Spring Tryouts and Club Soccer in Ohio

 

Spring Tryouts and Club Soccer in Ohio

    As youth soccer tryouts begin to wrap up in the Midwest, many parents begin to ask themselves "why is this process so convoluted?". Our goal is to help disseminate three of the most common tryout myths and roadblocks that parents and players will encounter each year.

Myth 1: You must attend every night of tryouts to secure a "good" offer at a new club.

    The reality is much more convoluted. In light of the constant battle for supremacy between US Youth Soccer and US Club--resulting in the lack of guidelines for tryout dates--all tryouts have essentially become a veritable free-for-all. In an effort to not "fall behind", many clubs have heavily relied upon open training sessions to identify top contenders for spots on National, Regional, and Local teams. Often times, these open trainings can be where "good" offers emerge. Reach out to your target club to see if they offer open trainings in the Spring.

A general guideline is that the more competitive the team your child is looking to play for, the more looks you will need to have. For example: if a club is offering 3 nights of tryouts for a Regional level team that your child is adamant on earning a spot for, you should attend a minimum of 2 nights of tryouts. A Local team may only warrant 1 night of tryouts, allowing for looks at more clubs.

Myth 2: High level leagues are the most important thing when deciding on an offer.

    Again, the truth is somewhere in the middle. Parents need to evaluate what their child's goals are and if that team and staff can support those goals. For example: if a team is slated to play in E64, NPL, or ECNL-RL as a top team in the club but the player's skills do not lend themselves to this being a successful endeavor, parents and players may quickly become disenchanted as they travel large distances to have minimal success. 

    If you are looking at a new club, the questions we would ask are:   

1. What composition of the team will be the same from this last season?

2. What was this team's record and what league did they play in?

3. What are the credentials of the coach leading this team?

4. Is this the same coach as the last season? Why or why not?

4. Why was this new league selected?

A club should not strictly choose a league based on prestige or because it is the highest they have been accepted to, it should be because the team will face opponents with a comparable level of skill. 

Myth 3: You have to accept your spot immediately.

    As the consumer in this transaction, you hold a lot of the power. That doesn't mean that clubs won't hold you to a deadline--they are a business and they have to finalize their rosters eventually--but you are always at liberty to request an extension on your offer if you are between two clubs that hold tryouts in different weeks. Many parents feel pressured to accept a spot immediately because the club will set a looming deadline in front of them. 

    A fair warning: if you are still weighing your options for higher level teams this may not be an option. Clubs require a higher degree of engagement and commitment for their National and Regional teams, and if you let them know that you are on the fence about accepting a spot some clubs are known to rescind their offers. The best advice we can offer is to know what your goals are, and know which club is your target club so you can be best prepared to act.

What If?

What if I made the wrong choice? What if my child didn't make the team they wanted? What if they didn't make any team?

    Fortunately, there is no such thing as a "right" choice when it comes to clubs. Unfortunately, there are definitely "wrong" choices. Maybe the club has a different culture to what you're wanting, maybe the club has hidden fees, maybe the club made promises that they couldn't uphold. This is where research, self-reflection, and open lines of communication are incredibly important. 

    If your child did not make the team that they wanted, or they did not make any team, there are always supplemental tryouts. It may be a matter of your child not getting enough looks during the first round of tryouts, and they needed additional opportunities in front of evaluators. Our advice here would be to know your target club's tryout, supplemental tryout, and internal "promotion" policies so that you can understand your best course of action.