Jack, I'm going to address this because this subject hits home with me.
You talked about a 'small market' and that's a giant problem that we face in Lancaster County. We have one club team representing several local high schools (AJ, Buford, Lancaster, and Chester). That being said, 5 years ago we faced the same problem the team faces today; which is the difficulty getting players (money, football, etc). Therefore, it's pointless for us to have more than one club team.
I know our club team has always typically had about 2 or 3 players from Lancaster High (their perennial record proves this), around 3 from Buford, 1 or 2 from Chester, and the rest are from AJ.
It's really unfortunate for the Andrew Jackson players. They have been scorned by the media in town, and some have labeled them 'cheaters.' The mistake was discovered and immediately corrected by the club coach (who happens to be the coach of AJ). I truly believe that it was an honest mistake, and the extra player that was added only played for one weekend. Of those AJ players on the club team, the team voted off this extra player (on top of that, the coach refunded him his fees). Another one eventually quit and neither player was on the AJ roster this spring.
I am a 2004 graduated of Buford, and I can personally say that they're (AJ) the one school that has shown the most interest in playing club ball since we started the team in Fall 2002. Since then, AJ has gone 74-21-1 in 5 seasons (.771 winning percentage).
If anything, the club team has only been beneficial to Lancaster County. We can avoid driving to Rock Hill to play, and it has given something for the citizens of Lancaster to be proud of (especially after the shortcomings our football teams have displayed the past few years). Buford went to the 1A state title game twice (and managed the 4th seed in the lowerstate their first year in 2A), and AJ is always a perennial competitor in 2A.
Sorry for the length of this Jack. I just hate it for the Andrew Jackson program. Hopefully everyone grows from this, and something will be considered at the league office in the future for the 'small markets.' Keep in touch old friend. ~JJ