|
|
Post by ball2futbol on Sept 20, 2021 13:05:28 GMT -5
Regular season's in full swing with a handful of weeks in the books. Assuming posted scores are up to date and accurate along with eye balling games here and there, what are the early takeaways thus far?
For the most part, I tend to keep an eye on the 05, 06 and 07 girls. IMHO amongst these age groups: a few UFA additions have made them a lot stronger within ECNL. With the exception of the 05's, I personally expected more from GSA's younger teams but still plenty of time. AFU is doing what AFU does. CF Platinum maintaining its dominance, though a very talented 05 team struggles continue. CF Premier on par with previous SSA season but not up to CF expectations, just yet.
ECNL RL appears to be significant upgrade in organization and admin, from SCCL for those teams. Parents and players appear very happy with an eventful season and exposure to new competition outside of GA/FL.
TH Gold is rolling over everyone in GAL, not sure if that's actually a good thing! Player exodus severely impacted all teams at TH that aren't "Gold". AFC holding its own in GAL with solid teams. SSA, may take a seasons or three to recover from CF alliance. But could recover faster if another wave of TH players make the move. 06's proved that model would allow SSA to be competitive.
RSC is as advertised, living up to expectations as DPL contender. Future alliance with an area club would warrant a move to GAL sooner than later. TH W/L records will remain top of all brackets but competition within SE DPL still questionable and TH teams have weakened.
Just my general observations, curious to hear feedback from others.
|
|
|
|
Post by takingitallin on Sept 20, 2021 13:52:45 GMT -5
You follow the same teams and age groups that we do.
Some additional food for thought from GAL...TH Gold has not played IMG yet and they will likely prove a huge challenge. They also have not played SSA. The SSA O6 team looks good with the exception of a big loss to IMG, who truly is a different breed of team in the league. Right now TH Gold has 12 points, IMG has 9 points and SSA has 8 points so all 3 of those teams look to be very competitive in the 06 age group. Both SSA and TH Gold have some really good local players. However, TH Gold is steamrolling ahead in 07 age group. SSA will need to continue to rebuild in that age group.
The teams that are now CF Premier that were SSA last year appear to be really struggling to find their identity still from the tournament games we've seen but not sure on regular season games.
|
|
|
|
Post by Strikeorkeep on Sept 20, 2021 15:03:51 GMT -5
You follow the same teams and age groups that we do. Some additional food for thought from GAL...TH Gold has not played IMG yet and they will likely prove a huge challenge. They also have not played SSA. The SSA O6 team looks good with the exception of a big loss to IMG, who truly is a different breed of team in the league. Right now TH Gold has 12 points, IMG has 9 points and SSA has 8 points so all 3 of those teams look to be very competitive in the 06 age group. Both SSA and TH Gold have some really good local players. However, TH Gold is steamrolling ahead in 07 age group. SSA will need to continue to rebuild in that age group. The teams that are now CF Premier that were SSA last year appear to be really struggling to find their identity still from the tournament games we've seen but not sure on regular season games. Dont count out Fl United (Weston) at the 2006 age group. Played both TH teams tough last year and this past weekend. And GSA ECNL 06 added some serious talent in the offseason (RSC top players) but have lots on injuries currently. I'd expect them to challenge as the season progresses. |
|
|
|
Post by roki12 on Sept 20, 2021 15:38:06 GMT -5
UFA is making some headway as way. The 09 group added some talent from smaller clubs (Rush) and the 07 team will give Platinum a run this year for sure.
|
|
|
|
Post by notcrazysoccerdad on Sept 20, 2021 18:47:43 GMT -5
You follow the same teams and age groups that we do. Some additional food for thought from GAL...TH Gold has not played IMG yet and they will likely prove a huge challenge. They also have not played SSA. The SSA O6 team looks good with the exception of a big loss to IMG, who truly is a different breed of team in the league. Right now TH Gold has 12 points, IMG has 9 points and SSA has 8 points so all 3 of those teams look to be very competitive in the 06 age group. Both SSA and TH Gold have some really good local players. However, TH Gold is steamrolling ahead in 07 age group. SSA will need to continue to rebuild in that age group. The teams that are now CF Premier that were SSA last year appear to be really struggling to find their identity still from the tournament games we've seen but not sure on regular season games. The 06 IMG team is fantastic, and the SSA game showed they are in a different tier, probably along with the TH Gold team (which should be a great matchup in a couple of weeks). With that said, I don't think either team is unbeatable. SSA is still moving people around and learning each other - they might be more competitive when they figure things out some. They have had a couple of breakdowns that led to goals in the last minute, or they would have 2 more wins. Also looking forward to seeing TH Navy play - they had 2 draws last weekend against Florida teams. Will be interested to see what they have. The 07 TH Gold team looked a little ho-hum this weekend against the Palm Beach squad. Despite the 5-0 score line, they were only up 1-0 at half and benefited from the heat on the field and a deeper bench. Wasn't blown away by their technique or speed. I'm sure they will roll most squads in GAL, but I don't think they are as dominant as some might think. |
|
|
|
Post by BubbleDad on Sept 20, 2021 23:14:11 GMT -5
DPL seems to be a toss up in the 06 age group. Tophat looked dominant but only beat AFC Lightning by 2 and loss to Inter by 1. Inter's record looks great but Tophat and RSC just had bad performances against them considering RSC turned around the next day and beat AFC Lightning by 7.
SSA and RSC have picked up some former Hatters that are showing they are an asset.
Tophat and RSC travel to Triangle and Wake this weekend while SSA hosts Hoosier Vestavia this weekend.
Bunch of ppl left Tophat 06 age group b/c of the lack of promotion and the club's consistent pursuit to look outward and not inward for talent. New 06 team is made up of mostly CF (one from ECNL), AFU, UFA and a handful of original Hatters.
I'm predicting the top 3 at the end of the season will be Tophat, SSA and RSC.
|
|
|
|
Post by notcrazysoccerdad on Sept 21, 2021 7:20:38 GMT -5
DPL seems to be a toss up in the 06 age group. Tophat looked dominant but only beat AFC Lightning by 2 and loss to Inter by 1. Inter's record looks great but Tophat and RSC just had bad performances against them considering RSC turned around the next day and beat AFC Lightning by 7. SSA and RSC have picked up some former Hatters that are showing they are an asset. Tophat and RSC travel to Triangle and Wake this weekend while SSA hosts Hoosier Vestavia this weekend. Bunch of ppl left Tophat 06 age group b/c of the lack of promotion and the club's consistent pursuit to look outward and not inward for talent. New 06 team is made up of mostly CF (one from ECNL), AFU, UFA and a handful of original Hatters. I'm predicting the top 3 at the end of the season will be Tophat, SSA and RSC. The 06 SSA DPL team is the one that came in 2nd nationally in NPL last year. Great team. |
|
|
|
Post by justwatching on Sept 21, 2021 7:57:06 GMT -5
UFA is making some headway as way. The 09 group added some talent from smaller clubs (Rush) and the 07 team will give Platinum a run this year for sure. That UFA 09 team has always been good and a couple of the Rush additions are very good players. I would expect them to be at the top of the ECNL table. It would be a fun match to see them play Tophat's 09s potentially in a spring tournament. I agree that for the 07 ECNL match ups UFA and CF Platinum will be the game to watch. The others probably won't be very competitive outside of Jacksonville. GSA 07s losing their top player to Platinum looks like it really hurt them. They have had a significant drop off in the standings thus far and are back to where they were their U13 year. Similar situation with TBU on the Florida side. They went from the top/second in the final standings the last couple years to middle bottom after what sounds like several girls going back to the original clubs (West Florida Flames (GA) and Florida Premier (ECNL-R). With GAL Tophat and Weston had some pretty competitive matchups across a few ages. The 06 Gold won on a last few seconds pk and Navy tied them. The 05 Gold game was a great matchup as well. Tophat Gold lost to Weston in the semis or quarters of the playoffs but got some payback this past weekend. Tophat vs Weston(next round) and Tophat vs IMG across most age groups looks like should be good games to watch. |
|
|
|
Post by ball2futbol on Sept 21, 2021 7:57:27 GMT -5
You follow the same teams and age groups that we do. Some additional food for thought from GAL...TH Gold has not played IMG yet and they will likely prove a huge challenge. They also have not played SSA. The SSA O6 team looks good with the exception of a big loss to IMG, who truly is a different breed of team in the league. Right now TH Gold has 12 points, IMG has 9 points and SSA has 8 points so all 3 of those teams look to be very competitive in the 06 age group. Both SSA and TH Gold have some really good local players. However, TH Gold is steamrolling ahead in 07 age group. SSA will need to continue to rebuild in that age group. The teams that are now CF Premier that were SSA last year appear to be really struggling to find their identity still from the tournament games we've seen but not sure on regular season games. The 06 IMG team is fantastic, and the SSA game showed they are in a different tier, probably along with the TH Gold team (which should be a great matchup in a couple of weeks). With that said, I don't think either team is unbeatable. SSA is still moving people around and learning each other - they might be more competitive when they figure things out some. They have had a couple of breakdowns that led to goals in the last minute, or they would have 2 more wins. Also looking forward to seeing TH Navy play - they had 2 draws last weekend against Florida teams. Will be interested to see what they have. The 07 TH Gold team looked a little ho-hum this weekend against the Palm Beach squad. Despite the 5-0 score line, they were only up 1-0 at half and benefited from the heat on the field and a deeper bench. Wasn't blown away by their technique or speed. I'm sure they will roll most squads in GAL, but I don't think they are as dominant as some might think. Maybe I am a bit biased but I do think the 07's are the most competitive age group in the metro. Lots of good talent across multiple teams fun to watch for the next few years. Sounds like 06 talent has spread out across several clubs making it very interesting. Like to see CF Plat vs TH Gold 06's and 07's matchup! Can't see how it benefits TH Gold or it's players, to compete in a league were your inter-club scrimmages are more intense than 9 out of 10 reg season games, until you get to a nat. showcase. Don't know IMG's league history but what happens if they decide to make a move or receive an invite to ECNL? Are there any safeguards in place to prevent that from happening or maybe ECNL isn't a fan of the school/club model IDK. |
|
|
|
Post by oraclesfriend on Sept 21, 2021 8:13:08 GMT -5
The 06 IMG team is fantastic, and the SSA game showed they are in a different tier, probably along with the TH Gold team (which should be a great matchup in a couple of weeks). With that said, I don't think either team is unbeatable. SSA is still moving people around and learning each other - they might be more competitive when they figure things out some. They have had a couple of breakdowns that led to goals in the last minute, or they would have 2 more wins. Also looking forward to seeing TH Navy play - they had 2 draws last weekend against Florida teams. Will be interested to see what they have. The 07 TH Gold team looked a little ho-hum this weekend against the Palm Beach squad. Despite the 5-0 score line, they were only up 1-0 at half and benefited from the heat on the field and a deeper bench. Wasn't blown away by their technique or speed. I'm sure they will roll most squads in GAL, but I don't think they are as dominant as some might think. Maybe I am a bit biased but I do think the 07's are the most competitive age group in the metro. Lots of good talent across multiple teams fun to watch for the next few years. Sounds like 06 talent has spread out across several clubs making it very interesting. Like to see CF Plat vs TH Gold 06's and 07's matchup! Can't see how it benefits TH Gold or it's players, to compete in a league were your inter-club scrimmages are more intense than 9 out of 10 reg season games, until you get to a nat. showcase. Don't know IMG's league history but what happens if they decide to make a move or receive an invite to ECNL? Are there any safeguards in place to prevent that from happening or maybe ECNL isn't a fan of the school/club model IDK. IMG is not the only competitor to TH in GA. It just varies by age group. Weston (now called Florida United) is very strong in some age groups. USA 04 was a good team last year and per friends it is still a very good team this year. Plus GA added a "Champions League" competition to get the best clubs in each region playing each other so they will have 6 games like that. Regardless TH was shut out of ECNL by other clubs and ECNL top brass so it is irrelevant what they want for their players. They have to make it work with what they have. As for IMG going ECNL apparently thus far they have not wanted to do it. Again friends whose kids have been recruited by them have asked. GA just has to build things up to the best of their abilities. |
|
|
|
Post by BubbleDad on Sept 21, 2021 12:10:01 GMT -5
DPL seems to be a toss up in the 06 age group. Tophat looked dominant but only beat AFC Lightning by 2 and loss to Inter by 1. Inter's record looks great but Tophat and RSC just had bad performances against them considering RSC turned around the next day and beat AFC Lightning by 7. SSA and RSC have picked up some former Hatters that are showing they are an asset. Tophat and RSC travel to Triangle and Wake this weekend while SSA hosts Hoosier Vestavia this weekend. Bunch of ppl left Tophat 06 age group b/c of the lack of promotion and the club's consistent pursuit to look outward and not inward for talent. New 06 team is made up of mostly CF (one from ECNL), AFU, UFA and a handful of original Hatters. I'm predicting the top 3 at the end of the season will be Tophat, SSA and RSC. The 06 SSA DPL team is the one that came in 2nd nationally in NPL last year. Great team. What was the difference in the 2 National tourneys? Roswell was in the one in Denver a week later for US Club Soccer. It also had NPL, ECRL and ECNL teams. |
|
|
|
Post by BubbleDad on Sept 21, 2021 12:14:12 GMT -5
The 06 IMG team is fantastic, and the SSA game showed they are in a different tier, probably along with the TH Gold team (which should be a great matchup in a couple of weeks). With that said, I don't think either team is unbeatable. SSA is still moving people around and learning each other - they might be more competitive when they figure things out some. They have had a couple of breakdowns that led to goals in the last minute, or they would have 2 more wins. Also looking forward to seeing TH Navy play - they had 2 draws last weekend against Florida teams. Will be interested to see what they have. The 07 TH Gold team looked a little ho-hum this weekend against the Palm Beach squad. Despite the 5-0 score line, they were only up 1-0 at half and benefited from the heat on the field and a deeper bench. Wasn't blown away by their technique or speed. I'm sure they will roll most squads in GAL, but I don't think they are as dominant as some might think. Maybe I am a bit biased but I do think the 07's are the most competitive age group in the metro. Lots of good talent across multiple teams fun to watch for the next few years. Sounds like 06 talent has spread out across several clubs making it very interesting. Like to see CF Plat vs TH Gold 06's and 07's matchup! Can't see how it benefits TH Gold or it's players, to compete in a league were your inter-club scrimmages are more intense than 9 out of 10 reg season games, until you get to a nat. showcase. Don't know IMG's league history but what happens if they decide to make a move or receive an invite to ECNL? Are there any safeguards in place to prevent that from happening or maybe ECNL isn't a fan of the school/club model IDK. '06 is by far more competitive than '07. At Tophat, there wasn't much movement from mid to top b/c of all of the talent across the city to pick from. Tophat SCCL ... which was the 4th team ... was handling DPL teams while in U14 and U15. I wish Tophat got 2 DPL teams like CF got 2 ECRL teams. |
|
|
|
Post by mightydawg on Sept 21, 2021 15:36:23 GMT -5
The 06 SSA DPL team is the one that came in 2nd nationally in NPL last year. Great team. What was the difference in the 2 National tourneys? Roswell was in the one in Denver a week later for US Club Soccer. It also had NPL, ECRL and ECNL teams. You had the NPL Finals, which were July 8-12 in Denver. Then you had the U.S. Club National Cup Finals, which were July 16-20 in Denver. NPL was limited to NPL teams. National Cup Finals were for any U.S. Club registered teams that qualified, which included SCCL, ECNL, ECRL, and NPL. Teams in 13-U through 18/19-U age groups advance to the National Cup Finals by winning a National Cup XX Regional or through qualifying state cups. Titles are awarded in two divisions: Super Group (most competitive) and Premier Group. |
|
