SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Club Soccer & ODP State Cup

I have no problem with the current seeding based upon how things are currently setup. You have to win all your games to be the champion. Whether that means meeting the best team early or late you will face them and have to win.

Chapindad --

I think you are a little too quick to dismiss FDR's observation that the 3rd placed team in state cup may actually be better than the team that eventually lost to the state champion and is nominally labeled "number 2".

We all know from personal experience that on a given day even an excellent team can have a subpar showing and drop a game they "should have won" to a weaker team. I humbly suggest that major league baseball figured this one out a very long time ago and that there is no need here to reinvent the wheel.

Instead of a simple "one loss and you're out, one victory and you're still in" tourny why not do a set of best 4 of 7 series where each team has to play each of the other three teams? You could add up the points and then determine with a much higher degree of certainty who is really number 1, 2, 3 and 4. Some people will argue that this system might run a bit long or be somewhat taxing on the players, but I would propose that this is a small sacrifice to make in the interest of determining who is actually the second (and third and forth) best team in the state in each age group.

lpaf

ps: I guess you could cut it down to a best 3 of 5 series and shorten the process a bit if you had to.

A simpler yet workable solution would be to simply play a 4 team round robin at state cup.That way all teams would play head to head and in theory the best 2 teams would be identified.After group play the top 2 teams could play in state championship game. 4 games instead of 2,but teams at this level are tournament tested and should not have a problem with this format.

The only reason I would be in favor of this change is the importance now placed on the runner up position as they fill the second premier league slot.

The only problem is the amount of games you would need to play. Baseball takes weeks and weeks to play through the tourney and that includes weekday play. Soccer is closer to football in endurance. Which plays a similiar tourney style. One loss and your out. Trust me that I understand that the best team doesn't always win but that is life. The key is to learn when to play your best games...

The State Cup format seems to change every other year, ranging from how many teams could come out of a district to the number of games played.

I was told three years ago that changes were made so that that teams would not have to play four games in a weekend. The USYSA apparently believes that playing four games in a weekend is not good for the players as there would be greater chance of injury as players wear down.

Another school of thought on playing four games is the high probability that the most fit team would win, and not necessarily the best one.
BLJ

I thought the state cup had used a round robin format several years ago -- 2001, I think. (The year prior to Regionals in Memphis). If I'm not mistaken, that was one game Friday night, two on Saturday and a final on Sunday. If the USYSA is on record against 4 games in a weekend I guess my idea for a series of best of sevens won't work.

BLJ, if the more fit team wins in a final because they're better conditioned, doesn't that mean they're the better team?

lpaf

LAPF,
That's a good question. We all would agree that conditioning is very important to the success of a soccer team. But does being the fittest make it the best team? Obviously, skills, athleticism and the ability to execute play a major part as well, and a team has to be fit to a degree. And in many cases the most fit team is also the better skilled. But not always.

Playing one game per day in Regionals is much different from playing three or four on a weekend in State Cup. More of the emphasis in State Cup is on fitness in that scenario.

My thinking is that our state cup should be set up to give the best teams the chance to advance on to regionals and represent SC, and represent SC well (whether the teams seize the opportunity or not is up to them). I believe that the current setup of playing a game on Saturday and one on Sunday is something that the SCYSA has done right.

Wow, mark it down, I have said something good about the SCYSA!!! If any of you remind me, I will most certainly deny it.
BLJ

lpaf,
And please forgive me for mispelling your name!
blj

BLJ --

No offense taken. People have done much worse with it in the past.

lpaf

ps: Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight.

I think that the current is fine for determinng the State Champion,but since only the second place team goes to the premeir league there should also be a better way for determining the runner up. I dont think that the current system is good enough for ths