Wow
The growth and development of a player, especially in their formative years, is of paramount importance. While your goat has indeed been through a myriad of experiences, both winning and losing, it's the long-term development that truly matters. As she grows older, it's clear that personal growth and skills development should be prioritized over mere winning.
For my DD the Blues have indeed played a significant role in shaping her into a resilient and hardworking individual player, instilling in her values of determination and mental strength to playing with proper workrate. While it's commendable, the role of all pay to play clubs shouldn't end there. From the age of 8 to 13, she honed her technical abilities primarily through my guidance, and this serves as a testament to the fact that under the pay-to-play system prevalent in the USA, the onus largely falls on parents and private trainers to mold a player technically.
However, as she navigates the ages of 13 to 16, it's imperative to focus on mental agility, strategy, and soccer IQ. This is where the system in the USA, particularly the pay-to-play model, seems to falter. It's disheartening to note after observing the ECNL playoffs in Virginia this past u13 season, that there's a stunted growth in the IQ development of players. At 16, they should be showcasing advanced tactical understanding and decision-making abilities, comparable to their European counterparts. Instead, they seem to be at par with 13-year-olds, with the only difference being their physical prowess.
In essence, while physicality is an essential facet of the game, it should not overshadow the critical aspect of game intelligence development. It's high time we re-evaluate our development model and focus on creating not just physically adept players, but intellectually agile ones too.
