Build through the center. Best overall player as CM. The 2nd and 3rd best player as ST and CB, the faster of the two being the striker. Recruit a basketball player to be GK unless you have one.
Most teams are lucky to have three great players, so just add from there. 4th best player would be the 2nd CM. 5th and 6th, ST and CB. As long as you have speed on the outside, they don't need to be that skilled. Just have them make runs and get rid of the ball quick.
You can easily teach defensive positioning to the fullbacks and it is a lot easier to play defense well than it is to score so that's usually where the inexperienced kids should start.
But if you have a really good ST, CM, and CB in high school soccer, you'll have a good team.
I think teams who put 3 of their top 4 players on defense are wasting their talent. Most high school teams aren't good enough on offense for that to be a need. Against teams that are way better then you, then it is fine but to keep them their all season is a waste. As long as you coach your defense well, any kid with decent athleticism can do a good job defending and then just clear the ball.
