CFC has best girls teams in CT

[Unregistered]

While it is true that because they have so many teams, the teams have gotten watered down at the younger ages, fact of the matter is, when you get to the United teams, it is true, they are the best right now.

The ECNL is a big draw. If I were new to the area and i had a daughter, thats where she would be.

[Unregistered]

While it is true that because they have so many teams, the teams have gotten watered down at the younger ages, fact of the matter is, when you get to the United teams, it is true, they are the best right now.

The ECNL is a big draw. If I were new to the area and i had a daughter, thats where she would be.

So what CFC team do you coach??

[Unregistered]

While it is true that because they have so many teams, the teams have gotten watered down at the younger ages, fact of the matter is, when you get to the United teams, it is true, they are the best right now.

The ECNL is a big draw. If I were new to the area and i had a daughter, thats where she would be.

ECNL is a big draw if you think you are a D1 player. That is the only reason to play ECNL. If my daughter wants to go D3 she'll get looked at playing in Regional Showcases just the same.

How are you judging that they are the best...

Fact of the matter is your U15 team is behind Oakwood so not a good start with the whole United thing

Fact of the matter is your U16 UNITED team lost in cup final last year.

Fact of the matter is your U17 UNITED team lost in Semi final last year to SCP.

U18 I will give you. They have consistantly been the best team in the state at this age.

Unfortunately the ages where you want to be the best are 12,13,14,15. At those ages I think CFC is 1 of 5 very good clubs at all these ages. I think we can all figure out who those clubs are but just for arguments sake - CFC and all their wonderful branches, Oakwood, FSA, SCP, Yankee? Not in any order. The best...I don't think there is any way to back up that statement with facts, only opinions. You remind me of that poster in another thread. You are living in the was not the is. CFC was the best CLUB, now they are 1 of a handful solid clubs.

[Unregistered]

Cfc

From a consistency perspective, the CFC teams seem to have racked up a lot of championships in the past and the United teams seem to always be the Semis or better lately. Other clubs seem to be hit or miss, they have one really good team, but a bunch of poor teams. Perhaps it is a specific coach or maybe it is just luck in any particular year, I don't really know. If I had to bet money on which club will have the most CT state finalists this year, I owuld probably bet CFC.

If your kid is in a younger age bracket, why wouldn't you choose the ECNL club? Who knows if she wants to be Division I or Division III. I guess I would rather keep my options open and if she does want to play in college, give her the best possible/more chances at getting noticed. The unified team structure at a minimum means I don't have to club hop in the future to get my daughter on a better team and the opportunity to play against better talent. She can possibly just play on the united team if she out grows her branch team and still be in the same club right?

Just asking and trying to learn

[Unregistered]

From a consistency perspective, the CFC teams seem to have racked up a lot of championships in the past and the United teams seem to always be the Semis or better lately. Other clubs seem to be hit or miss, they have one really good team, but a bunch of poor teams. Perhaps it is a specific coach or maybe it is just luck in any particular year, I don't really know. If I had to bet money on which club will have the most CT state finalists this year, I owuld probably bet CFC.

If your kid is in a younger age bracket, why wouldn't you choose the ECNL club? Who knows if she wants to be Division I or Division III. I guess I would rather keep my options open and if she does want to play in college, give her the best possible/more chances at getting noticed. The unified team structure at a minimum means I don't have to club hop in the future to get my daughter on a better team and the opportunity to play against better talent. She can possibly just play on the united team if she out grows her branch team and still be in the same club right?

Just asking and trying to learn

Why would you want to be on a CFC United team with 26 kids. I dont know what they're thinking. CFC United never had these many kids on their teams in the past. You can only roster 18 at a game. 8 kids sit out!!! 3k per kid is 78k. What a rip off!!! This business model will fail and the Oakwoods, FSAs and Yankees will grow stronger. Why would the best Connecticut girls, who want to play D1, be flocking to CFC where they will only be playing 30 minutes a game.

[Unregistered]

The unified team structure at a minimum means I don't have to club hop in the future to get my daughter on a better team and the opportunity to play against better talent. She can possibly just play on the united team if she out grows her branch team and still be in the same club right?

The big negative is that, if your daughter either does not make the United team or does not want to be on it, there is a good chance that her old team will be either greatly weakened by the loss of players to United or possibly dissolve if enough players leave for United. The CFC system works fine for the minority that make United, but does not work well for those who don't. In a lot of cases, the best non-United players end up feeling the need to leave for other clubs. If you want to stay with the same team/club, better to start and stay with a club that has one and only 1 very good team, rather than start with a CFC branch and hope thing go well when the United merger occurs.

[Unregistered]

The big negative is that, if your daughter either does not make the United team or does not want to be on it, there is a good chance that her old team will be either greatly weakened by the loss of players to United or possibly dissolve if enough players leave for United. The CFC system works fine for the minority that make United, but does not work well for those who don't. In a lot of cases, the best non-United players end up feeling the need to leave for other clubs. If you want to stay with the same team/club, better to start and stay with a club that has one and only 1 very good team, rather than start with a CFC branch and hope thing go well when the United merger occurs.

I agree if you aren't in the top 5-8 players on the United then why bother. If you really want to play D1 and you are hoping to get scholarship money you should be in the top 5-8 anyway so the model works for you. If you are coming off the bench regularly you could probably get much more playing time elsewhere and still end up at whatever College you want to go to because you probably aren't getting a lot of athletic scholarship offers anyway.

Whatever the case may be people can make their own choices. What people can't say is there aren't options out there because there is a ton to choose from

[Unregistered]

I agree if you aren't in the top 5-8 players on the United then why bother. If you really want to play D1 and you are hoping to get scholarship money you should be in the top 5-8 anyway so the model works for you. If you are coming off the bench regularly you could probably get much more playing time elsewhere and still end up at whatever College you want to go to because you probably aren't getting a lot of athletic scholarship offers anyway.

Whatever the case may be people can make their own choices. What people can't say is there aren't options out there because there is a ton to choose from

At United, I would say top 4-5 players. With 26 players, I dont see players 6-11 geting alot of play time either. I would say that with that many kids, the training should be good but game time will suck for most

[Unregistered]

At United, I would say top 4-5 players. With 26 players, I dont see players 6-11 geting alot of play time either. I would say that with that many kids, the training should be good but game time will suck for most

My daughter plays on the United U17 team. I have to say the coaches do a good job of making sure the players get enough time. Yes, top players from spots 1-18 will probably see more playing time. The last 8 have the toughest time competing for spots, but CFC makes certain everyone gets seen.

The top players went to ECNL. The other team players (not selected) went to Disney in a combined age/group team. The players that didn't go to Disney, will get to go to ECNL San Diego for the next showcase in March 2012, and other team players that weren't selected will go to play at Jefferson Cup.

This weekend, CFC has a MLK College Showcase at their facility in Hamden. Teams are divided over 2 days into 2 groups, playing 12 indoor games in front of local Northeast college coaches. Competition will be strong with Albertson and FC Stars participating.
Each CFC United player will be playing at least 6 games. Many college coaches have signed up to watch players at this 2 day tourney (Yale, New Haven, Fairfield, Post, UMASS, Northeastern, St. Josephs, Lesley, UCONN, Quinnipiac, Providence, Wesleyan, Sacared Heart, Hartford, Holy Cross, Smith, Bryant, Dartmouth, Colby, St. Johns).

My daughter loves CFC and the coaches and the training is intense, but she wants to play D1 soccer and already has a number of coaches that have indicated strong interest in her.
The one thing we like is that the college coaching world is small and coaches all seem to know one another. Many of CFC coaches are college coaches which helps with recommendations to a college coach who calls.

I think my only negative would be that training 3 days a week takes up a lot of time, especially in junior year with all the homework and studying for standarized testing. However, my daughter is mature enough to realize that if she wants to play at a higher level, she needs to train at a higher level.

We had also considered Soccerplus and I think there a great club as well. In the end, we decided to go with CFC as they had a stronger record placing girls into colleges with great soccer programs (and yes, academics as well!). Both clubs were about the same driving distance for us.

On a final note, I believe the team already has 6 players committed to play some great schools with great athletic scholarships. Two players have verbally committed to UMass, two players to UConn, one GK to Michigan and the other GK to Dickinson, one player to Sacred Heart.

[Unregistered]

Good post

My daughter plays on the United U17 team. I have to say the coaches do a good job of making sure the players get enough time. Yes, top players from spots 1-18 will probably see more playing time. The last 8 have the toughest time competing for spots, but CFC makes certain everyone gets seen.

The top players went to ECNL. The other team players (not selected) went to Disney in a combined age/group team. The players that didn't go to Disney, will get to go to ECNL San Diego for the next showcase in March 2012, and other team players that weren't selected will go to play at Jefferson Cup.

This weekend, CFC has a MLK College Showcase at their facility in Hamden. Teams are divided over 2 days into 2 groups, playing 12 indoor games in front of local Northeast college coaches. Competition will be strong with Albertson and FC Stars participating.
Each CFC United player will be playing at least 6 games. Many college coaches have signed up to watch players at this 2 day tourney (Yale, New Haven, Fairfield, Post, UMASS, Northeastern, St. Josephs, Lesley, UCONN, Quinnipiac, Providence, Wesleyan, Sacared Heart, Hartford, Holy Cross, Smith, Bryant, Dartmouth, Colby, St. Johns).

My daughter loves CFC and the coaches and the training is intense, but she wants to play D1 soccer and already has a number of coaches that have indicated strong interest in her.
The one thing we like is that the college coaching world is small and coaches all seem to know one another. Many of CFC coaches are college coaches which helps with recommendations to a college coach who calls.

I think my only negative would be that training 3 days a week takes up a lot of time, especially in junior year with all the homework and studying for standarized testing. However, my daughter is mature enough to realize that if she wants to play at a higher level, she needs to train at a higher level.

We had also considered Soccerplus and I think there a great club as well. In the end, we decided to go with CFC as they had a stronger record placing girls into colleges with great soccer programs (and yes, academics as well!). Both clubs were about the same driving distance for us.

On a final note, I believe the team already has 6 players committed to play some great schools with great athletic scholarships. Two players have verbally committed to UMass, two players to UConn, one GK to Michigan and the other GK to Dickinson, one player to Sacred Heart.

This is very helpful for a parent of a younger girl who is passionate about soccer and has a talent for the game and who's parents want to provide her the best opportunity to succeed and chase her dreams. Much more informative then some of the other posts about why Oakwood or FSA are better then CFC because their U15 team beat CFC in the cup finals. I could care less if it means my daughter gets the right exposure at an ECNL tournament and that helps her get into the college of her choice and continue to play soccer at a D1 level. My understanding is that there isn't alot of money to go around for scholarships at D1 schools anyway and that the money gets reallocated after every year, so even if she gets some money toward her schooling, it won't be much and it won't necessarily be for all 4 years.....good luck to your daughter this weekend and with her dream to play D1 and thatnks for the insights

[Unregistered]

From the post from the CFC ECNL United U17 parent (very helpful, but too long to quote):

"The top players went to ECNL. The other team players (not selected) went to Disney in a combined age/group team. The players that didn't go to Disney, will get to go to ECNL San Diego for the next showcase in March 2012, and other team players that weren't selected will go to play at Jefferson Cup."

Does this mean that "CFC United U17" - which has 26 girls on the roster as shown on the CFC website - has been split into two teams that are both considered ECNL teams?

[Unregistered]

From the post from the CFC ECNL United U17 parent (very helpful, but too long to quote):

"The top players went to ECNL. The other team players (not selected) went to Disney in a combined age/group team. The players that didn't go to Disney, will get to go to ECNL San Diego for the next showcase in March 2012, and other team players that weren't selected will go to play at Jefferson Cup."

Does this mean that "CFC United U17" - which has 26 girls on the roster as shown on the CFC website - has been split into two teams that are both considered ECNL teams?

Split in the coaches mind but 18 went to the ECNL tournament.

[Unregistered]

'ECNL is a big draw if you think you are a D1 player. That is the only reason to play ECNL. If my daughter wants to go D3 she'll get looked at playing in Regional Showcases just the same.'

I don't agree with this comment. The coaches that attend the ECNL events are D1, D2 and D3 coaches. All 3 levels of coaches also go to Regional Showcases as well. So it's usually a combination of being seen at both of these type events, no matter what division soccer your daughter desires to play at, that helps in the recruiting process. Also, coaches like to see the players playing against the best competition they can. The ECNL can pretty much guarantee a quality game where Regional Showcases can be more variable. There are also other intangible reasons for playing ECNL, like continual improvement, both individual and team, from consistently playing quality teams.

[Unregistered]

Does this mean that "CFC United U17" - which has 26 girls on the roster as shown on the CFC website - has been split into two teams that are both considered ECNL teams?

Not really. Since ECNL game day rosters are limited to 18, in order to avoid having players go to a tournament to sit on the bench for some games, CFC picks 18 of the 26 girls (girls selected change from tournament to tournament) to go to any given ECNL tournament. The other 8 players partner up with the 8 players similarly left off the U18 team's roster for that ECNL tournament and play in a different, but also top level, tournament as part of a mixed U17/18 team is an ad hoc tournament team. The mixed team is composed of ECNL players but is not really an official ECNL team. As I understand it, all players will get to play in at least some of the ECNL tournaments as part of the regular ECNL team, so that no player is always on the ad hoc mixed tournament team. The arrangement is a reasonable way to make sure every player get decent playing/showcase time despite being on a roster of 26 players.

[Unregistered]

'ECNL is a big draw if you think you are a D1 player. That is the only reason to play ECNL. If my daughter wants to go D3 she'll get looked at playing in Regional Showcases just the same.'

I don't agree with this comment. The coaches that attend the ECNL events are D1, D2 and D3 coaches. All 3 levels of coaches also go to Regional Showcases as well. So it's usually a combination of being seen at both of these type events, no matter what division soccer your daughter desires to play at, that helps in the recruiting process. Also, coaches like to see the players playing against the best competition they can. The ECNL can pretty much guarantee a quality game where Regional Showcases can be more variable. There are also other intangible reasons for playing ECNL, like continual improvement, both individual and team, from consistently playing quality teams.

someone has had a full dose of kool aid. yes D3 schools go to ecnl events but they also go to other events too. Besides the obvious things like my kids is happy, good coach, good team Athletic money has to be a main goal if you play on an ecnl team right? You are forking out thousands for years not just so your kid can go to Fairfield as a player filling out the roster right? If you want to play at Amherst and you are good enough and have the grades all you need is some regional showcases so they can see you. You don't need to go to Florida and Texas and California for Amherst to see you play. Coaches know pretty quick if they are going to offer you an athletic package. If you don't play on a good team well that isn't going to good regional showcases then you arent getting considered anyway.

For my money and my kid is only 13 if my kid is happy, getting better and plays hard everything will work itself out. The best players find a way. I doubt that players 12-26 on these ecnl teams are getting lots of athletic money. The top 10 kids probably are and that is it. By lots I mean 30% or more. The rest could have played at a good non ecnl club - Yankee, Oakwood etc and been in the same position.

Sure is a great debate though