Summer Tournament Pros and Cons

Our U9/05 team is looking to play a couple of tournaments this summer. I was hoping for Pros and Cons on the ones we have not done before. McKinney Flamfest vs Chisholm Trail? or COPA ESPN Summer Tournament? We are specifically looking at June-August. Thanks!

Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

tornado11 wrote:Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

I will now speak heresy. Not everything needs to be solely about getting better. Soccer is a fun game. Tournaments can be simply about enjoying the competition. The fact that they get additional touches is a plus. One additional benefit is that scheduling tournaments helps keep teams motivated between league play.

Picking the right tournament to play is obviously important. You want to have challenging competition not blowouts.

Flame Fest normally pulls in a higher level of teams than Chisolm Trail but each tournament may be different across the years.

Driver wrote:

tornado11 wrote:Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

I will now speak heresy.  Not everything needs to be solely about getting better. Soccer is a fun game.  Tournaments can be simply about enjoying the competition.  The fact that they get additional touches is a plus.  One additional benefit is that scheduling tournaments helps keep teams motivated between league play.  

Picking the right tournament to play is obviously important.  You want to have challenging competition not blowouts.

Flame Fest normally pulls in a higher level of teams than Chisolm Trail but each tournament may be different across the years.

Yes. My DD looks forward to just hanging out, watching other games while waiting for hers, and we usually stay in a hotel for a least one night even if the tourney is in the metroplex (we're on the SW side). Kind of like a mini vacation for the family.

tornado11 wrote:Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

Tend to agree that most tournaments are a waste of time and most kids need to work on skills.

That said, understanding how to contribute and be effective in applying said skills in a game situation to be an effective soccer player is important.  I have seen many 'skilled' kids who had no ability to contribute w/i the context of a game and were a liability every time they stepped on the field.  Becomes particularly noticeable around u14-u16 when they look like they are trying to do individual drills or skills while the game goes on w/o them.

Lefty wrote:

tornado11 wrote:Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

Tend to agree that most tournaments are a waste of time and most kids need to work on skills.

That said, understanding how to contribute and be effective in applying said skills in a game situation to be an effective soccer player is important.  I have seen many 'skilled' kids who had no ability to contribute w/i the context of a game and were a liability every time they stepped on the field.  Becomes particularly noticeable around u14-u16 when they look like they are trying to do individual drills or skills while the game goes on w/o them.

I disagree.... If girls are working on skills and their coach is developing their soccer IQ fundamentals for age and what you said above, then they have to be able to apply and experiment in the game or games and let's not forget it is suppose to be fun!!! What better way to have fun and use what they have learned then play a tournament, great memories, team bonding, they get to PLAY SOCCER!!!! Playing the game most times is where they really learn and they are either successful in applying what they have learned and worked on or they have to to back to the practice fields and work some more to get better. Either way Soccer tournaments are a WIN WIN in my book, if as parents you help make it a great experience, JMO!!!!!!

I think tournaments are crucial to the development of the effective player. It's what ALL the practice is for, to compete against others and play a game to win as a team. There are so many more dynamics in a tournament then can ever be simulated in a practice or a learning scrimmage. For instance, have you ever had a good player just not play well one game and then the next game they are lights out? What is the difference? Usually, it is a confidence thing. So the tournaments help them to grow mentally to play the game by providing an opportunity to gain strength in their confidence. Plus, they are a lot of fun!!! The other reason for ALL the practice.

what you said ^^^^^^^^

Tournaments are great for team bonding and kids simply having fun. And fully agree with the game still being the best teacher.


However, 5-6 games in 2-3 days on hard fields can be brutal on young limbs and growth plates. And the damage is mostly cumulative, so it doesn't always manifest in the short-term. Schedule and attend judiciously. More is not always better.

Driver wrote:

tornado11 wrote:Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

I will now speak heresy.  Not everything needs to be solely about getting better. Soccer is a fun game.  Tournaments can be simply about enjoying the competition.  The fact that they get additional touches is a plus.  One additional benefit is that scheduling tournaments helps keep teams motivated between league play.  

Picking the right tournament to play is obviously important.  You want to have challenging competition not blowouts.

Flame Fest normally pulls in a higher level of teams than Chisolm Trail but each tournament may be different across the years.

Thank you. I appreciate the help. We enjoy playing the tournaments just to face new teams and spark that passion to play in the girls.

Lefty wrote:

tornado11 wrote:Most 'tournaments' are a total waste of time (not to mention money, travel and ruining your families weekend)...the girl's time would be better spent practicing as the vast majority of improvement in this game occurs in practice....not in the games themselves.

Tend to agree that most tournaments are a waste of time and most kids need to work on skills.

That said, understanding how to contribute and be effective in applying said skills in a game situation to be an effective soccer player is important.  I have seen many 'skilled' kids who had no ability to contribute w/i the context of a game and were a liability every time they stepped on the field.  Becomes particularly noticeable around u14-u16 when they look like they are trying to do individual drills or skills while the game goes on w/o them.

Definately something to think about. Thanks

I think OP was looking for opinions on the specific tournaments mentioned, then Tornado11 hijacked the thread. We have played the McKinney Flamefest, and it is way out East in some fields that are okay, but it was blazing hot (Thus the name). I wouldn't recommend this tournament if you are looking for "fun" and moral building, but if your coach and team are trying to iron out some team issues then it might be a good one to go to. Attending Tournaments really depends on what your team needs to build on/work on, does your team need to play up in competition to have a measuring stick, does a team need to play "down" to get some confidence back, or is it just bonding time and does the tournament fill that need? I have not gone to Chisholm, so no opinion on it. As far as COPA, the organizers are great, I haven't done this specific tournament, but this group is really trying to bring a different feel for tournaments (think world cup), more ceremony and more emphasis on being in a tournament, than just playing several games strung together. In the end setting up a whole bunch of scrimmages may be the best bet and most cost efficient....especially during that time of year. my humble opinion and two cents.

Tiki-taka wrote:I think OP was looking for opinions on the specific tournaments mentioned, then Tornado11 hijacked the thread.   We have played the McKinney Flamefest, and it is way out East in some fields that are okay, but it was blazing hot (Thus the name).  I wouldn't recommend this tournament if you are looking for "fun" and moral building, but if your coach and team are trying to iron out some team issues then it might be a good one to go to.  Attending Tournaments really depends on what your team needs to build on/work on, does your team need to play up in competition to have a measuring stick, does a team need to play "down" to get some confidence back, or is it just bonding time and does the tournament fill that need?  I have not gone to Chisholm, so no opinion on it.  As far as COPA, the organizers are great, I haven't done this specific tournament, but this group is really trying to bring a different feel for tournaments (think world cup), more ceremony and more emphasis on being in a tournament, than just playing several games strung together.   In the end setting up a whole bunch of scrimmages may be the best bet and most cost efficient....especially during that time of year.  my humble opinion and two cents.

Good Advice. We do need to work on some stuff. We are skilled but not tough. We need to be more aggressive about getting and staying with the ball. We are also too easy on the other teams keepers. We don't make them pay for their bobbles or mistakes.