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Post by Soccerhouse on Nov 18, 2013 12:37:59 GMT -5
Do people like the concept of superclubs and mergers etcs.
ssa taking over cobbs previously.
tysa/gsa/atlanta spurs
concorde-ssa
other club merger rumors
to me it seems alot about chasing the almighty dollar to be able to fully fund DA.
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Post by fan on Nov 18, 2013 15:48:05 GMT -5
I'm not sold on the benefits of superclubs that merge even though the clubs are not located very close together. For example, what are the benefits to the kids at Oconee or South Georgia to be part of SSA? They live too far for most (or any) of them to play on top teams that may train out of Cobb. I can see the benefit of clubs relatively close together merging. I think in the case of tysa/gsa/spurs, they are close enough together that the teams could truly be merged. In the age group that I'm most familiar with (U13 girls), they are going to have 2 teams in A next season. Had they stayed separate, I don't think that would have happened.
There are a couple smaller clubs near me. They seem to do pretty well at the academy level but tend to fall apart around U13 or U14. The top players want to play on teams where everyone is as strong a player as they are so they go somewhere else. Clubs with 1-2 teams in an age group seem to have trouble sustaining the teams from one year to the next. In the superclubs I can see how it benefits the top players/teams but do the C-level players and below get lost in the shuffle? Maybe mergers that fall somewhere in the middle (between small clubs and mega mergers) are the best?
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Post by silverback on Nov 18, 2013 16:28:17 GMT -5
IMO, you need to look at this from two perspectives. The younger age groups (youth academy) and the older age group (Select). As I have mentioned in past, younger age groups should should focus on development, which would not necessarily require these super gclubs. However, having a super group structure would enable coaches to implement/enforce standard curriculums and processes which is impossible in the current club structure.
As players progress in age and want/need to compete regionally and nationally and WIN, it's important to field the best teams possible, which will require to pull from a larger player pool. This will give each team the best opportunity to be placed in showcase tournaments (or in showcase divisions at tournaments) and compete to WIN at tourney's like Disney, Dallas Cup, Jefferson Cup, etc. It hard to compete against some of the top teams like Solar/Tx which pull from much larger player pools. The depth of their bench alone is a tremendous advantage.
A super club structure will also help clubs to offset the impact of DA (for those clubs that don't offer DA) and enable them to compete better at the RPL & NPL levels, which is also excellent level soccer. And if a Super club has DA, they could still field a competitive RPL team.
There are also benefits of the smaller club structure too and I am sure folks will disagree with my comments, but once your kids get older and you see the depth of unbelievable talent out there, you might change your mind, especially if your kids want to play a the highest levels.
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Post by 4theloveofsoccer on Nov 19, 2013 10:51:58 GMT -5
I agree with what both the previous posters said. I do not understand why clubs merge together when logistically they are so far away from each other. I can understand if they are in the same vicinity of each other such as city or county.
A great point also that I agree with is in the younger Academy age groups U9-U12 teaching the kids to play the game the right way as far as teamwork, skills, decision making, spacing, and etc. is a must. It is not all about winning and scoring goals. We have played teams where the other coach is constantly yelling instructions to players like a video game - which I do not like. I can understand coaching up the team after mistakes or to help guide them, but also let the kids make their own decision and learn for themselves. We have also played teams that IMO play an unsuccessful brand of soccer of "long ball" where all they do is kick it down the field and have their athletes run after it. I do not think this will help with their development when they get older.
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Post by zizou on Nov 20, 2013 12:52:15 GMT -5
I like the idea of smaller clubs merging. Small clubs, like those that cannot field more than one uniquely rostered academy team per age group, are limited in what they can provide their players. They should form alliances as a means for serving their memberships more effectively. Or I believe they will die. I do not like the idea of big clubs merging, but i admit I have not thoroughly considered where I would draw the line if I was Soccer Czar of Georgia.
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Post by 04gparent on Nov 20, 2013 12:57:19 GMT -5
I think it depends on the goal of the club. If the club wants to compete nationally you have to merge to have strong numbers to pull together better players. It is already being done across the country. If you have a few minutes go check out the FC Dallas, Dallas Texans, or Colorado Rush and look at the number of teams they have at the Academy age groups...
If the goal of the club is to just develop players that other clubs will recruit later then size does not matter and they can just continue to try to be a boutique club...
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Post by pooldawg on Nov 23, 2013 7:10:38 GMT -5
By looking at the emerging list of champions and finalists this season, it doesn't appear that the superclubs/mergers mean that much. There are quite a number of the mid- to small-size clubs that prevailed this season.
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Post by rifle on Nov 23, 2013 9:27:07 GMT -5
Mergers allow poorly managed clubs to continue to exist, when they should actually be allowed to wither and die. Any justification other than getting the directors paid, is bullcrap. Especially when it comes to clubs that are not near one another.
If clubs had a residency program for the best players, I might feel differently. But the present day club soccer is a cash grab, bottom line.
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Post by silverback on Nov 23, 2013 11:10:38 GMT -5
By looking at the emerging list of champions and finalists this season, it doesn't appear that the superclubs/mergers mean that much. There are quite a number of the mid- to small-size clubs that prevailed this season. Curious- what age groups are you looking at? And what tournaments? If looking at older age groups, many RPL teams don't play a lot of local tournaments so you would expect smaller clubs without these teams to do well. Also, I think many smaller clubs do an excellent job of player development and since player movement doesn't happen until older ages, its reasonable some smaller clubs would do very well at the younger ages. |
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Post by soccerpapi on Nov 24, 2013 9:49:25 GMT -5
Agree with most of what has been said...But, looking at it from both perspective. Here are my thoughts on the PROs and CONs of a mega merger (there may be more or you may disagree with some of these) - feel free to add yours.
Assessing a scenario where it is a merger of quality (not just merge just to get big (volume/quantity)) - a merger of two or three clubs that perhaps complement another's weakness with its strengths. For example - a top DA club merging with a top regional/national league contender club or a club with top youth academy and developmental Coaches:
PROS
- Consolidation of talent - GA better able to compete nationally vs. the likes of TX, CA, NJ, IL
- Perhaps combining a club with strong regional brand with one with national brand
- Better development at select and higher (perhaps even at youth academy ages)
- Compete (top-3?) consistently through all age groups at all levels - DA, RPL/NL
- Combining infrastructure - lots of green space in different parts of town, indoor, turf, etc...
- One stop shop - for various phases of a player's development (parent don't have to keep re-evaluating and moving to different club when kid get to a different phase of soccer development journey depending on their ultimate goal
- More financial support through sponsorships, grants, etc..
- Better training for Coaches?
CONS
- What's in it for my kid is first assessment from parents on both merging sides?
- Logistics - practice location used to be close by - it is now on the East side of town
- Animosity amongst merging parents, players, and Coaches (disgruntled - "who wins" concerns?)
- Mega clubs having 2-3 teams in local leagues (athena/classic) turning some parents off
- New merging leadership putting clubs, coaches, and not players first
- Very poor communication during pre & post merger leading to more disgruntled parents
- Potentially less competition in the local market - leading to higher fees for parents
For the most part, I think we have too many clubs in metro-atlanta (if looking at it from a national competition perspective). It's kind of like do you like going to home depot or do you like going to Joe's local hardware store? It depends on what I'm looking for (I may need more one on one time to find that peculiar piece of hardware I'm looking for and to chit-chat, make small talk, support the local guy next door, hence Joe's may make more sense).
As silverback has said above, youth/development (pre-select) may not necessarily require a mega-club, and mega clubs may not necessarily do the best job here. Teen developmental years (select/classic/regional/national), a larger "quality" mega-club may be able to provide more exposure by pooling talent, financial/sponsorship, coaching, and training resources as well as exposure to the next level.
I am in favor, if it is a merger of quality and benefit GA as a whole (typically too many egos to successfully pull off though). However, one can also make the case that a well run, midsize club, can also effectively develop and compete locally, regionally, and nationally across age groups.
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Post by pooldawg on Nov 24, 2013 12:13:32 GMT -5
By looking at the emerging list of champions and finalists this season, it doesn't appear that the superclubs/mergers mean that much. There are quite a number of the mid- to small-size clubs that prevailed this season. Curious- what age groups are you looking at? And what tournaments? If looking at older age groups, many RPL teams don't play a lot of local tournaments so you would expect smaller clubs without these teams to do well. Also, I think many smaller clubs do an excellent job of player development and since player movement doesn't happen until older ages, its reasonable some smaller clubs would do very well at the younger ages. I'm not looking at any tournaments. I was just looking at the list of champions and finalists that are where the schedules are located on Georgia Soccer. I think there is quite the variation throughout the age groups between all sizes of clubs that have been crowned either champions or finalists. |
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