I generally agree with you, but the use of the words "Davis poached" has a harsh resonance to it. Everybody in region 6 knew Placer United was going to have a dumpster fire once it became known DA was folding, especially the staff/coaches at the surrounding clubs. Those coaches didn't have to do anything but wait for the emails and phone calls from the Placer players and parents. Most of them already had a relationship with Robo thru PDP. Those Placer players leaving for Davis, and I guess San Juan, to be a part of a unique competitive landscape was inevitable once DA collapsed. What were these clubs to do? Turn them away? I wonder how many players has Placer poached from Davis or any other club over the years. Probably quite a few. The post above had two links to the most recent recruiting violations at Placer United by Paul O'Brien and Kim Gonzalez. So did Paul and Placer United get sanctioned because he was the DOC, and Kim was the one doing the actual recruiting and training outside of the tryout window without notifying the club? It sort of sounds that way when you read the complaints and findings together. That would be a shame if that's why Paul and Jodi decided to leave.
Placer's suspension -
http://www.norcalreferees.com/incidents/edit/i3it4dh1z6sdn/
Placer Again -
http://www.norcalreferees.com/incidents/edit/kdcdschax9b3f/
Outlaw is right. Let "competition drive the market". Recruit all you want. It makes teams better and speeds up the identification process. From a business perspective, in a competitive market, it would make sense for Davis and San Juan to reject Placer's attempt to obtain an ECNL market share. What serious business wouldn't deny a competitor? ECNL probably looked at it from a national perspective rather than a regional perspective and concluded the talent pool for the two local ECNL clubs would be further diluted with a third club. It's hard to have a brand name like Elite Competitive National League (ECNL) and then make decisions that run counter to it.