What's the biggest surprise for you?

Fall season of select is almost done and dusted. What surprised you about the fall season? Any particular team or teams? Anything about officiating? Play time? Coaches? All observations are welcome.

Biggest surprise for me... NTSSA announced that because of an increasing demand for releases that there would be a new fee to process them. Their reason was because the current staff couldn't keep up with the volume of releases being requested.

Least surprising to me... They increased fees to make us pay for the releases but no other action was taken, like to research WHY that demand keeps going up.

It's always great to see the teams who struggled early on start to make their move.

There will be D1 surprises.

Solar Red has to be the biggest surprise so far. Draw with Dynasty. Loss to Feet and Gio. 9th place right now. That team went through a stretch with Webb where they never lost. I know their forward has been out but giving up goals to Gio and Feet just seems surprising. Maybe this is not the same team Webb had. Still lots of soccer to play.

Good and Bad Suprises:

#1 Good Surprise....... FC Dallas South. Granted they have only played 2 of what I consider to be the top 7, they have surprised against teams that I personally thought they would have struggled with. They have been consistent week in and week out, which I bet any parent or coach can say is a challenge in itself at this age. Their one loss coming to Fever and a good win against Sting Rez. They have only allowed 2 goals thus far.

#2 Bad Surprise........ Waco Blast. No consistency at all. I have seen them play quite a bit this year. At times they look to be a D1 team and at times they look to be be barely hanging on to a D2 spot. They do have some talented girls but lack the ability to possess the ball.

#3 Bad Surprise........ Dyansty FC. Can anyone on this team score?????? They create quite a few chances but dont have anyone to finsh. The two games I watched this season they outplayed the team but couldnt get the result due to not having any strikers. Although looking at their results they have already played the top 3 and 5 of the top 10. Maybe their road gets a little easier

#4 Good Surprise...... Solar Gio. I wasnt a big believer, but I stand corrected. One bad result for you girls IMO. If you could only have the Sting Dunston game back....... Great work to those girls and the coach. Keep it up! Still have to play the top 3 of the top 4.

#5 Bad Surprise....... Solar Red....... WTH? Even their wins havent been that impressive. I mean no disrespect the following teams; Dynasty, Cosmos, and Defeeters, because yall obviously played Colvins team very well, (especially Dynasty) but in my opinion there is way too much talent on that team to be scraping by. I expect them to have a turn around in the second half. If not maybe they are not what we thought they were.

scoregazam wrote:Good and Bad Suprises:

#1 Good Surprise....... FC Dallas South. Granted they have only played 2 of what I consider to be the top 7, they have surprised against teams that I personally thought they would have struggled with. They have been consistent week in and week out, which I bet any parent or coach can say is a challenge in itself at this age. Their one loss coming to Fever and a good win against Sting Rez. They have only allowed 2 goals thus far.

#2 Bad Surprise........ Waco Blast. No consistency at all. I have seen them play quite a bit this year. At times they look to be a D1 team and at times they look to be be barely hanging on to a D2 spot. They do have some talented girls but lack the ability to possess the ball.

#3 Bad Surprise........ Dyansty FC. Can anyone on this team score?????? They create quite a few chances but dont have anyone to finsh. The two games I watched this season they outplayed the team but couldnt get the result due to not having any strikers. Although looking at their results they have already played the top 3 and 5 of the top 10. Maybe their road gets a little easier

#4 Good Surprise...... Solar Gio. I wasnt a big believer, but I stand corrected. One bad result for you girls IMO. If you could only have the Sting Dunston game back....... Great work to those girls and the coach. Keep it up! Still have to play the top 3 of the top 4.

#5 Bad Surprise....... Solar Red....... WTH? Even their wins havent been that impressive. I mean no disrespect the following teams; Dynasty, Cosmos, and Defeeters, because yall obviously played Colvins team very well, (especially Dynasty) but in my opinion there is way too much talent on that team to be scraping by. I expect them to have a turn around in the second half. If not maybe they are not what we thought they were.

Yawn.

bigtex75081 wrote:Biggest surprise for me... NTSSA announced that because of an increasing demand for releases that there would be a new fee to process them. Their reason was because the current staff couldn't keep up with the volume of releases being requested.

Least surprising to me... They increased fees to make us pay for the releases but no other action was taken, like to research WHY that demand keeps going up.

Are these released girls getting back into girls classic league or do they gotta go play rec for the rest of the time until June? Why are most of them wanting out?

hombre wrote:

bigtex75081 wrote:Biggest surprise for me... NTSSA announced that because of an increasing demand for releases that there would be a new fee to process them. Their reason was because the current staff couldn't keep up with the volume of releases being requested.

Least surprising to me... They increased fees to make us pay for the releases but no other action was taken, like to research WHY that demand keeps going up.

Are these released girls getting back into girls classic league or do they gotta go play rec for the rest of the time until June? Why are most of them wanting out?

Went through QT with a team, made D1, but wasn't happy. Asked and received release. We don't regret leaving LH. DD went to Arlington and is having a blast and gaining lots of confidence. I don't think she'd still be playing soccer next year if we'd stayed. Her enjoyment of the game is now back full force...most important thing at U11 I think.

I suspect that most girls leaving teams early on, especially a D1 team, are doing so because they are sitting the bench more than their parents can handle.

I'm not sure this is a problem LHGCL or NTSSA can fix.

This was a pretty big surprise

Lifeonthepitch wrote:I suspect that most girls leaving teams early on, especially a D1 team, are doing so because they are sitting the bench more than their parents can handle.

I'm not sure this is a problem LHGCL or NTSSA can fix.

Not necessarily. My dd wasn't up to the pressure/stress and intensity put on her. She plays for the fun of it and if it isn't fun...she didn't care to do it. She doesn't have that drive to be the best of the best...just wants to go out there and do her thing.

Urajoke wrote:

scoregazam wrote:Good and Bad Suprises:

#1 Good Surprise....... FC Dallas South. Granted they have only played 2 of what I consider to be the top 7, they have surprised against teams that I personally thought they would have struggled with. They have been consistent week in and week out, which I bet any parent or coach can say is a challenge in itself at this age. Their one loss coming to Fever and a good win against Sting Rez. They have only allowed 2 goals thus far.

#2 Bad Surprise........ Waco Blast. No consistency at all. I have seen them play quite a bit this year. At times they look to be a D1 team and at times they look to be be barely hanging on to a D2 spot. They do have some talented girls but lack the ability to possess the ball.

#3 Bad Surprise........ Dyansty FC. Can anyone on this team score?????? They create quite a few chances but dont have anyone to finsh. The two games I watched this season they outplayed the team but couldnt get the result due to not having any strikers. Although looking at their results they have already played the top 3 and 5 of the top 10. Maybe their road gets a little easier

#4 Good Surprise...... Solar Gio. I wasnt a big believer, but I stand corrected. One bad result for you girls IMO. If you could only have the Sting Dunston game back....... Great work to those girls and the coach. Keep it up! Still have to play the top 3 of the top 4.

#5 Bad Surprise....... Solar Red....... WTH? Even their wins havent been that impressive. I mean no disrespect the following teams; Dynasty, Cosmos, and Defeeters, because yall obviously played Colvins team very well, (especially Dynasty) but in my opinion there is way too much talent on that team to be scraping by. I expect them to have a turn around in the second half. If not maybe they are not what we thought they were.

Yawn.

You tired?

Whoseurdaddy wrote:

Urajoke wrote:

scoregazam wrote:Good and Bad Suprises:

#1 Good Surprise....... FC Dallas South. Granted they have only played 2 of what I consider to be the top 7, they have surprised against teams that I personally thought they would have struggled with. They have been consistent week in and week out, which I bet any parent or coach can say is a challenge in itself at this age. Their one loss coming to Fever and a good win against Sting Rez. They have only allowed 2 goals thus far.

#2 Bad Surprise........ Waco Blast. No consistency at all. I have seen them play quite a bit this year. At times they look to be a D1 team and at times they look to be be barely hanging on to a D2 spot. They do have some talented girls but lack the ability to possess the ball.

#3 Bad Surprise........ Dyansty FC. Can anyone on this team score?????? They create quite a few chances but dont have anyone to finsh. The two games I watched this season they outplayed the team but couldnt get the result due to not having any strikers. Although looking at their results they have already played the top 3 and 5 of the top 10. Maybe their road gets a little easier

#4 Good Surprise...... Solar Gio. I wasnt a big believer, but I stand corrected. One bad result for you girls IMO. If you could only have the Sting Dunston game back....... Great work to those girls and the coach. Keep it up! Still have to play the top 3 of the top 4.

#5 Bad Surprise....... Solar Red....... WTH? Even their wins havent been that impressive. I mean no disrespect the following teams; Dynasty, Cosmos, and Defeeters, because yall obviously played Colvins team very well, (especially Dynasty) but in my opinion there is way too much talent on that team to be scraping by. I expect them to have a turn around in the second half. If not maybe they are not what we thought they were.

Yawn.

You tired?

Yes got a nap and ready to read something more thought provoking than what is above. What you got whoseurdaddy? I know you have something eye opening.

I'm kind of surprised at the perception of what parents thought LH was going to be..
'For the Fun of it..not happy... we changed teams even though we made a commitment..'
I know everyone has to have their child's best interest driving them but your child may have taken someone else's spot who understood what it took to compete at this level....
They should finish out the season- happy or not, network with other teams, take some time to find another fit...I think both parents and players will be happy at the end...

pitchafit wrote:I'm kind of surprised at the perception of what parents thought LH was going to be..
'For the Fun of it..not happy... we changed teams even though we made a commitment..'
I know everyone has to have their child's best interest driving them but your child may have taken someone else's spot who understood what it took to compete at this level....
They should finish out the season- happy or not, network with other teams, take some time to find another fit...I think both parents and players will be happy at the end...

At the risk of my daughter quitting soccer? I don't think so. She's been doing this since she was 3...that is commitment. If you want to be self righteous...go ahead. You never know how you will react to your daughter crying & begging you to let her skip practice until you it happens to you I'm a customer of select soccer, not a slave. We weren't happy, we paid what we owed and got a release.

[quote="02ddsoccerfan"]

pitchafit wrote:I'm kind of surprised at the perception of what parents thought LH was going to be..
'For the Fun of it..not happy... we changed teams even though we made a commitment..'
I know everyone has to have their child's best interest driving them but your child may have taken someone else's spot who understood what it took to compete at this level....
They should finish out the season- happy or not, network with other teams, take some time to find another fit...I think both parents and players will be happy at the end...

At the risk of my daughter quitting soccer? I don't think so. She's been doing this since she was 3...that is commitment. If you want to be self righteous...go ahead. You never know how you will react to your daughter crying & begging you to let her skip practice until you it happens to you I'm a customer of select soccer, not a slave. We weren't happy, we paid what we owed and got a release. [/quot

Well done, these clubs are businesses. You owe them nothing. I do what's best for your kid and don't look back. Would you eat a meal that tastes terrible just because you made a commitment to the server by sitting in a booth?

Not being self-righteous at all..
I said I KNOW EVERYONE HAS TO HAVE THEIR CHILD'S BEST INTEREST AT HEART... I understand that, HOWEVER...if your child was crying and begging to let her skip practice then why did you continue??
The child doesn't just become unhappy AFTER they get into LH...There's a build up...unfor some parents are just more excited to say that their kid made it in instead of making changes before it got to this point..
Silent parent- Being a SLAVE? little dramatic there.. you had a contract, you knew the expectations...you shop around BEFORE try-outs not after all the dust is settled then decide 'whaaa i don't like it here'... IMO

Silent parent- Being a SLAVE? little dramatic there.. you had a contract, you knew the expectations...you shop around BEFORE try-outs not after all the dust is settled then decide 'whaaa i don't like it here'... IMO

not my words, but i agree. I laugh at people who think they have a commitment to keep with a business that won't give a second thought to honoring theirs. clubs taking 18 kids and knowing that its physically impossible to give adequate playing time to that number, contracts that favor clubs and leave little power to parents besides "tough it out" You should do whatever is best for your kid, the club, the team the business will survive. Your kid depends on you to watch out for her interests, the club is watching out for its interest 24/7.....

Yep. That does sound like an unhappy parent who wants her kid to be the star and couldn't quite make it. Always blame the kid. But the parent is always the problem. The kid is used to hard training and the parent demands more. Oops! let's blame te coach. Any lame excuse to get out and save face. Poor kid, everytime she tries something new and fails, helicopter mom and dad can save the day and make up a silly excuse.
Maybe quitting the sport might be a good thing for her and find something else where she's better at. Look at the top of this board. It says SELECT SOCCER. Obviously she was good enough at some point to make it. Commitment is the key here. As in staying put and toughing it out. This is not an end of the year diet thing, or a gym membership when one can just say I don't want this anymore. Boo hoo!

The Phantom Menace.

Absolute crap.

Yes it may be called Select soccer but it is still a bunch of 10 year olds playing a GAME. The contract is to assure the business get its money. Period. As far as taking the spot of another kid that now does not get a chance? Really? "Well we did not really want to pick you , but since this other girl is not going to play I guess we will put you on the team" Yeah, some 10 year missed the opportunity of a lifetime there!

Take her to the local Y. She'll be very happy there. Will you?

The biggest surprise for me is that the parents have to pay for the coaches hotel and all expenses on out of town tourneys. As if we didn't pay enough already. I imagine the coach at home and the wife says "Honey, I want to go to Phoenix" Sure! Let me hit my 01's and tell them we need to go to a tournament there. Then on top of it all parents are being asked to donate during the month of October. What a $ maker for the clubs.

my2cents wrote:Yes it may be called Select soccer but it is still a bunch of 10 year olds playing a GAME. The contract is to assure the business get its money. Period. As far as taking the spot of another kid that now does not get a chance? Really? "Well we did not really want to pick you , but since this other girl is not going to play I guess we will put you on the team" Yeah, some 10 year missed the opportunity of a lifetime there!

Maybe you don't quite understand how this works..... and maybe things have changed since my college player was in select...YOu as a parent did your homework, you tried out for a team, you STAYED with the team regardless of your playing time (that was not promised)... the coach didn't have kids backing out then have to go look for other players to fill rosters,then jack up fees for the rest of the parents (tournament fees) because there are less players on the roster.. Maybe our contract was different too.. our contract wasn't just about money, it spoke of sportsmanship, expectations of coach, player and parents...no big surprises.. Play rec soccer!

Referee wrote: Take her to the local Y. She'll be very happy there. Will you?

The biggest surprise for me is that the parents have to pay for the coaches hotel and all expenses on out of town tourneys. As if we didn't pay enough already. I imagine the coach at home and the wife says "Honey, I want to go to Phoenix" Sure! Let me hit my 01's and tell them we need to go to a tournament there. Then on top of it all parents are being asked to donate during the month of October. What a $ maker for the clubs.

Do you think the coach should pick up his/her own travel expenses out of their 12-18k (or whatever) salary?

My guess is you're going to pay for it one way or another, either as coach travel expenses, or as increased salary to allow them to be able to pay for it, but I don't think most coaches make enough to actually eat their own expenses.

On our team these expenses are estimated and budgeted by the team and paid out to the coach at the end of the travel when receipts are turned in. The club never sees a penny of it.

I don't know anything about October donations, so I really can't say anything about that.

We've been with 5 different clubs and we always paid the coach's expenses. Typically, the mgr purchased all the airline tickets, hotel rooms, vans, etc. and then split it evenly among the players. It wasn't a source of income for the coach or the club.