We are so fortunate
here in the lowcountry to have FIVE soccer clubs within a 30 mile radius offering tryout opportunities.
I know we had people working really hard to provide a place to combine the challenge level players and we have clubs making changes/additions that they believe to be best.
Thanks for what you've done, and keep plugging at it.
I hope everyone that commits to a team actually has a team with enough players at the end of the day.
4Lowcountry...good point about having enough players to field a team. It has been a problem at some clubs. Barely enough to field a team. Especially at the 11 v 11 level.
I imagine if one lowcountry club managed to be universally considered as the best option for everyone, then the players would naturally gather at that one club. Until then, people will continue to go where they think they can get the best bang for their buck.
If you want to gather the best all in one place, the way to do it is by BEING the best...not by asking the competition to fold for convenience. Gather players by being their best choice, not by removing their other choices.
This may be a dumb question, but hey, my brain's fried and my final is in a week, so I blame that.
The Lowcountry has always had multiple clubs offering classic/challenge level teams. It used to be Hungryneck, SSC, and JIYSC, then for the girls came Carolina Girls as well. For a long time it was Hungryneck that dominated as The Club for championships and consistent quality, with several exceptional teams scattered amongst the other clubs as well, most notably Andy Grist's Fusion.
What exactly, if any, was the point where everything fractured into bare minimum team rosters and split talents? Was it when Hungryneck became MPSC? When Bridge showed up and tried to recruit away from everyone else? Was it just a fluke of quality in age groups that turned people to other clubs? Or quality in leadership? Or just people moving away from Mount Pleasant and choosing other, more available clubs?
Not that it solves everything, but we obviously had the opportunity for similar divisiveness before. Perhaps there's some evidence in the change that could somehow be used later on if anyone is ever capable of eliminating the divisiveness that causes such minimum roster teams and petty off-field rivalries.
I think Trident United would argue that HungryNeck was not always the most dominant club in the Lowcountry. The activity between the clubs is pretty cyclical. The same worries and arguements have been happening since I was playing in the early - mid 1990s. The players seem to hold together as a team at whichever club to various level of success. There still hasn't been one CLUB that has been able to create an environment to nuture teams of all ages, gender, and levels.