The high school soccer debate, and where we get it wrong

High School soccer starts in my city this week. And there are plenty of competent players who won’t be signing up – even though they would probably like to.

Why? Because their clubs will discourage them, or even forbid it outright.

Why do the clubs take this stance, especially when the young men and women would like the chance to represent their school and their community, would enjoy playing in front of their friends, inside the pretty stadiums?

The “Why” in this case is everything that’s wrong with club soccer.

I’ve said before and I’ll say again, the worst part of club soccer is that most decisions are made based on what’s best for the clubs and for the coaches. This isn’t to say that a lot of good people aren’t involved in club soccer. There certainly are. I know a bunch of them.

But the system at large is off center. The axis is askew – and that throws everything else off balance.

This prejudice against high school soccer is the perfect example.

Again, kids have always enjoyed playing for their schools. A sense of “community” is important for everyone. This is a young players’ chance to be part of it. Bottom line, it’s fun to play for your school, to get your letter jacket, to play in front of their friends, inside a proper stadium on a Friday night rather than at a city park on a Saturday morning.

Besides, these are young people. Young people don’t just need to improve their proficiency in certain activities and sports. They need to mature socially and emotionally. Being part of something bigger than themselves (the high school) helps.

As for the soccer, here’s something that I think gets left out of the debate. Some club coaches like to say that high school soccer is ineffective or even counterproductive because it promotes bad habits, because good players don’t have to push themselves. That may be true for the elite player; but how many kids are we really talking about there? Most of them are just … well, kids. The vast majority will never even sniff professional soccer.

But here’s where I think this argument is wrong: high schools practice more or less every day, after school. The structure is built-in, and four or five two-hour practices a week is going to help most players. Meanwhile, how often do club teams practice? Twice a week?

A soccer player who touches the ball a lot is going to improve. So even if the coaching at high school level isn’t always the best – and by the way, I think it gets stronger every year, with lots of good folks involved who know the game – two hours of “scrimmaging” isn’t going to hurt a player.

Don’t we always hear about how the talent in South America and third-world lands teach themselves the game by playing in the streets, etc.? I suppose if clubs moved in and had their way, they would discourage this type of pick-up soccer bliss because “it encourages bad habits, and because good players don’t need to push themselves.”

In too many ways, the club soccer system exists only to support itself. That’s the basis for too many decisions when, clearly, the basis should be one thing only: what’s best for the overall happiness and development of young people.