Could it be True?

The goalie for FCD Blue, I get it, is the talk of this thread, but what about Stark's (entire) D3 team moving up to D1 to take the Texans South spot? Is everyone here going to bash them too? Every team has had changes. Everyone needs to kinda calm down and just see how it all plays out.

It goes to show by some of your comments that you really don't know an are assuming you are in the know. There are girls playing PPL who could start D1 or D2. They take footskills training, speed training team training. Why would you just assume they don't. I've seen 3 goalies in PPL capable of starting in D1 and this is also the opinion of GK trainiers. Surprise! these girls love their teams an don't need hype of D1or2 and neither do their parents. Everyone who plays against them know they are really good. Not saying the teams only the gk.

It's always funny to read posts from parents who are trying to redeem their own athletic failures by manically manufacturing their own children's success, then brag about it on a stupid message board....

yo#10 wrote:This will offend some but my belief that it's true. Very few is any ppl players can compete at D1 level. Perhaps top of D2 can compete - that's it. You say you parents are as into it- well maybe here on the forum, but are you driving your dd to additional practice, lessons, speed and conditioning , etc etc every night of the week , including weekend? Training with THE BEST and being coached by THE BEST, makes d1 players , THE BEST -most athletic players around. Period. There may be a select few that slip through the cracks,but unless their parents are blind they quickly move them to a level that is comparable. Skill , athletism, commitment, mentality is just very different at D1as opposed to ppl- sorry!

I disagree completely & agree with SoccerSounder, Coach&Ref & Twitch. Let's take a step back for a second. We are talking about 12/13 year olds. Believe it or not, over the next 3 years, some of the top players on the "top" teams will no longer be playing soccer; boys (ugh), other sports or burn out will take them out of soccer. They will also all go through physical changes so that some who are fast will slow down, while others will speed up. There will also begin to be severe injuries (hopefully to nobody's DD reading this) that will impact / alter DD's soccer future as well. As these events unfold, coaches will replace talent with the best talent they can find & I promise you they don't care where the DD was; if she can play, they will take her. I know a number of ppl D1 players that moved to D3 & D2 teams this year, and while I don't know first hand, I suspect some might have even ended up on d1 teams. Believe it or not there actually players outside of D1 that go to skills training, speed & agility and do choose to stay on a lower division team due to friends, coaches or other reasons. Also, some players come into form later than others like Wondoloski (ignore his choke; still makes my point).

You are so right! Everyone is different progression and there are some really good players in PPL for whatever reason. Also I looked but do not see any FCD Blue team in PPL last season.

Our team (00 D1) picked up two girls out of Plano last season and both became contributing goal scorers on the team by seasons end.

My goalie had only played rec before we made classic last year. She will walk onto any d-1 team and start. There are some goalies out there in ppl, all, & yes even rec who will surprise you.

Saw a PPL girl come out last year for us, go to a d1 team and is ecnl this year. They are there. Not all players or girls want to play at a high level at 8 (nor is it appropriate for that particular girl). The fact that a girl doesn't start there doesn't mean she won't wind up on an upper level team when she is ready. There is a significant difference between a girl who has diversified her athletics and one who has been sitting on a couch and then decides to play...those skills and athleticism can translate for someone who is raw but athletic.

JE5 wrote:My goalie had only played rec before we made classic last year.  She will walk onto any d-1 team and start.  There are some goalies out there in ppl, all, & yes even rec who will surprise you.

So true. Your goalie was one of the best I saw play last year.

dadof3 wrote:Saw a PPL girl come out last year for us, go to a d1 team and is ecnl this year. They are there. Not all players or girls want to play at a high level at 8 (nor is it appropriate for that particular girl). The fact that a girl doesn't start there doesn't mean she won't wind up on an upper level team when she is ready. There is a significant difference between a girl who has diversified her athletics and one who has been sitting on a couch and then decides to play...those skills and athleticism can translate for someone who is raw but athletic.

Dadof3, if you don't mind then please pm me the ECNL team that the PPL league player is on. I believe your DD is an '00 correct? I know the rosters of Texans, Sting and Solar '00 ECNL pretty well and there is no PPL ECNL player on those rosters. Not all ECNL teams are created equal. Being on the roster doesn't necessarily mean the player is actually on the team and plays in a game see the '00 ECNL rosters of Solar, Sting and FCD and you'll see several girls w/ zero games played. I'm not suggesting that it's not possible for a PPL player to make an ECNL roster but it's certainly not the norm. I would like to see the player that has done this and assess her myself. There are always outliers.

It's certainly possible that a goalie makes the leap from any division to the top division. I would go as far as saying that the better goalies actually take the lower division route because the get to see more shots. I've seen it happen several times (see Solar '00 ECNL 2nd goalie who moved from PPL to D1 to ECNL in 2 years and shares time 50/50 w/ a D1 lifer or FCD '00 ECNL goalie who moved from D2 to ECNL starter in 1 year). Goalies are different from field players though. I've got my eye on an '03 goalie that is on a lower division team that will make some noise come next year or the year after when she steps into the limelight if her dad plays it right.

No problem. She came out to look at SG last year and decided to go to a D1 team instead. Came off a PPL roster. Will play hs w my dd this year as well. Was on the roster last year as a dual. The word I get from dd is that she isn't going back into LH. Gonna play ecnl only.

PM coming now.

I know an 00 girl that made the the PPL to ECNL jump last year. Watched her play at DGIC tournament. She has a teammate from her PPL team that in my opinion could also make that jump, actually I think she'd make the jump easily, but has chosen not to.

There are still some very talented players that most of LH rarely sees. They are the same players that produce the upsets that make everyone scratch their head and say, "how'd that happen"?

Most of the best players are with the best teams and in the best leagues, BUT NOT ALL.

Pale Rider wrote:I know an 00 girl that made the the PPL to ECNL jump last year. Watched her play at DGIC tournament. She has a teammate from her PPL team that in my opinion could also make that jump, actually I think she'd make the jump easily, but has chosen not to.

There are still some very talented players that most of LH rarely sees.  They are the same players that produce the upsets that make everyone scratch their head and say, "how'd that happen"?

Most of the best players are with the best teams and in the best leagues, BUT NOT ALL.  

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Yes, this '00 is a very good player and joined ECNL from PPL w/o missing a beat. I think this is very rare but I have seen this happen in both '00s and '98s. Coaches don't spend the time to find these players because of the ROI but there are girls out there developing at varying stages of their youth. Actually, it's nice to see!

Seems most responses are from non D1 parents, truth is hard but I have seen very very few non D1players who can hang, my opinion- sorry man. Love to hear from top D1 parents not ppl

Also all you who swear ppl keepers can step up and play D1 are based the keepers play against ppl girls. D1girls have more powerful shots than ppl girls, the players make sharper passing combos change directions quicker etcetcetc It's a whole diff works - you can gauge ppl players against d1 players until you put the ppl girls in a D1 game.

yo#10 wrote:Seems most responses are from non D1 parents, truth is hard but  I have seen very  very few non D1players who can hang, my opinion- sorry man. Love to hear from top D1 parents not ppl

Didn't mean to jump on '02 thread but my references are both rare strikers who made their way up to ECNL. As far as GKs, this is more common than a field player but still rare <10%. I'm aware of PPL GK just signed to ECNL this month and one PPL GK a few years ago jumped to D1 then to be a top national US player. My point is this does happen but it is rare. BTW - I'm both an ECNL and LHGCL top D1 parent   

My experience is w a forward and my dd is on Solar Gold 00, not a PPL team. Also, the girl I referenced was in a 19 team PPL D1 when she came out to us, so she would have actually been PPL D2 by today's standards...when she stepped out w us, we were going into D2, and she would have pushed for starting minutes w us, but opted for a D1 team (which led to ECNL).

I agree that the pace of the game is the hardest thing for those girls to adjust to, so it takes (usually) about 6 months to play as fast, but they can "catch up" with coaching and work. Especially if the practices are designed to aid in pace of play.

Under '02 Tryouts: "D1 Goalie Looking for an Opening," Zizou posted that "Renfro is still in need of a starting keeper."  If it were my daughter, seems like my money would go a lot further if she had more playing time instead of sitting on the FCD bench.  Putting your daughter on a D1 team doesn't make her automatically better even with practice, keeper and endurance training.  Game time helps.  

Does any of this have to do with parent ego?

Bird's Eye View wrote:Under '02 Tryouts: "D1 Goalie Looking for an Opening," Zizou posted that "Renfro is still in need of a starting keeper."  If it were my daughter, seems like my money would go a lot further if she had more playing time instead of sitting on the FCD bench.  Putting your daughter on a D1 team doesn't make her automatically better even with practice, keeper and endurance training.  Game time helps.  

Does any of this have to do with parent ego?

Players at this age need to be on the field playing games, as many games as possible, to develop their game skills that cannot develop with practices.  That concept is especially true for GK.  Sitting on the bench or playing 1/2 game WILL NOT benefit a GK development for the next level.  For a GK, is it really matter that she is in a team that is on the bottom of LHGCL D1???  Honestly, it is better that she is on a weak team with a weak defense that she plays 100% of the time,  every game and against the best forwards/midfielders that D1 can offer.  Surely it'd be tough mentally and physically for her to take a beating every week.  However, there is nothing better than that situation can help prepare for the next level.  So if I have a DD who is good enough to D1 GK and who is hoping for ECNL next year I'd tell her to sign up with FCD Blue-a perfect team for her development this year!  Everybody wants to be part of a winning team.  Parents of a winning team think they are winners too by sitting/standing on the sideline with burgers and coke in their hands.  It's so addictive especially when a coach tells you how great your DD is.  Every time you hear a coach tell you that how great your DD is, you should say to him/her "now that my DD is so great, will she be the only GK or a starting defender/midfielder/striker with a lot of playing time for every game for the entire year????"   If she is that great why is she sitting on bench???  Bench warmers are not starters for a good reason in D1-the coach does not think she is not good enough to help the team win!

I'm sure the jump happens but not that often. D1 is very much a step up from ppl . Had kids in both and I can't imagine either going to the other. I think d1 is for the more driven athletically gifted yet hard worker, some talent in ppl but just not quite as serious . My 02 would think her sisters ppl was a joke and not serious enough, and my 99 would think the 02 girls were crazy and too rough and " didn't have a life outside of soccer" . I think the mind set is different. My 02 doesn't have a life outside of soccer but that's how she wants it.

Keepers are different. FWFC D3 keep last year is now Fever D1 keep, she was in Arlington the year before that.

dadof3 wrote:No problem. She came out to look at SG last year and decided to go to a D1 team instead. Came off a PPL roster. Will play hs w my dd this year as well. Was on the roster last year as a dual. The word I get from dd is that she isn't going back into LH. Gonna play ecnl only.

PM coming now.

Thanks for the PM Do3. It looks like the player you were referring to got her only shot at the end of the season and has parlayed that into a full-time roster spot next year. Kudos for her and the family.

As a keeper mom I am just shocked at some of these posts. While my dd is in LHGCL D2 we choice to remain on our current team for now going on year 3. She has been offered the starting GK position on several D1 teams the past 3 years. We actually got calls from 2 D1 coaches this year trying to recruit her.

A good goal keeping coach will tell starting select GK to be on a D2 (mid of the road) team. This allows the GK to get the most shots on goal in a real game situation. A lot of those D1 keepers sit in the goal box the entire game with little action on goal. I don't care what parents say "My GK gets a lot of action at team practice." That is not the same as an in game experience. At practice there isn't the game pressure or quick reaction to the situation coming at them.

I will be the first to tell you I truly don't care if my dd is on a D1 team. I want her on a competitive team. I want her on a team with a good coach that cares about making her a better all around player. I want her on a team that has good girls (well rounded on and off the field). I also want her part of a team that has a good parent structure. I can say that we have all the above and I wouldn't trade that just so I can brag to my friends that my kid plays for D1 team.

At the end of the day I know where my dd stands against other GK in her LHGCL I don't need rankings or D1/D2 or D3 to tell me my dd's potential. She shows that at every game she plays.

"At the end of the day I know where my dd stands against other GK in her LHGCL I don't need rankings or D1/D2 or D3 to tell me my dd's potential. She shows that at every game she plays."


+1 & amen

I heard Louis Van Gaal uses PPL keepers all the time.

lovesoccer wrote:
At the end of the day I know where my dd stands against other GK in her LHGCL I don't need rankings or D1/D2 or D3 to tell me my dd's potential. She shows that at every game she plays.  

I heard that Jill Ellis is looking for a GK in D2. Your daughter is in perfect place.