DA and ECNL

timbuck said:
What worries me a bit about DA is that US Soccer wants everyone to play a 4-3-3. There is some good in having a uniform tactical shape across the US. We definitely need a defined style of play. But a "style" of play (IE - Possession, Direct, Counter Attack, Park the bus, run people over, etc) should be able to be played regardless of your formation/shape.
Part of the "fun" of playing new opponents with varying styles is that is causes the players to have to think about solving problems.
1. The other team is playing 4 in the back with 2 holding mids- We are having trouble playing the ball in central areas. What can we do to try and overcome this?
2. The other team has 3 crazy fast forwards and plays a 4-3-3. Our backline of 4 needs some help on the wing, so we need to get our wingers to drop deeper or they are going to carve us up.
3. We are facing a 4-4-2 with the opposing wide midfielders owning the width at midfield and playing thru balls to their 2 forwards who are making crossing runs.
4. They are playing 3-5-2. We have never seen this before. We should be able to break down their backline, but they are pressing so hard in midfield that we can't get a a pass off quickly enough.
5. We are down 1-0 with 5 minutes left. They have parked the bus. How do we get the ball into a dangerous area?
Etc. etc.
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The DA "style" seems to assume that our team is always stronger than the opponents. No need to adjust.
 
davin said:
Agreed. Good post. That was the whole point of my post, which was quoted above. The DA parent was claiming that "most top players" are in GDA based based on his knowledge of the players, and my argument was that the results of these preseason tournaments don't prove that to be the case. I don't get the relevance of "rose colored glasses" comment with regards to that discussion, but whatever.
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Evenin' davin --

"rose colored glasses" came a couple pages back from shales regarding your misunderstanding of the of the origin of this poster's "most top players" inference that you've mentioned here ^. Thought I'd help clear it up for ya since you may have missed out earlier ...

It is 100% legitimate and objective to state that the majority of the traditionally top performing ECNL clubs went GDA prior to last year ... Hawks, Solar, SoCal Blues, Slammers, PDA, Real CO, FC Dallas, Eclipse, FC Stars, Crossfire, Tophat and Surf (clearly the most successful girls clubs both recently and over the course of ECNL history). Given that those dozen clubs have had the most national success over the past 8 years + have had the lion's share of YNT call ups, wouldn't it be fair to say that the majority of the 'best of the best' were participating in GDA last year ... I mean, any attempt to argue against that seems a bit silly wouldn't ya say? Unless you are saying that in your mind (any many others posting here that are obviously a touch biased given this thread is within the confines of the "ECNL" category) that those premier clubs/teams/players (that just over a year ago were in the ECNL) are somehow lesser now since that they are participating in the GDA ... which, if is the case, would call into question simple logical reasoning wouldn't it?

And speaking of the "best of the best" (to address my earlier "California" comment) ...

You referenced some results from Surf Cup -- First off, Surf Cup isn't a relevant measuring stick of ECNL vs GDA ... it represented a teeny sample (close to what ... 2%?) of the national landscape -- Granted that anyone outside of CA looking in like myself would find this easier to realize, so there's that. Additionally, you mentioned some success that some of the top performing ECNL teams had against some of the GDA bottom halvers -- Turned out you're not only referring to one lil' group (the itty bitty '05s which are brand spanking new out there if I'm not mistaken), but just one team (one player really) as well ... c'mon now son. And as fan2 quite rightly mentioned, sure ... there are some ECNL teams that are stronger than some GDA teams -- Not a rational soul would argue against that.

I understand it may be difficult to take this ^ all in, but whatever ... it is what it is, isn't it? ;)
 
Chris Knight said:
Evenin' davin --

"rose colored glasses" came a couple pages back from shales regarding your misunderstanding of the of the origin of this poster's "most top players" inference that you've mentioned here ^. Thought I'd help clear it up for ya since you may have missed out earlier ...

It is 100% legitimate and objective to state that the majority of the traditionally top performing ECNL clubs went GDA prior to last year ... Hawks, Solar, SoCal Blues, Slammers, PDA, Real CO, FC Dallas, Eclipse, FC Stars, Crossfire, Tophat and Surf (clearly the most successful girls clubs both recently and over the course of ECNL history). Given that those dozen clubs have had the most national success over the past 8 years + have had the lion's share of YNT call ups, wouldn't it be fair to say that the majority of the 'best of the best' were participating in GDA last year ... I mean, any attempt to argue against that seems a bit silly wouldn't ya say? Unless you are saying that in your mind (any many others posting here that are obviously a touch biased given this thread is within the confines of the "ECNL" category) that those premier clubs/teams/players (that just over a year ago were in the ECNL) are somehow lesser now since that they are participating in the GDA ... which, if is the case, would call into question simple logical reasoning wouldn't it?

And speaking of the "best of the best" (to address my earlier "California" comment) ...

You referenced some results from Surf Cup -- First off, Surf Cup isn't a relevant measuring stick of ECNL vs GDA ... it represented a teeny sample (close to what ... 2%?) of the national landscape -- Granted that anyone outside of CA looking in like myself would find this easier to realize, so there's that. Additionally, you mentioned some success that some of the top performing ECNL teams had against some of the GDA bottom halvers -- Turned out you're not only referring to one lil' group (the itty bitty '05s which are brand spanking new out there if I'm not mistaken), but just one team (one player really) as well ... c'mon now son. And as fan2 quite rightly mentioned, sure ... there are some ECNL teams that are stronger than some GDA teams -- Not a rational soul would argue against that.

I understand it may be difficult to take this ^ all in, but whatever ... it is what it is, isn't it? ;)
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You know what's silly? Half the clubs you mentioned to make the case that GDA has the top players will no longer be playing in GDA this year and will be competing only in ECNL, and another one on your list(SoCal Blues) placed its 2 best teams(2001 and 2002) in ECNL last year and will continue to do so this year.

You know what else is silly? Your understanding that the dialogue for the last few pages on this thread was "only referring to one lil' group". LOL. I'm not going to rehash it here, but it was across multiple age groups in Silverlakes. Start a few pages back and check it out. Reading is fundamental, my friend.

And speaking of "rose colored glasses". I think you might be able to find them. Some dude in Texas has been wearing them. Might help to look in the mirror. ;)
 
davin said:
You know what's silly? Half the clubs you mentioned to make the case that GDA has the top players will no longer be playing in GDA this year and will be competing only in ECNL, and another one on your list(SoCal Blues) placed its 2 best teams(2001 and 2002) in ECNL last year and will continue to do so this year.

You know what else is silly? Your understanding that the dialogue for the last few pages on this thread was "only referring to one lil' group". LOL. I'm not going to rehash it here, but it was across multiple age groups in Silverlakes. Start a few pages back and check it out. Reading is fundamental, my friend.

And speaking of "rose colored glasses". I think you might be able to find them. Some dude in Texas has been wearing them. Might help to look in the mirror. ;)
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My discussion about where top players are WAS specific to the 05 group, because that’s the player pool I know. You made it broader, and when you did, you picked some sample results that were mostly indicative of MVLA 04’s strength. NorCal is one market where GDA is taking longer. It’s pointless to argue every point because GDA is a whopping year old and some people hear what they want to hear. Time will tell how the leagues will go.
 
Also, top players are not a large number. There are really just a handful in each age group. Comparing team results is not necessarily a reliable way to decide where they are. You might decide that’s the best data you have so far, but that doesn’t mean it’s valid.
 
Soccerfan2 said:
My discussion about where top players are WAS specific to the 05 group, because that’s the player pool I know. You made it broader, and when you did, you picked some sample results that were mostly indicative of MVLA 04’s strength. NorCal is one market where GDA is taking longer. It’s pointless to argue every point because GDA is a whopping year old and some people hear what they want to hear. Time will tell how the leagues will go.
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This is the post on this thread that started the discussion about the results at Silverlakes across ALL age groups, and the relative strengths of GDA teams vs. ECNL teams. Did you somehow miss it?
http://www.socalsoccer.com/threads/da-and-ecnl.5306/page-26#post-215759

You're backtracking now. You didn't mention the 05 group. You said "most top players have already gone GDA."
http://www.socalsoccer.com/threads/da-and-ecnl.5306/page-31#post-216454
 
It’s difficult to use Silverlakes and Surf to measure DA vs ECNL since this was the first event of the preseason. Just per speculation but would think ECNL teams have more roster continuity at the older ages than DA teams since they are single age group teams vs dual age. In our case we have 9 new girls on our team and I think that will make us stronger this season. We beat both a ECNL teams we faced but our girls need to get use to playing together.
 
davin said:
This is the post on this thread that started the discussion about the results at Silverlakes across ALL age groups, and the relative strengths of GDA teams vs. ECNL teams. Did you somehow miss it?
http://www.socalsoccer.com/threads/da-and-ecnl.5306/page-26#post-215759

You're backtracking now. You didn't mention the 05 group. You said "most top players have already gone GDA."
http://www.socalsoccer.com/threads/da-and-ecnl.5306/page-31#post-216454
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“If you have a younger”. I know the 05 player pool very well and the 04 pool fairly well. Beyond those two age groups I don’t pay close attention.
 
Simisoccerfan said:
It’s difficult to use Silverlakes and Surf to measure DA vs ECNL since this was the first event of the preseason. Just per speculation but would think ECNL teams have more roster continuity at the older ages than DA teams since they are single age group teams vs dual age. In our case we have 9 new girls on our team and I think that will make us stronger this season. We beat both a ECNL teams we faced but our girls need to get use to playing together.
Click to expand...

Yes. My daughter’s first DA game was a loss to a top ECNL team. It was her DA team’s first game ever together. I actually think that ECNL team would beat my daughter’s team more times than not, but given a few games under their belt they will certainly be competitive in a re-match. I also think that club will be DA before too long.
 
Soccerfan2 said:
“If you have a younger”. I know the 05 player pool very well and the 04 pool fairly well. Beyond those two age groups I don’t pay close attention.
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You were asked a few pages ago on this thread how you came to the conclusion that the best players had already migrated to GDA in the younger age groups, including the 05's and 04's, and only answer is your "knowledge" of the age groups? Ummm. OK.
 
davin said:
You were asked a few pages ago on this thread how you came to the conclusion that the best players had already migrated to GDA in the younger age groups, including the 05's and 04's pages ago, and only answer is your "knowledge" of the age groups? Ummm. OK.
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Again, you don’t have to agree. I’m not speaking to the ECNL die hards. I’m speaking to parents who want to know more about DA and whose minds are open. I’d be curious to hear the opinions of others who actually know the age group and get to see NTC and U14 national pool up close.
 
Soccerfan2 said:
Yes. My daughter’s first DA game was a loss to a top ECNL team. It was her DA team’s first game ever together. I actually think that ECNL team would beat my daughter’s team more times than not, but given a few games under their belt they will certainly be competitive in a re-match. I also think that club will be DA before too long.
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Whose your daughter play for?
 
Soccerfan2 said:
Again, you don’t have to agree. I’m not speaking to the ECNL die hards. I’m speaking to parents who want to know more about DA and whose minds are open. I’d be curious to hear the opinions of others who actually know the age group and get to see NTC and U14 national pool up close.
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If you are asking about 05s u14 my opinion is Surf and Slammers (last year pre academy this years lafc) are stand alone top 2 teams 1 is DA 1 is ECNL. The next best 6 to 10 teams are DA teams you can reasonably argue Heat into that group I do not know much about AZ clubs yet. Sucks for LAFC Slammers
 
Soccerfan2 said:
Yes. My daughter’s first DA game was a loss to a top ECNL team. It was her DA team’s first game ever together. I actually think that ECNL team would beat my daughter’s team more times than not, but given a few games under their belt they will certainly be competitive in a re-match. I also think that club will be DA before too long.
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This is a realistic view. There are many players on the top ECNL teams who could be on DA teams but have chosen not to. In fact, in San Diego anyway, what was to be the Surf 05 ECNL team is arguably the 2nd best team in SD, ahead of Albion and Galaxy SD DA. Sharks ECNL is in the same league as Albion and Galaxy SD DA as well, and there are a handful of SCDSL/SDDA teams that can keep up as well.

I think the point lost here, even though it's stated repeatedly, is that there are only a handful of truly elite players in SoCal, despite the huge number of excellent players around. Those elite players can be found on a handful of teams right now - some DA, some ECNL and a random few at the local level. DA and ECNL are different options for good players. The rest is old people trying to feel good about their kids' success.
 
LASTMAN14 said:
Whose your daughter play for?
Click to expand...

Don't know you, but do you expect an answer from this passive aggressive question which is
meant to silence people by threatening to out their kid to the public?

I will give you where my kid plays for:
1. A team where everyone tries to get along and try to like each other. Coach will not allow disrespect.
2. A well-respected and honest coach who believes in my player and believes in development at the cost of winning.
3. Parents who are mostly well-balanced and supportive of the entire team.
4. Close enough drive where we can have a normal family life.
5. My player loves to play and is truly developing as a player and as a person.

If this is not your team, where your kid plays really means little.
 
Gokicksomegrass said:
Don't know you, but do you expect an answer from this passive aggressive question which is
meant to silence people by threatening to out their kid to the public?

I will give you where my kid plays for:
1. A team where everyone tries to get along and try to like each other. Coach will not allow disrespect.
2. A well-respected and honest coach who believes in my player and believes in development at the cost of winning.
3. Parents who are mostly well-balanced and supportive of the entire team.
4. Close enough drive where we can have a normal family life.
5. My player loves to play and is truly developing as a player and as a person.

If this is not your team, where your kid plays really means little.
Click to expand...
You took a simple and inquisitive question way to far. I was interested because this parent is an 05. And I having an 05 like to reach out to other posters. No wonder this individual PM’d.
 
Last edited:
Gokicksomegrass said:
Don't know you, but do you expect an answer from this passive aggressive question which is
meant to silence people by threatening to out their kid to the public?

I will give you where my kid plays for:
1. A team where everyone tries to get along and try to like each other. Coach will not allow disrespect.
2. A well-respected and honest coach who believes in my player and believes in development at the cost of winning.
3. Parents who are mostly well-balanced and supportive of the entire team.
4. Close enough drive where we can have a normal family life.
5. My player loves to play and is truly developing as a player and as a person.

If this is not your team, where your kid plays really means little.
Click to expand...
I think you have misinterpreted Lastman’s intentions....not all of us are looking to argue broad generalizations using such small cross sections.
 
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