The '92 group did have a large exit last year, but controversy associated with the '92 group began long before RS became the coach. If he were not as respected by and cared for by the 12 that went to Regionals there would not have been the pre-game objection to his not coaching what became the team's last game.
By the end of group play this group of 12 had achieved as much success at Regionals as any CESA girls team ('90-'95) had achieved for at least the last 4 years. My thought is that he should have been with '92 team, even though I know he was between a rock and a hard place. However, that doesn't mean I don't respect what RS did for the team and my daughter over the last 4 years. I doubt my daughter would have gotten the opportunity to return to the team had RS not taken it over.
As for the departure of players from previous Premier and Challenge teams, let's say I fully understand the sentiment of those players and parents. That said, I believe the players added to this year's roster proved they were quite capable of filling those vacated positions, and further that those players proved they could/should have been on the roster all along. Any other absences of players from Regionals, in my opinion, seemed to serve more as incentive to the 12 that attended. While there, the 12 were more focused on competing and winning than complaining about the players that didn't finish the run.
As for "defections" in general, I heard that after 3 players sustained injuries the u-16's played their last game with only 11. I may be corrected by someone closer to that team, but my understanding is they only took 14 because 4 players left the team after State Cup. There may a common thread associated with "defections" to be discussed elsewhere, but I don't think the common thread is RS.
(edit... the last paragraph refers to the u-16 girls not boys.)
Last edited by DeltaDog; 06/29/11 09:50 PM.
