SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Club Soccer & ODP H.S. vs Club

how could you say that south aiken or eastside last year was worse than any club team?

The original post said nothing about ANY club team. It was about a U17 State Champion Club team. As another poster said, there would be some close games but the club team is going to win the majority of the time. I like high school games. My child likes playing on a high school team but the there is going to be more depth and skill on a good club team than on a high school team.

ahh, ok so now you guys want to bring age into the equation, huh???

ok, then you cannot ever compare club and high school with regards to who would win more b/c of course a top level U-18 club team would beat a top level high school team b/c the high school team probably starts 2-3 sophs who are 3 years younger than every player on the club team. Likewise, a top level U15 club team would have no chance playing a top level high school team b/c the high school team would have numerous quality 18-year olds on the team. Remember, I am not talking about the donkey high school programs versus GFC. I am talking about the Irmos, Wandos and Riversides of the world versus GFC, Aiken Fire or the Bridge.

So comparison is virtually impossible expect for people who just really hate one or the other.

In my hypothetical situations, which no one offered predications on, there is no chance that players would overlap.

Lowerstate--
You bring up some better teams (thanks b/c i could not think of them) but my point was made by Nino.....

you cannot compare high school and club teams b/c club teams are usually single ages (with maybe one or two players playing up one age group) while high schools are a 4-5 year difference. This creates unfair match-ups on the field.

Therefore, those of you who want to bash high school soccer and say how bad even the best teams are, ask yourself how a U-15 club team would do against the Irmo varsity team. I would hope that most people who know soccer would realize that in this situation, the club team would not succeed. On the other hand, Irmo may have a hard time handling one of the teams Lowerstate mentioned.

For a hypothetical instance, what if the #1 U-18 player who plays for Irmo is marking the #1 U-15 player who plays for GFC. Now lets say that since Irmo is a great high school program, that same team also has the #2-#5 U-18 players and the #1-#4 U-17 players.... even if the club team has the #1-#8 U-15 players, they will be marked by better, older and more experienced players. This puts the club team at a disadvantage versus a top level high school team!!!

Most of you who constantly bash high school soccer imagine the perfect situation where a GFC team or that one Aiken Fire team is playing a donkey high school team and then you base your entire argument on that one situation.

The high school versus club argument cannot be solved in absolutes b/c there are plenty of instances where top level club teams would be at a significant disadvantage versus a high school team and vice versa.

Voice, I think you need to go back and look at the original question. Age was identified from the start. It is also my understanding that a U17 team (High school Juniors for the most part) was used because it is approximately the average age of a high school team.

Actually, in this case, it is very easy to compare the two. Last years state champions for club were CESA U17 and the high school 4A champs were South Aiken. I don't believe there is much (or any) overlap of players on both teams. Therefore you can get into argument of which team would win if they played one another. Now I don't think the original poster wanted to turn this into an South Aiken vs. CESA discussion, but only to know which type of team would be stronger. Clubs obviously have an advantage in Geography over high school teams but that's not to say a high school can't have a good team.

Some people are also failing to recognize/mention that most of the quality club teams will be better coached whereas the same can't be said for most high school teams.

I think most good high school teams have coaches that also coach club ball. That seems to be the case in cities anyway. Now then, if you're talking about a rural area, I may stand corrected.

Cola Fan, I don't know if I understand your response. Are you saying that just because a hs coach also coaches in a club he is to be considered a quality coach? As a point of clarity, I stated that the majority of the quality clubs would be better coached, with better being the operative word. I didn't say that some hs coaches didn't have a clue.

Voice, it seems that all you want to do is promote the Riverside teams that you played on - or at least were rostered on. Give it a rest. Were they a quality program in the late 80s and into the 90s - yes. But, they could not compare to the top u17/u18 club teams of that era nor of today.

I agree Hammer. The game is much better when you have stands and play on fields that are 100x60.