Club v. Varsity

CONFLICT?
A largely avoidable conflict tends to arise when an aspiring student-athlete chooses to play simultaneously on both one's high school varsity team as well as an area club team. Both experiences are enriching and it is a shame to see one trump the other since participation on both teams helps round out one's Player Portfolio. It should, therefore, not be a matter of club versus varsity; rather efforts should be made for them to coexist. Communication with both coaches is essential to reduce stressful situations. Provide each with a printed copy of your schedule of events with the other team and discuss the possible compromises BEFORE the season starts.

VARSITY COMMITMENT
Between practices and games, the high school fall varsity soccer season is generally a five-day per week (Monday through Friday) requirement. Practices tend to run from 3:30pm to 5:30pm. In addition, a typical week has two games, on occasion three. Because of travel and traffic, away matches can sometimes obligate a participant until 7:00pm. Furthermore, there is the occasional Saturday scheduling commitment (e.g., game, team field trip, practice, study hall, etc.).

CLUB COMMITMENT
Club teams tend to play one game per week, generally on the weekend. There may also be one or two practices scheduled per week. In an effort to avoid scheduling conflicts with school commitments, it is not uncommon for club practices to deliberately be scheduled at 6:00pm or later. In addition, club teams may choose selectively to enroll in a tournament on long weekend holidays (e.g., Columbus Day Weekend).

RULE OF THUMB
Since the vast majority of quality tournaments and showcases take place in the winter and spring months, the traditional rule of thumb is that priority of the fall season goes to one's high school varsity program while priority of the spring season goes to the outside club team. During the fall season, and in regards to weekend conflicts, varsity games generally take precedence over club matches. To the contrary, weekend club games often take precedence over varsity team field trips and study hall.

GETTING SCOUTED
If the desire is to get exposure to college scouts and/or coaches, remember that the vast majority of college soccer programs compete in the fall. This often conflicts directly with the high school soccer season. Therefore, it is very impractical for a college coach to scout a high school-aged player (club or varsity) during his/her own collegiate season and equally unreasonable for a high school player to think otherwise. For efficiency's sake, college coaches do much of their scouting at select club, regional ODP and national tournaments and showcases, often in the winter and spring. For this reason it is especially important to participate on a good club team, particularly in the spring.

REASONS TO PARTICIPATE

HOW DOES CLUB SOCCER WORK?
The Maryland State Youth Soccer Association (MSYSA) is the governing body of youth soccer in the State of Maryland and is affiliated with the United States Youth Soccer Association, United States Soccer Federation, and FIFA, the world governing body of soccer. For organizational purposes, in regards to joining a club team in Maryland one first needs to register with a particular league. There are several MSYSA Member Leagues. These leagues are organized regionally. The area boys soccer leagues geographically closest to SSFS include, but are not limited to:

1. National Capital Soccer League (NCSL)
2. Olney/Bethesda Soccer League (OBSL)
3. Maryland Premier Soccer League (MPSL)
4. Frederick County Youth Soccer League (FCYSL)
5. Carroll County Soccer League
6. Baltimore Beltway Soccer League (BBSL)

Leagues tend to be organized by age group. Competitive hierarchical divisions within each age group exist to create parity. The majority of high school soccer players belong to age groups ranging from U14 to U19 (U=under). To learn about all the various MSYSA Member Leagues click here.

TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING
When playing on multiple teams in any given season, be careful not to over-exert! Playing too much can lead to muscle fatigue, mental exhaustion, and make one prone to injury. Be up front with both coaches about any and all injuries and the level of exertion spent with the other team.