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Soccer22, Bear, others...

I have nothing to gain by the SSC contract and therefore, nothing to gain in a debate about it. I believe strongly that CESA is about building community and player and with that I will bow out of this thread.



Yes CESA does a good job, but I feel it is contrary that they are "about building community." Bringing kids from other communities, 50 - 100 miles away, into their community builds no community but the CESA community. To me, community speaks about those you go to school with, those you worship, those you see in the grocery store, those you see in your community. My opinion is they want to build the best teams and bring thousands in to their program so their founders can increase their own wealth. The American way, you know.



I'm sure that a lot of players have a lot of reasons that they commute to CESA from outside the GSA metropolitan area. I can tell you the breaking point with my kid -- it was at age 13 (when a pre-CESA team crushed her team that had won the challenge cup state championship the year before (she had played on two completely different teams in the same club that won two challenge cup state championships in the midlands by that time) by basically just showing much better soccer fundamentals. Her teammates walked off the field laughing while she was crying. She had also been reading about Lindsey Beam and wanted to practice with her. She asked us if we'd take her up there. Her team's coach, Shaun Jacques, at her request and on her behalf contacted Andrew Hyslop, asked if she could go up there to train, and she began training with the 17 and 18 teams -- didn't join the club, the club just allowed her to train up there all she wanted with whoever she wanted. The training was vastly superior and she decided to switch clubs (the first and only time she's switched clubs.) I kind of doubt that they saw a mighty physical specimen in her -- at the time she was 4'10" and 90 pounds -- smallest player on any team she played on by far.

I have no doubt that some kids might go there only to play in RIIIPL-East and/or win a state championship -- but I've spoken to a lot of parents who sacrificed for their kids because the kid just wanted to be a better player and the parent made the decision to help the kid.

My kid will be going to college next year and thus I don't have a personal stake in what CESA does or doesn't do. I am biased because I appreciate what they'd done for my kid. But I'd like to make the "CESA system" available to everyone so that parents who can't take their kids 100+ miles to practice can still help their kids achieve their dreams.