SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Club Soccer & ODP USYSA Registration Numbers: SC Is Now Last

Here are the latest USYSA registration numbers for Region III:

State Association, FY '06/07 Registration, % to Prior Year
Alabama 18,580 132%
Arkansas 21,840 116%
Florida 101,157 101%
Georgia 59,568 80%
Louisiana 27,856 103%
Mississippi 19,252 111%
North Texas 109,916 78%
North Carolina 65,969 99%
Oklahoma 28,330 74%
South Texas 82,528 82%
South Carolina 18,050 97%
Tennessee 32,212 87%
Region III Total 585,258 90%

For the first time, South Carolina is now last in Region III in terms of the number of registered USYSA players -- Alabama and Mississippi, which have been the ones in the cellar, have now pulled ahead of South Carolina.

On the positive side, the SCYSA is losing players at a slower rate than the average USYSA Region III state.

Young players are actually dropping out of soccer? If so, can it be determined at what ages the decline begins?
This news article speaks about youth sports burnout and starting too young, and that it is essential to keep sports fun.
Regarding the decline in SC soccer numbers, there is not yet enough outreach to attract the minority youth in SC.

HOW SOON IS TOO SOON TO GET YOUTH STARTED IN SPORTS?
By JEANNINE STEIN, Los Angeles Times
Published: Sunday, May. 20, 2007

In the center of a field of fake grass, about a dozen 3- and 4-year-olds are attempting to learn soccer – or a reasonable facsimile. Kicking and chasing after scaled-down balls, some charge ahead with glee, expertly guiding the balls with their feet. Others scoot along hesitantly, their faces masks of intensity.

“Score it in the goal! Score it in the goal!” the coach yells excitedly nearby. One boy nails the goal with a single kick, while another takes three to four attempts. A little girl in pigtails scoops up one ball with her arms and simply drops it into the net.

Such is organized sports for preschoolers. Parents may be crazy for it, but childhood development experts . . . less so.

No longer content to wait until their children are 5 or, heaven forbid, 8 (the age most kids start in organized sports leagues), moms and dads are enrolling their offspring in structured programs at the age of 3 and 4. The Lil Kickers soccer program at the Upland Indoor Sports Arena, where the extremely young soccer players were roaming, even has a class for 18-month-olds.

Such preschool-focused programs – including ones for basketball and T-ball – teach specific skills, general motor development and sometimes concepts such as teamwork – not always an easy lesson for a population whose conversations can consist largely of the word, “Mine!” Coed classes can be found in parks and recreation programs and private sports organizations across the nation and, coordinators say, enrollment numbers are growing every year. Many programs even have waiting lists.

The environment is mostly noncompetitive (no one wants to tell a 3-year-old she cost the game), but the fact that organized sports have infiltrated toddlerhood doesn’t sit well with many exercise and child development experts.

Graduating to training pants, they say, doesn’t necessarily signal a readiness for structured programs with equipment and rules and expectations of victory or failure. Of course physical activity trumps sitting around watching TV, says Michael Bergeron, exercise physiologist and assistant professor at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. But, he says, sports lessons might not be the best alternative.

“It might seem innocent to say, ‘Come on, catch this, run harder,’ but they may be trying to get kids to do things they’re not capable of doing, and that leads to frustration and anxiety,” says Bergeron, who’s also chairman of the American College of Sports Medicine’s Youth Sports and Health Initiative. “Kids who are further along developmentally look better than those who are not, and kids can start feeling resentment.”

Even having parents on the sidelines watching can put undue pressure on very young children, says Bergeron: “Believe me, a kid knows people are watching him miss the ball. It’s different in the back yard – you have dad kicking the ball, acting just as goofy as the kid. Structure is pressure, and it leads to frustration if a child isn’t ready for that.”

Much of what kids need to learn can be found during free play, says Bergeron – running around a playground, exploring the back yard and playing with age-appropriate equipment and toys. When play becomes beset by rules, i.e., don’t pick up a soccer ball, don’t kick a basketball, kids can lose their naturalenthusiasm and willingness to try new things. “What is their attention span?” he says. “Are you asking them to listen and understand beyond what they’re capable of doing?”

Crystal Branta, associate professor of kinesiology at Michigan State University, says preschool level is prime time for learning and developing motor skills such as throwing, catching, jumping and running, “But that doesn’t mean,” she adds, “doing drill after drill.”

Among today’s adults, however, many want structure. After all, if they didn’t care about specific skills, they could just turn kids loose in the park.

For them, structured sports gives their kids the chance to socialize with other kids, and get a leg up on skills seen as increasingly valuable. “I think parents understand that in school, kids are popular and valuable when they’re able to do sports,” she says.

Classes for 3-year-olds are easily found via local parks and recreation programs, as well as through some private programs and facilities. The American Youth Soccer Organization, a nationwide nonprofit group that sponsors soccer programs, knocked its starting age down to 4 years old from 5 years old in 2004.

National executive director Rick Davis thinks 4-year-olds have the mental and physical capabilities to begin to learn soccer skills. And it’s not really soccer at that age anyway, he insists. “We’re introducing them to the sport in fun ways, from simple motor coordination things like walking around the ball to kicking and shooting and passing. If you were a soccer coach, you wouldn’t be sure you were seeing a soccer practice.”

Yet AYSO’s Under-Five program has an entire page of rules and guidelines on its Web site for three-on-three games, where it says, “The two goals of the program are to allow the players to enjoy the activities and to let the game be the teacher.” Headings include, “The Start of Play,” “The Kick-off,” “Ball In and Out of Play” and “Fouls and Other Stoppages.”

Part of the decision to start kids at age 4, says Davis, came from parent demand.

But business also factored into the decision. “A number of other programs were reaching down to kids younger and younger, with other activities, and we felt that we were not providing a similar soccer experience,” he says. “If these kids go to basketball and have a wonderful time, they may never decide to give soccer a try.”

(Optional add end)

Greg Payne, a professor of kinesiology at San Jose State University, adds that sports for 3- and 4-year-olds shouldn’t include competition or pressure.

But that’s not always easy for overly eager parents. More intense competition for placement on school teams is pushing them to enroll their kids younger, and more often, which can lead to burnout.

“You’re seeing very young kids doing sports at an early age, and it’s intense, year-round with very little breaks,” says Payne, also a spokesman for the California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. “Even seasonally, I see parents pushing way harder than the child can tolerate.”

Most parents maintain that they want their kids to have fun and get some exercise, not start thinking about the major leagues.

Could it be that more kids in South Carolina are playing soccer under other associations, city/county recreation leagues, or in private schools? In addition to the Florence Soccer Association Florence (FSA), Florence has recreation level soccer at the YMCA and at many private primary schools. There is also a new Upward league forming at a local church. FSA runs the recreation soccer program in Florence along with the Florence County Parks and Recreation Department. There have been discussions whether FSA should stay with SCYSA for the recreation league since Florence County provides many of the same benefits as far as risk management, etc. that is provided by SCYSA.

Could you also be losing players to NC. It seems like alot of players get solid training early on in SC, then "graduate" to a Charlotte club.

4thekids: It could be migration to other organizations; if so, you'd have to wonder why this is occurring. If it is occurring, it might be occurring throughout Region III given these numbers.

For example, does FSA perceive a benefit leaving the SCYSA to move to Florence County -- e.g., is it an example of the SCYSA having to charge as a private organization more money on a per-kid basis and Florence County being able to charge less (if at all) because they spread out the cost among all taxpayers?

I have an interest in the SCYSA because today they provide the broadest coverage (from recreation to the higher level competitive youth soccer); however, in my neck of the woods you have the YMCA, USCS, AYSO, and independent groups doing youth soccer.

cid: It could be. The SCYSA provides a breakdown of 2005-2006 numbers: the upper state gained players (+1.8%), the midstate lost players (-3.4%), and the lower state lost a bunch of players (-7.35%). So it seems as if a broad area of the state is losing players.

Recreation was down -2.38% versus an overall decline of -2.3% (select was -2.09%), so it appears to be pretty much across the board.

I've always thought it was strange that there are restrictions on how many players from a district in SC can play on a team but no restriction on how many players from any district can play in NC.

Chico,

Can you find out how many interstate releases that SCYSA granted to players playing in NC?

Hurst66: The SCYSA releases a number known as "out of state" in its player count. For 2005, it was 118; for 2006, it was 61. My guess is this is for out of state players coming into SC to play; but I don't know.