout $45 I think.  Then if you make the pool there is a second cost for those practices to make the 18 that travels.  Then there is the expense of being on the team $300 or so maybe more maybe a little less.  The uniform, bag, and warm ups $200.  The the week of travel, hotel, flight or gas, food and missing work.  $1,250 to $1,500 is a safe estimate.  Maybe more maybe less.  Plus then there is the regional camp if you child makes that.   What is CA ODP?  What is the average club dues for CA?


----------



## futboldad1 (Aug 5, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> It has been a couple of years but I think there is a cost to tryout $45 I think.  Then if you make the pool there is a second cost for those practices to make the 18 that travels.  Then there is the expense of being on the team $300 or so maybe more maybe a little less.  The uniform, bag, and warm ups $200.  The the week of travel, hotel, flight or gas, food and missing work.  $1,250 to $1,500 is a safe estimate.  Maybe more maybe less.  Plus then there is the regional camp if you child makes that.   What is CA ODP?  What is the average club dues for CA?


Club dues in CA vary wildly. Top end Slammers are at around $4,200, Blues at $3,800. Average is around $2,000-$2,500. Obviously a lot below that and quite a few above.


----------



## BigSoccer (Aug 5, 2019)

asdljf


----------



## vegasguy (Aug 5, 2019)

NV dues are significantly less for the most part and many of the larger clubs run the same but spread the cost out differently. Does that number include all fees and leagues etc?   Travel is the big expense here obviously.  ECNL is in the Southwest conference and we are the only boys and girls NV squads.  We are in Socal and AZ often in the spring.   Albion now has GDA here and they will be traveling a bunch also. 
What does CA ODP run?


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Aug 5, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> I did not suggest it was a fluke as much as you suggested ENCL is forcing a player to stay.  You sign contracts with all clubs and we have heard DA  stories, ECNL stories, Club CRL, Club  NPL.  As I said the expense is in the travel not the club.  It may be different in set up SoCal in regard to club and coaching fees CRL v DA v ECNL v NPL.  I do not even know how much the average club dues at any age are in CA.  I assume like most things in life CA is more expensive than other areas.
> 
> There are also top non-"acronym teams" that will beat DA and ECNL so are you saying players should not play those leagues or is it only in SoCal those leagues should not exist.  Best kids are not always identified.  I think US Soccer misses out on many talented players to look at because they are myopic in scope.
> 
> I am saying DA and ECNL probably get more attention in recruiting and it is growing more in ECNL because of the National Events and Championships.  My players played ODP and we determined our money is best spent at college ID camps as opposed to ODP because of the lack of coaches at ODP.  There were a few and a couple I truly respect but we went to a multi-college id camp over ODP last year and found that more fruitful.   We all have budgets.  It is where you choose to spend the allocated money.  We choose our squad based on the coach and the team not  the letters behind it.


Yes but in So Cal ODP players pay next to nothing - unlike other states. Cal South also employs good coaches. When you start talking other states, then you are talking a different language. A lot of poorly run ODP programs in other states, poor funding and do not attract the best coaches/players. You follow the coach as mentioned, that is why I advised staying with the Flight1 team the child is on IF the coach was good - since politics are at every club. Also up to the Coach which tournaments to take the kids to - more serious teams will play at tournaments that get them in front of the scouts mentioned. At 11-12 years of age, not even relevant.  Fees for the ECNL team my friend's kids play at were $4800. The same club has an ECNL team and the DA team (aged out in Orange County) is now in Discovery. So the club feels that Discovery (with CRL) is higher competition than ECNL - at least here in So Cal. The silly part is the ECNL parents are paying more than what the parents on the Discovery team are paying.


----------



## vegasguy (Aug 5, 2019)

Different regions do speak different languages.  In NV, there are 3boys teams that seriously compete at higher levels.  So ECNL and playing in the Southwest Conference means better games over a season plus showcases and then the tournaments here.  Mayors Cup and Players probably attracts the most men's coaches.  So showcases and our Regional Tournament are important.  Our club dues are no where near $4,800 so we have that going for us. 
ODP here is pricey and run completely different than SoCal.  
I am not sure what you mean by aged out of DA as I thought they went through u18/19.   
Again everyone chooses their path.  I have no regrets with the path our player has chosen for him.  It has worked out well so far.


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Aug 5, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> Different regions do speak different languages.  In NV, there are 3boys teams that seriously compete at higher levels.  So ECNL and playing in the Southwest Conference means better games over a season plus showcases and then the tournaments here.  Mayors Cup and Players probably attracts the most men's coaches.  So showcases and our Regional Tournament are important.  Our club dues are no where near $4,800 so we have that going for us.
> ODP here is pricey and run completely different than SoCal.
> I am not sure what you mean by aged out of DA as I thought they went through u18/19.
> Again everyone chooses their path.  I have no regrets with the path our player has chosen for him.  It has worked out well so far.


In some areas clubs have/had teams in DA. The problem is those teams are in areas, outside of of San Diego and Los Angeles where kids would have to  travel to those areas to compete starting at U15.  Not to mention the kids would have to actually make the team. So DA was basically a selling tool. ECNL was sold as the DA B team. Sold the vision of competing on ECNL to HOPEFULLY make the DA team. Which again was pretty disingenuous given they knew full well the DA team was never going to run past age U14. In So Cal ODP continues to exist with good players despite attempts from USSF to undercut it. As you mentioned, unfortunately other orgs like those found in No Cal, AZ, TX  arent run as well at Cal South - as far as cost/dev goes.


----------



## vegasguy (Aug 5, 2019)

That doesn't seem right.  I think OC Surf?  LA Premier are the two that may both be DA.  Not really sure.   I know FC GS is coming in next year.  OC Surf and LA Premier were ok not great and I don't think they put a team in the regional championships in Chicago.


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Aug 5, 2019)

You nailed it. You have to also add the High School factor in. A lot of heavy-handed threats about playing at JSerra, or not playing at JS, if they dont play ECNL.  At least that is what is told to them - doesn't see, very Christianly imo. Also not entirely true, as they also play physical Rec kids, but still use the line as a fear tactic in order to get the player. They will offer partial scholarships to play at the club and get partial scholarship to go to JS - but they will do the same pitch to parents playing the same positions. So kids roll in to school camps and go "Wtf?" when they see two other kids probably above them on the depth chart. A bit of the parents fault being "forced" in to that situation, since they jump around clubs as well, and the club/coach sharks smell their fears. So now you get parents paying to go to private school and play ECNL - still super expensive with partial scholarships. So you kids transferring, kids who stop playing altogether and not much development (at least not better than going to top f1 team) in the long run. Also pretty dumb considering the track record of the HS, on the boys side, isnt better than the public schools in the area - usually who ever plays punt and run the best.


----------



## JackZ (Aug 5, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> That doesn't seem right.  I think OC Surf?  LA Premier are the two that may both be DA.  Not really sure.   I know FC GS is coming in next year.  OC Surf and *LA Surf*  were ok not great and I don't think they put a team in the regional championships in Chicago.


OC Surf boys 02 and 01 went to Illinois, but didn't earn spots to Colorado.


----------



## JackZ (Aug 5, 2019)

Not_that_Serious said:


> You nailed it. You have to also add the High School factor in. A lot of heavy-handed threats about playing at JSerra, or not playing at JS, if they dont play ECNL.  At least that is what is told to them - doesn't see, very Christianly imo. Also not entirely true, as they also play physical Rec kids, but still use the line as a fear tactic in order to get the player. They will offer partial scholarships to play at the club and get partial scholarship to go to JS - but they will do the same pitch to parents playing the same positions. So kids roll in to school camps and go "Wtf?" when they see two other kids probably above them on the depth chart. A bit of the parents fault being "forced" in to that situation, since they jump around clubs as well, and the club/coach sharks smell their fears. So now you get parents paying to go to private school and play ECNL - still super expensive with partial scholarships. So you kids transferring, kids who stop playing altogether and not much development (at least not better than going to top f1 team) in the long run. Also pretty dumb considering the track record of the HS, on the boys side, isnt better than the public schools in the area - usually who ever plays punt and run the best.


Nailed it, kinda sad really...


----------



## myself (Aug 5, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> NV dues are significantly less for the most part and many of the larger clubs run the same but spread the cost out differently. Does that number include all fees and leagues etc?   Travel is the big expense here obviously.  ECNL is in the Southwest conference and we are the only boys and girls NV squads.  We are in Socal and AZ often in the spring.   Albion now has GDA here and they will be traveling a bunch also.
> What does CA ODP run?


Cal South ODP has 2 separate ODP tryout seasons. In the spring you're trying out to go to ODP Summer Camp. In the winter you're trying out to play ODP West Championships.

Cost to tryout was $125 for both sessions if I remember correctly. If chosen you pay $150 to cover cost for food (both Summer Camp and ODP Champions). Travel and accommodations for the player are covered by Cal South, so if your player makes both Spring/Summer and Winter pool, then you're out $125 x 2 and $150 x 2 for $550 total.


----------



## Dargle (Aug 5, 2019)

myself said:


> Cal South ODP has 2 separate ODP tryout seasons. In the spring you're trying out to go to ODP Summer Camp. In the winter you're trying out to play ODP West Championships.
> 
> Cost to tryout was $125 for both sessions if I remember correctly. If chosen you pay $150 to cover cost for food (both Summer Camp and ODP Champions). Travel and accommodations for the player are covered by Cal South, so if your player makes both Spring/Summer and Winter pool, then you're out $125 x 2 and $150 x 2 for $550 total.


Important qualifier to that, since other states view "tryout" differently when it comes to ODP.  In Cal South, you are scouted for free at National Cup, CRL etc and invited to come to an invite-only tryout, where you have to pay the $125.  In other state associations, tryouts are open to anyone who pays the fee.


----------



## vegasguy (Aug 6, 2019)

JackZ said:


> OC Surf boys 02 and 01 went to Illinois, but didn't earn spots to Colorado.


Sorry about excluding OC Surf 01/02.  In the other age groups LA Premier improved as the year went on.  I think the same for OC Surf.  I know for the 03 boys our final game with OC Surf go pretty crazy.


----------



## vegasguy (Aug 6, 2019)

I think UT ODP is mostly sponsored as well.  In NV the best players do not always tryout.  It is a shame as there are some really good players.  Like I said my son did it one year and had enough.


----------



## Not_that_Serious (Aug 21, 2019)

vegasguy said:


> I think UT ODP is mostly sponsored as well.  In NV the best players do not always tryout.  It is a shame as there are some really good players.  Like I said my son did it one year and had enough.


Like clubs, all about how things are managed. Have been a few topics on the subject and over on the other national forum website. Most of the other ODP programs act like the middle child who wants to beat their big brother - then celebrate like they won the Super Bowl. Usually Big Bro cares, but not to the extreme heights of their siblings. The main thing is development and Cal South usually good about using games as tools to develop - even if they end up losing. Other states use the wins as recruiting tools and their main focus isnt always about developing kids. So parents often stay away from the program. Really unfortunate. If they all ran fluidly and had cost factors for the children that mimic Cal South, you would have many more kids not playing at some of the money grab club programs.


----------



## Silverlining (Aug 24, 2019)

Not_that_Serious said:


> How many kids on the roster? Parents always say "offered" a spot. Kids are "offered" spots all the time when they need the extra $$$$. Doesn't sound like your kid is playing on scholarship. Parents I know get asked every year to put their kids in ECNL - often not based on talent but because they are willing to pay the money. One of kid's best friends is fighting to get off an ECNL team right now after seeing no real difference playing for a strong flight1 team or discovery team. If your child is "ECNL" quality, no reason they can't walk on to a good flight1  team.


I don’t think, on the boy’s side, that So Cal soccer has bought into the whole ECNL thing, so competition may be a lot weaker than Flight 1. Majority of the highly talented don’t have the money for ECNL, so the draw is to the DA, as it is mostly fully funded, unlike ECNL. I noticed all the boys clubs out of so cal that joined ECNL were weak boys clubs to begin with, but were attached to strong girls clubs already in ECNL. So they kinda seemed to join, by default. Vegas, they also started as  girl’s club, boy’s teams then added & depending on age group can be hit or miss. UT & AZ seem to be more competitive, but many also were attached to girl’s side to begin with. Look at DA or flight 1 unless you want to dish out travel expenses to play teams that lose to club teams in big tournaments. ECNL records vs club teams in local, larger tournaments/showcases, many don’t even make bracket.


----------



## ReVolted (Sep 1, 2019)

The Slammers B03 ECNL team had a great run in Chicago and advanced to Denver (top 8) in the ENPL National Playoffs. They were undefeated and only gave up 1 goal in 4 games in Chicago (to SOLAR) while scoring over 20 goals and also went undefeated in the Finals in Denver as well.

It's too bad the youthsoccerrankings.us has not posted those scores yet as their scores would surely elevate their overall ranking. They slaughtered a couple teams in Chicago 8-0 and also overpowered the #1 ranked team in Indiana in the knockout round 4-0.


----------



## Yak (Sep 1, 2019)

ReVolted said:


> The Slammers B03 ECNL team had a great run in Chicago and advanced to Denver (top 8) in the ENPL National Playoffs. They were undefeated and only gave up 1 goal in 4 games in Chicago (to SOLAR) while scoring over 20 goals and also went undefeated in the Finals in Denver as well.
> 
> It's too bad the youthsoccerrankings.us has not posted those scores yet as their scores would surely elevate their overall ranking. They slaughtered a couple teams in Chicago 8-0 and also overpowered the #1 ranked team in Indiana in the knockout round 4-0.


A good team for sure but it would be interesting to see them play against some of the stronger DA teams.


----------



## Abdul (Sep 6, 2019)

Silverlining said:


> I don’t think, on the boy’s side, that So Cal soccer has bought into the whole ECNL thing, so competition may be a lot weaker than Flight 1. Majority of the highly talented don’t have the money for ECNL, so the draw is to the DA, as it is mostly fully funded, unlike ECNL. I noticed all the boys clubs out of so cal that joined ECNL were weak boys clubs to begin with, but were attached to strong girls clubs already in ECNL. So they kinda seemed to join, by default. Vegas, they also started as  girl’s club, boy’s teams then added & depending on age group can be hit or miss. UT & AZ seem to be more competitive, but many also were attached to girl’s side to begin with. Look at DA or flight 1 unless you want to dish out travel expenses to play teams that lose to club teams in big tournaments. ECNL records vs club teams in local, larger tournaments/showcases, many don’t even make bracket.


Disagree...look at the Beach 02 ECNL team. They won the NPL National Tournament and ended up with 5 losses all season. They’ve played any DA team that wants to scrimmage and beat all the Flight I Teams they faced...look it up. Just stated the facts.


----------



## Silverlining (Sep 30, 2019)

Abdul said:


> Disagree...look at the Beach 02 ECNL team. They won the NPL National Tournament and ended up with 5 losses all season. They’ve played any DA team that wants to scrimmage and beat all the Flight I Teams they faced...look it up. Just stated the facts.


Definitely exceptions to every rule, not necessary for me to look up one team, I trust you.  :0) Just feel it’s not yet a strong enough boy’s league, as a whole, to be worth the $ & travel time. The guy asking had a pretty young boy, he could prob do flight 1, a few more years & by then, maybe the boy’s side will be built up.


----------

