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ECNL expansion 2021-2022
- Thread starter Surf Zombie
- Start date
whatithink
GOLD
You really think so? Phoenix metro area has a population of 1.7M or so. Socal has a population of 22M+. 17-18 teams would be too many for a catchment area of 24M people ... I don't really buy that at a macro level. There may be some over saturation, but people will travel 1+ hours to be on the right team which makes catchment areas very large.
girlsrule7
BRONZE
ECNL let in a lot of clubs that they never would have considered before once DA came along. Some of those teams have struggled and will continue to struggle as strong teams come back into ECNL. The strong teams aren't going to want to have a schedule filled with weak teams and if ECNL doesn't fix the situation, in several years history will repeat itself and the strong teams will look to play only each other. I believe this was the basis of the formation of the ECNL back many yers ago. They'll either need to create tiers or remove teams.
Surf Zombie
GOLD
Has ECNL ever kicked out a club as underperforming?
Desert Hound
DA
To clarify the Phoenix metro area is just shy of 5 million people. Phoenix by itself is a bit less than 1.7 million.
YES. It kicked out a club from Las Vegas a handful of years ago.
azsnowrider
SILVER ELITE
What's your definition of Phoenix Metro? Mine has 4.8 Million not 1.7 according to the states statistics for Phx Metro. My point isn't population based it's how many teams are to many, at what point is it not elite anymore? If everyone gets in the cool kids club is it cool anymore? If the bottom dwellers are getting creamed every game do they belong?
Surf Zombie
GOLD
Because of on field performance, or not being able to field teams?
Desert Hound
DA
I have never heard the actual reason they were kicked out.
That is speaking from experience as well bro. I say let them in and WC. Cut the rosters all down to 18. No more 25. Kids need to play and not be shipped around. Take 20 and then the rest can go SDSL or CSL local leagues. Those would be good teams. Not everyone wants to travel all over the country these days. Local sound so good.
I say add Vegas Abion and SD Abion as one big team. They pull from each club to make them more competitive. I'm down with that. Add West Coast & Pats and were all good. Anyone else who feels cheated needs to get their club in the next surf cup and win some games. JH kicked ass a as a private club in Glendora and started to beat teams. Problem I see is these teams would then poach the goats because of ecnl. No more I say. Open to all. 20 is good. Bottom teams get dropped and two new teams join next year.
azsnowrider
SILVER ELITE
It was Las Vegas Premier right? They were terrible, back when AZ and Nevada were in the ECNL Mtn Conference.
whatithink
GOLD
OK the total should be 26M people - are you saying that a region with a population that size can't support 17-18 teams per age group in its top league? Elite, btw, is a label, not a given for any team or player. A team getting creamed means that team doesn't belong, not that there isn't 17-18 teams that do. That's a structural issue with an org that organizes itself on a club basis, not a team basis, i.e. the best of the best teams vs the best connected clubs.
ECNL has a travel problem again if they bump the bottom 3-4 clubs from each conference. Cutting clubs also helps GA, which is probably not ECNL's goal.
A better way to create parity is to create a new structure at the top, maybe including the best 20 teams in each age group.
Roster size certainly matter. Your roster may be 18-20 but you may only be playing 14-15. Small rosters have their big upside until there are injuries. Small rosters normally mean there is equitable playing time, especially if you are an attacking player.
Yes, and kicked out for performance.
No doubt those clubs think that. It's also where they think the dollars are. Have the ECNL patch on the jersey, kids will come, load up on rosters, etc. I get it, it was a business decision. College Coaches don't care as much as the parents care. All parent driven. Youth soccer is a business, this was a business decision. Nothing wrong with some capitalism.
The GA will be challenged in the SW, no doubt. We will see how they respond/fill in the gaps. They have a different message and feel different than ECNL, many parents like the temperament of the GA. Their leadership is solid, their YNT/College connections are solid, and they've retained well respected youth coaches with inroads in the college coaching and YNT community.
At the end of the day, if your player plays at the next level, the discussion during their college sophomore year at practice isn't going to be what league they came from. For now, ECNL can rightfully claim to have the "stronger" league in the SW. It matters most to ECNL.
My oldest is moving on to the next level playing this upcoming fall. He's never worn letters on his club jersey, ever. My DD is another story and her pathway will be different (if she decides to stick with it I suppose).
futboldad1
PREMIER
I would like to hear some perspectives from parents that have gone through the recruiting process. If your kid is a true 1% goat, this conversation is not for you.Let's say the choices for my kid are:
1) Bench player on a solid ECNL SW team
2) Starter on a bottom 3 ECNL SW team
3) Starter on a solid ECRL team that does Surf Cup and other tourneys
#1 is a usually a no go as my kid (and most kids) prefers playing over sitting. But from the recruiting perspective, how important is it to be on one of the better teams? Would #3 be better than #2 if team#2 is not very competitive? TIA.
#3 would definitely be bottom of the list as the competition is not there...... #1 would is okay if the coach plays their bench strong minutes of around 50%......#2 is okay too unless the team is a full whipping boy that loses every week and rarely has a shot........
Kicker you know I have nothing but love for you but it seems kind of Fd that Beach just gain entry and now you are advocating ECNL removing clubs...... I heard the same from a Beach parent about Real when we got back in last year and I while I did understand the annoyance at your club not getting in last spring I did not understand the hate for other clubs.......a fact is that ECNL is loyal to their member clubs, their member clubs not so much given the DA fiasco, so removals are definitely not going to happen it is just an interesting stance from you...... sure by purely looking at last years results Sharks, Eagles, Rebels and Arsenal may struggle but with so much change every year who can say that for sure........I do think that adding one more to make 18 would be a perfect number with two equal divisions and keep the quality high...... none of the So Calif clubs that are not currently in ECNL deserve to be in based on soccer factors.....if adding one more I'd suggest a SD surf second team or one more Ariz or Nev team so each division has two out of state teams in it making travel equal.......
There was more than just performance to the LV premier story BTW..........but their results were shocking lol so there did not need to be
This will always be an AZ problem. Too many fingers in the pot to truly put together teams that are competitive across all roster spots. 4 "elite" clubs doesn't make any one of them really elite. Maybe 2 clubs.
But really, if your end state is college, and if you have the means, the letter leagues are the easiest option, if you get minutes and you are traveling to CA to get your clock cleaned.
They won't, the dollas are too good. You'll have 5 really good teams, then everyone else. College coaches know this. ECNL knows what it's doing, targeting parents with slick marketing.
Sometimes it's better to be the big fish in the small pond VS the small fish in the big pond. AZ Arsenal will be the small fish in the big pond. It's really hard to be assessed by a college coach when your team can't connect 1 pass (I'm not saying this specifically targeting Arsenal, but any of the bottom teams in any "elite" league).