SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Girls Varsity Soccer 2011 Viking Cup

It is truly amazing that whenever anyone questions, or does not follow the directives of a Club, it is a "conspiracy".

The unfortunate situation of all of this, as I have had children playing high school for the past 9 years, and we have played Club since prior to the 1st grade (at levels up to and including Premier) is that up until the last couple of years Club and High School could easily co-exist as there were few, if any schedule conflicts. Now there are scheduling conflicts and it will only get worse. Yes, I do think if most Clubs had there way, the kids would not play high school. And I think it is headed this way.

Of course the Club will win out, as they have most people convinced they have to do these events to get a college offer. Of course, again (as seen on these posts) what is the offer, where is the offer, etc., etc...

so whats your point scwame??IM SURE ITS SOME KINDA BS SUPPORTING YOUR VIEWS ON cesa??maybe you and titan can blog together and share thoughts on how wonderful the king and his harem are!!Ive read many of your posts and what you say in them is far from the way you act(along with your husband)on the sideline!!Christ Church isnt going to viking cup and even if they did your daughter will be playing at ecnl.If you want to comment about that do it on the club forum.

Wow! Ought to be an interesting match tonight. Might be more action on the sidelines than on the field.

Don't include me in your personal problem with this other family, and I will comment where I like. Facts are facts, they don't have an opinion. Just because you don't like the facts doesn't change them. The facts are that in High school the level of play varies greatly through no fault of the kids or the coaches. This leads to inferior players playing in a dangerous way to compete with better players and better teams and exposes all players to greater risk. If you want to blame someone then blame us parents as they are the ones who chose to live in an area that is not supported by the better clubs. I know every time I got reassigned or transferred, finding quality Soccer for my daughter was at the top of the list. Yes, fella, like it or not you are to blame.
I have never touted CESA's horn as I don't have the first hand experience to do so. I can only speak about the club my daughter plays for. I do know plenty of players in our community that travel to play at CESA and they have a good experience, and speak highly of the club.
In HS, the level of play difference is very evident at tournaments like the "Viking Cup". You have all the elements for injury: highly charged environment, great differences in player and team skills, very poor fields, and very poor officiating. To make matter worse if you are successful, you play 5-6 games in 48 hours. This is too much, and the diminished level of pace and play on Sunday shows this every year.

On a friendly note Since you are a transplant, where are you transplanted from? We moved here a few years ago ourselves. Remember this is only for fun.

Why do the list of teams that play in the viking cup change very little from year to year? Yes..There are the strong teams that compete but there are teams that have not had much success in the cup..Should a team be "in" just because they always play in the cup?

cht,

I don't think it has anything to do with the amount of success you have "in the cup". It has to do with how much success you have during your season. Each year Coach Lea looks to fill the 32-team field with the best teams in the state.

It's merit-based according to how well your team did the previous year.

So are these 2011 brackets firm or still somewhat tentative?

http://www.southcarolinaunitedfc.com/hstournaments/vikingcup/index_E.html

To say the Viking Cup is merit based cannot be taken as entirely true. Nor could one say that the 32 best teams in the state attend.

The Viking Cup is the premier high school tournament for girls in South Carolina. Most of the top teams attend because it offers them good competition and a nice, large tourney atmosphere.

Some teams attend year in, year out and have neither the regular season record to back up their selection, nor the tournament record to back up a repeated invitation.

Is there anything crooked about this... probably not. Sometimes the coach of a mediocre team wants to go to a top level tournament for good reasons (to show his girls what that level of play requires, for the experience of tough competition before season play begins, to say he got to go to the Viking Cup). In the end, all of those reasons are justifiable.

Some teams get, or have gotten, repeated invites to the Viking Cup namely because it's probably difficult for one coach to peruse the records of countless teams, create a merit system based on quantitative statistics, and then call a coach he's known for 14 years and tell him, "Sorry bud, but we can let you come this year." Is this the good old boy system that the South is reknown for? Maybe, but again, probably not. It's just easier to let some teams that aren't top level squads continue to attend until their coach sees the writing on the wall.

Some teams also get to attend for the first time ever, pull an upset or tie a top squad, and thus create an interesting storyline for the season ahead.

The Viking Cup is not crooked. It is not perfect. It is the most prestigious girls high school soccer tournament in the state of South Carolina. Is it the BEST? That is debatable.

So, to answer a question posted earlier, should a team be "in" just because they previously attended the cup? No. Has this happened before? Yes. Does this mean the system is hugely flawed? No. Will the world continue spinning on its axis? Yes. Is the Viking Cup still a quality tournament that draws the interest of top teams year in, year out? Yes.

Overall it looks like a good field. Top to bottom delta is pretty big, though.