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    NEP evaluation

    So far from the various posts, it is not so clear that the NEP has become the mecca of youth soccer that it claimed it would become....or at least, it isn't clear that it is very different from MAPLE.
    There are, however, a number of things that NEP does a little better. First, it is a smaller league without the factory like mentality of MAPLE, which has the multiple divisions among the age groups. Quite frankly, any league with third and fourth divisions should just admit that they are in it for the money since none of these kids will play high school ball, much less college. This doesn't mean that NEP won't head in this direction. The claim of NEP is that they are going to control who comes in and prevent the huge dilution that has become of MAPLE. However, as the league expands, this remains to be seen. I have seen town younger town teams that could crush MAPLE and NEP teams.

    Better Refs, Better fields......Better parents in the NEP?? Not necessarily. Clearly from the claims in these threads this is not the case. I have seen players plow into other kids without coming close to the ball and not get a call or anything like a card. I have seen offside by 10+ yards without an consideration from the Ref. I have seen tackles from behind with cleats pointing up and nothing called. The Refs at the younger ages are high schoolers who are starting out. There is one ref per game without a senior ref watching.
    I certainly like the idea of development and the stress of learning........but for the kids. The Refs should be more professional or at least receive better guidance during the games.

    The fields are not dirt-boxes but they aren't pristine turf fields either. They are no better or worse than MAPlE fields. Teams, at the younger ages (when development really counts) are scheduled back to back with no rest. Fine....then don't report the lopsided scores......or any scores for that matter........MAPLE doesn't. The off weekends, however, are very very nice as there does seem to be less emphasis on the actual scores and who is in first or second....at least at the younger ages. For the older ages, I imagine, with regard to State Cup play and Region 1 selection, it will matter more.

    The inclusion of MCU Portland in Maine is just plain out stupid. I am not traveling to Portland Maine for any kind of one day event.

    No, at this point, the NEP cannot claim to be more than a smaller MAPLE, which certainly has its pluses as MAPLE was becoming very dilute and very over-the-top. Certainly, the competitive level in the NEP is very very good.....possible as good as MAPLE. We will see in the Spring for the U13 and older groups. However, other NEP claims are not yet fulfilled. There is one thing that the NEP might be able to claim but it is something that the parents won't reallly see......it might be cheaper...

    #2
    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
    So far from the various posts, it is not so clear that the NEP has become the mecca of youth soccer that it claimed it would become....or at least, it isn't clear that it is very different from MAPLE.
    There are, however, a number of things that NEP does a little better. First, it is a smaller league without the factory like mentality of MAPLE, which has the multiple divisions among the age groups. Quite frankly, any league with third and fourth divisions should just admit that they are in it for the money since none of these kids will play high school ball, much less college. This doesn't mean that NEP won't head in this direction. The claim of NEP is that they are going to control who comes in and prevent the huge dilution that has become of MAPLE. However, as the league expands, this remains to be seen. I have seen town younger town teams that could crush MAPLE and NEP teams.

    Better Refs, Better fields......Better parents in the NEP?? Not necessarily. Clearly from the claims in these threads this is not the case. I have seen players plow into other kids without coming close to the ball and not get a call or anything like a card. I have seen offside by 10+ yards without an consideration from the Ref. I have seen tackles from behind with cleats pointing up and nothing called. The Refs at the younger ages are high schoolers who are starting out. There is one ref per game without a senior ref watching.
    I certainly like the idea of development and the stress of learning........but for the kids. The Refs should be more professional or at least receive better guidance during the games.

    The fields are not dirt-boxes but they aren't pristine turf fields either. They are no better or worse than MAPlE fields. Teams, at the younger ages (when development really counts) are scheduled back to back with no rest. Fine....then don't report the lopsided scores......or any scores for that matter........MAPLE doesn't. The off weekends, however, are very very nice as there does seem to be less emphasis on the actual scores and who is in first or second....at least at the younger ages. For the older ages, I imagine, with regard to State Cup play and Region 1 selection, it will matter more.

    The inclusion of MCU Portland in Maine is just plain out stupid. I am not traveling to Portland Maine for any kind of one day event.

    No, at this point, the NEP cannot claim to be more than a smaller MAPLE, which certainly has its pluses as MAPLE was becoming very dilute and very over-the-top. Certainly, the competitive level in the NEP is very very good.....possible as good as MAPLE. We will see in the Spring for the U13 and older groups. However, other NEP claims are not yet fulfilled. There is one thing that the NEP might be able to claim but it is something that the parents won't reallly see......it might be cheaper...
    It is a lot cheaper until you factor in paying the refs. Although if you don't play all your games because they get canceled the club owners could save money.

    Comment


      #3
      The only way to quantify which league is more "competitive" - MAPLE or NEP - is to list all state cup winners and identify which of those teams play MAPLE and which play NEP. Anyone have that list?

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
        The only way to quantify which league is more "competitive" - MAPLE or NEP - is to list all state cup winners and identify which of those teams play MAPLE and which play NEP. Anyone have that list?

        As the OP, I can say that any current list is premature as the league is still new, with last years list dominated by MPS. However, this year would be a good year to start since the league now has a number of very decent clubs. I suspect that the girls list will be relatively equal, however, someone will have to figure out which Stars, Scorpion, and NEFC teams are playing where. Some don't partake in either league. For the boys, it essentially comes down to how many NEP teams will be able to beat the Blazers since MAPLE doesn't have much else. Last years U15 (now U16) NSU and SJLions teams have gone to Revs, Bolts, and Seacoast.

        In this tally.....do we count how many state cup semis, finalist, and champs are provided by each league......for all states involved?? Seacoast NH, Bruno, and Bayside will contribute heavily to the NEP success. if you want to compare, then you have to include it all.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
          As the OP, I can say that any current list is premature as the league is still new, with last years list dominated by MPS. However, this year would be a good year to start since the league now has a number of very decent clubs. I suspect that the girls list will be relatively equal, however, someone will have to figure out which Stars, Scorpion, and NEFC teams are playing where. Some don't partake in either league. For the boys, it essentially comes down to how many NEP teams will be able to beat the Blazers since MAPLE doesn't have much else. Last years U15 (now U16) NSU and SJLions teams have gone to Revs, Bolts, and Seacoast.

          In this tally.....do we count how many state cup semis, finalist, and champs are provided by each league......for all states involved?? Seacoast NH, Bruno, and Bayside will contribute heavily to the NEP success. if you want to compare, then you have to include it all.
          Sure...it's just for discussion purposes.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
            The only way to quantify which league is more "competitive" - MAPLE or NEP - is to list all state cup winners and identify which of those teams play MAPLE and which play NEP. Anyone have that list?
            Irrelevant. The pupose of NEP is development of the players. This means all players who are in NEP not just the top clubs teams. Look at WU. There girls teams is in NEP yet got the snot kicked out of them by teams that are now in Maple and NEP. The questions is: Is NEP delivering a different structure and priority with the sole focus on development. If you look at the other posts and threads (excluding Maple Trolls) the answer is largely no. My own kid's team, by and large, see Maple as a better experience for the kids. More games, more consistency, and a competitive environment for the older kids as they play in Irwin and Andre cups etc.

            Look, I thought NEP was going to be better. It is not based on what was promised. So, another weekend off this weekend and we play the same team 3 times this short season. I am not giving up on NEP but I see no superiority on any level.

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
              As the OP, I can say that any current list is premature as the league is still new, with last years list dominated by MPS. However, this year would be a good year to start since the league now has a number of very decent clubs. I suspect that the girls list will be relatively equal, however, someone will have to figure out which Stars, Scorpion, and NEFC teams are playing where. Some don't partake in either league. For the boys, it essentially comes down to how many NEP teams will be able to beat the Blazers since MAPLE doesn't have much else. Last years U15 (now U16) NSU and SJLions teams have gone to Revs, Bolts, and Seacoast.

              In this tally.....do we count how many state cup semis, finalist, and champs are provided by each league......for all states involved?? Seacoast NH, Bruno, and Bayside will contribute heavily to the NEP success. if you want to compare, then you have to include it all.
              The girls side will be very heavily tilted towards NEP, not equal at all. The Scorps, NEFC and Stars teams left in MAPLE are their 3rd or 4th level teams (girls). U16 boys, DAP did hurt SJ and NSU but the WU team picked up some of the Pioneer ODP players, is loaded with talent and should be the State Cup champ this year. Don't include NH, ME or RI just look at MA and I think come next Summer NEP will hold at least 3/4 of the State Cup winning teams. Andre and Irwin Cup are not State Cups and MAPLE specific so please don't include them.

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                Irrelevant. The pupose of NEP is development of the players. This means all players who are in NEP not just the top clubs teams. Look at WU. There girls teams is in NEP yet got the snot kicked out of them by teams that are now in Maple and NEP. The questions is: Is NEP delivering a different structure and priority with the sole focus on development. If you look at the other posts and threads (excluding Maple Trolls) the answer is largely no. My own kid's team, by and large, see Maple as a better experience for the kids. More games, more consistency, and a competitive environment for the older kids as they play in Irwin and Andre cups etc.

                Look, I thought NEP was going to be better. It is not based on what was promised. So, another weekend off this weekend and we play the same team 3 times this short season. I am not giving up on NEP but I see no superiority on any level.
                WU had entire teams stolen away so that is not a fair or useful comparison at this point. In U13 and 14G NEP is considerably stronger, not even close. Irwin and Andre Cups are kind of lame worrying so much over 10, 11 and 12 year old soccer, as is calling the winner the State Cup champ as so many do. It does sound like your gripe is fair if the schedule is as bad as you say. This has not been our NEP experience at all.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                  Irrelevant. The pupose of NEP is development of the players. This means all players who are in NEP not just the top clubs teams. Look at WU. There girls teams is in NEP yet got the snot kicked out of them by teams that are now in Maple and NEP. The questions is: Is NEP delivering a different structure and priority with the sole focus on development. If you look at the other posts and threads (excluding Maple Trolls) the answer is largely no. My own kid's team, by and large, see Maple as a better experience for the kids. More games, more consistency, and a competitive environment for the older kids as they play in Irwin and Andre cups etc.

                  Look, I thought NEP was going to be better. It is not based on what was promised. So, another weekend off this weekend and we play the same team 3 times this short season. I am not giving up on NEP but I see no superiority on any level.
                  I agree with this post. 100% frustrated by NEP.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    An NEFC Elite parent here. My daughter's team won a state title and they are in NEP this year. I think it qualifies as one of the more competitive teams in their age group in the state if not the region. I must tell you that I could actually care less which league her team competes in because from our team's perspective the local league is not important. Our team is focused on getting into the R1PL, doing well in it and then trying to win the state cup again. NEP is only a means to an end for this team. It allows them to qualify for the state cup. It gives them tons of scheduling flexibility which will be important in the spring when they have to balance R1PL and tournament schedules. Finally, there are no consequences so they can treat each game as a learning situation. The girls have only played 1 game this fall in NEP and it was exactly what I had hoped it would be... a testing ground. The coach approached the game like a scrimmage. He moved players around and gave a lot of players more time than he would have had they been playing in MAPLE or some tournament. We had last weekend off and the team has had a bunch of practices in between games to work out the kinks. The girls are going to play 3 games between now and Sunday so we'll get a good chance to see what the impact of that training has been. Given the mindset the team is operating under though I wouldn't expect the scores to really matter to anyone on our sidelines and you would have to actually follow the team to know if it did well or not. I guess that is one of the frustrating things about NEP. You are never sure where a team stands until they are playing for something that matters to it. With our team, it doesn't look like you are going to know how good we are until next spring when the coach has told us he intends to take the training gloves off and set the team loose.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                      An NEFC Elite parent here. My daughter's team won a state title and they are in NEP this year. I think it qualifies as one of the more competitive teams in their age group in the state if not the region. I must tell you that I could actually care less which league her team competes in because from our team's perspective the local league is not important. Our team is focused on getting into the R1PL, doing well in it and then trying to win the state cup again. NEP is only a means to an end for this team. It allows them to qualify for the state cup. It gives them tons of scheduling flexibility which will be important in the spring when they have to balance R1PL and tournament schedules. Finally, there are no consequences so they can treat each game as a learning situation. The girls have only played 1 game this fall in NEP and it was exactly what I had hoped it would be... a testing ground. The coach approached the game like a scrimmage. He moved players around and gave a lot of players more time than he would have had they been playing in MAPLE or some tournament. We had last weekend off and the team has had a bunch of practices in between games to work out the kinks. The girls are going to play 3 games between now and Sunday so we'll get a good chance to see what the impact of that training has been. Given the mindset the team is operating under though I wouldn't expect the scores to really matter to anyone on our sidelines and you would have to actually follow the team to know if it did well or not. I guess that is one of the frustrating things about NEP. You are never sure where a team stands until they are playing for something that matters to it. With our team, it doesn't look like you are going to know how good we are until next spring when the coach has told us he intends to take the training gloves off and set the team loose.
                      So if your focus is on R1PL and the local league is not important, why cant it be Maple? If your team is as good as you say it is, then playing in D1 Maple, your coach should be able to approach it the same way

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                        So if your focus is on R1PL and the local league is not important, why cant it be Maple? If your team is as good as you say it is, then playing in D1 Maple, your coach should be able to approach it the same way
                        Its got to to be the flexibility then however, I understand from a little birdy that MYSA has received many notes about teams using NEP for State Cup Qualifying that they are playing far less games than their Maple & R1 counterparts. Look for a rule change soon. Cancelling and not making up games will likely be considered "forfeits" So your flexibility may not be as nice in the future.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                          So if your focus is on R1PL and the local league is not important, why cant it be Maple? If your team is as good as you say it is, then playing in D1 Maple, your coach should be able to approach it the same way
                          As I have written many times, for the best teams it is all about R1 or ECNL or something larger than their regular local league schedule. MAPLE D1 is a thing of the past, get over it. On the girls side it is the 4th or 5th best option (ECNL, R1, NEP are all much stronger at U13 and above) MAPLE played hardball on the scheduling issue and lost. The best teams need a league to fill in gaps in bigger play and tournaments and NEP fits the bill perfectly and allows players 17-22 on the roster to get some playing time and stay sharp and not worry so much about winning.

                          MYSA and MAPLE are going to have a hard time complaining about the NEP teams making it in State Cup as they are very likely to be the same teams that made it when they played in MAPLE and have been there for years. Not a lot of sandbagging for State Cup spots as far as I can tell, the good teams are good no matter what league they play in and how many games they play.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                            The only way to quantify which league is more "competitive" - MAPLE or NEP - is to list all state cup winners and identify which of those teams play MAPLE and which play NEP. Anyone have that list?
                            It's hard for me to see how this could be relevant. Even if you ignore the fact that the focus in NEP is supposed to be on development, not putting together a State Cup-winning team (granted, that focus is not always observed), the fact is that NEP only covers U10 through U14. State Cup begins at U13, so three-fifths of the age groups have no State Cup. Then you need to take into account that some top clubs don't have their top teams, playing NEP in BU13 or BU14. The Bolts and Seacoast, for example, have BU13 and BU14 teams in NEPAL. That's going to weaken their NEP teams in those age groups, which will affect the strength of thoe divisions in NEP--but it will not affect any of the other divisions. As a result, you're trying to gauge the strength of NEP based on looking at the age groups that are likely to be the weakest due to NEPAL. (I focused on boys here; someone else can chime in on girls.)

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                              It's hard for me to see how this could be relevant. Even if you ignore the fact that the focus in NEP is supposed to be on development, not putting together a State Cup-winning team (granted, that focus is not always observed), the fact is that NEP only covers U10 through U14. State Cup begins at U13, so three-fifths of the age groups have no State Cup. Then you need to take into account that some top clubs don't have their top teams, playing NEP in BU13 or BU14. The Bolts and Seacoast, for example, have BU13 and BU14 teams in NEPAL. That's going to weaken their NEP teams in those age groups, which will affect the strength of thoe divisions in NEP--but it will not affect any of the other divisions. As a result, you're trying to gauge the strength of NEP based on looking at the age groups that are likely to be the weakest due to NEPAL. (I focused on boys here; someone else can chime in on girls.)
                              Please stop with the misinformation. NEP goes through U18!

                              Comment

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