FC Boston continues to transition and impress

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They need 2 wins against teams loaded with D1 commits in order to claim they are the "best in the country." No JV teams when you get this deep into the ECNL playoffs, ladies.

What does this even mean? Some of you talk as though sending a couple of players to Bryant or one of the other local D1 programs is some sort of developmental trophy. Get a clue. There really aren't any teams in the mold of some of the Surf teams with 3-4 NT players on the roster and a bench filled with all state and all region players around here. If you want to know where the bar is, start there and quit fooling yourself into believing that what passes for elite around here is even on the same planet as a team like them. They may not be JV teams but they certainly aren't star studded powerhouses either.

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Which two? Stars and NEFC? Stars and FC Boston? FCB is having its share of problems, but the girls who are staying feel they are treated well. I have heard JD can be tough, as can NB, but, again, the girls are happy. As for NEFC, NB has a mouth on him, too, but the girls love when he plays with them. So, I wouldn't blame any organization unless it treats you or your D poorly.

There is a big difference between being loud and being insulting. If what just happened to the Winchester coach is any indication, the days when a guy like KT or JD or FM could just spew whatever they felt and not have consequences are just about over. Parent's need to listen to what coaches are actually saying and not fall into the old school trap of thinking that hard coaching builds character. With these kids today that just causes anxiety and puts them on a therapist's couch.

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There is a big difference between being loud and being insulting. If what just happened to the Winchester coach is any indication, the days when a guy like KT or JD or FM could just spew whatever they felt and not have consequences are just about over. Parent's need to listen to what coaches are actually saying and not fall into the old school trap of thinking that hard coaching builds character. With these kids today that just causes anxiety and puts them on a therapist's couch.

Your daughter obviously hasn't had all these coaches, so stick to what you know. I don't know a parent that doesn't have his kid's best interest at heart.

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What does this even mean? Some of you talk as though sending a couple of players to Bryant or one of the other local D1 programs is some sort of developmental trophy. Get a clue. There really aren't any teams in the mold of some of the Surf teams with 3-4 NT players on the roster and a bench filled with all state and all region players around here. If you want to know where the bar is, start there and quit fooling yourself into believing that what passes for elite around here is even on the same planet as a team like them. They may not be JV teams but they certainly aren't star studded powerhouses either.

What does this even mean? The teams that are left in the final 8 or final 4 ECNL teams are loaded, and the point made was that this level of competition is unlike anything seen locally. Yet the MA kids are doing just fine.

Local critics love to insist that the MA ECNL teams are afraid to take on other local clubs because they'd be embarrassed if they lost, then double down by saying that they can't hang with the big dogs from TX, CA, CO, etc. They are proving that they can compete against anyone, and given that they've played close to 30 games since November, there's no reason to squeeze in more games just to make local folks with an inferiority complex happy.

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What does this even mean? The teams that are left in the final 8 or final 4 ECNL teams are loaded, and the point made was that this level of competition is unlike anything seen locally. Yet the MA kids are doing just fine.

Local critics love to insist that the MA ECNL teams are afraid to take on other local clubs because they'd be embarrassed if they lost, then double down by saying that they can't hang with the big dogs from TX, CA, CO, etc. They are proving that they can compete against anyone, and given that they've played close to 30 games since November, there's no reason to squeeze in more games just to make local folks with an inferiority complex happy.

Oh come on. The Stars U18 finished last and didn't even score a goal.

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What does this even mean? The teams that are left in the final 8 or final 4 ECNL teams are loaded, and the point made was that this level of competition is unlike anything seen locally. Yet the MA kids are doing just fine.

Local critics love to insist that the MA ECNL teams are afraid to take on other local clubs because they'd be embarrassed if they lost, then double down by saying that they can't hang with the big dogs from TX, CA, CO, etc. They are proving that they can compete against anyone, and given that they've played close to 30 games since November, there's no reason to squeeze in more games just to make local folks with an inferiority complex happy.

What a colossal load of crap you are swallowing chap. Compete against anyone?? Their league ensures that they get to step on the field against some good teams but as far as their ability to compete against them goes, organizationally they have yet to show that they have the ability to win anything more than a token game or two against the true iron in it. Give them that they do appear to beat the middle of the pack teams pretty consistently but they are fairly far off the pace set by the heavy hitters.

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What a colossal load of crap you are swallowing chap. Compete against anyone?? Their league ensures that they get to step on the field against some good teams but as far as their ability to compete against them goes, organizationally they have yet to show that they have the ability to win anything more than a token game or two against the true iron in it. Give them that they do appear to beat the middle of the pack teams pretty consistently but they are fairly far off the pace set by the heavy hitters.

let it go, you sound stupid

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What a colossal load of crap you are swallowing chap. Compete against anyone?? Their league ensures that they get to step on the field against some good teams but as far as their ability to compete against them goes, organizationally they have yet to show that they have the ability to win anything more than a token game or two against the true iron in it. Give them that they do appear to beat the middle of the pack teams pretty consistently but they are fairly far off the pace set by the heavy hitters.

So who are the heavy hitters? There are only 4 teams left at U15 and U16, so are the heavy hitters the 3 non-MA programs left? Seems like an arbitrary cut-off point. I don't see any of the programs putting teams into the finals across all age groups.

U15
FC Stars of Massachusetts ECNL U15
Slammers FC ECNL U15
Mustang SC ECNL U15
West Coast FC ECNL U15

U16
Crossfire Premier ECNL U16
PDA ECNL U16
FC Stars of Massachusetts ECNL U16
Real Colorado ECNL U16

[Unregistered]

let it go, you sound stupid

I don't think there is an fc boston age group that is in the top 2 in Mass. I don't care how good you think your league is, you're not in the top 2 in your own state.

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Making it to the ECNL Final 4 is a very nice accomplishment, of which the MA kids can be proud. Both U15 and U16 Stars teams made it. There are no California clubs left in it at U16. All were knocked out, including tournament top seed SoCal Blues, who lost to Stars in group play.

Interestingly it's all CA clubs, along with Stars, at U15. Good luck to both Stars teams in Maryland. Hopefully at least one of them can come home with an ECNL Championship.

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Making it to the ECNL Final 4 is a very nice accomplishment, of which the MA kids can be proud. Both U15 and U16 Stars teams made it. There are no California clubs left in it at U16. All were knocked out, including tournament top seed SoCal Blues, who lost to Stars in group play.

Interestingly it's all CA clubs, along with Stars, at U15. Good luck to both Stars teams in Maryland. Hopefully at least one of them can come home with an ECNL Championship.

Not trying to be a dink here and put a target on any kids but who is on these Mass teams you are touting? Anyone with any kind of big time resume? If not that really speaks to how weak the ECNL is becoming because if you draw a parallel to the top college teams when you go up one level what is considered a top level team is going to be littered with high school All American and former YNT players. Let's celebrate the accomplishment but let's also put it into perspective and not get all that carried away by it.

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Too late dink

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Not trying to be a dink here and put a target on any kids but who is on these Mass teams you are touting? Anyone with any kind of big time resume? If not that really speaks to how weak the ECNL is becoming because if you draw a parallel to the top college teams when you go up one level what is considered a top level team is going to be littered with high school All American and former YNT players. Let's celebrate the accomplishment but let's also put it into perspective and not get all that carried away by it.

There are three players from those Stars teams on the YNT team. Two on the 16's and one on the 15's.

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I don't think there is an fc boston age group that is in the top 2 in Mass. I don't care how good you think your league is, you're not in the top 2 in your own state.

At least u14.

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Not trying to be a dink here and put a target on any kids but who is on these Mass teams you are touting? Anyone with any kind of big time resume? If not that really speaks to how weak the ECNL is becoming because if you draw a parallel to the top college teams when you go up one level what is considered a top level team is going to be littered with high school All American and former YNT players. Let's celebrate the accomplishment but let's also put it into perspective and not get all that carried away by it.

Your assertion that a team must have several players with "big time resumes" to be a great team is faulty. But that said, look closer at the Stars 16s and you'll see some very accomplished resumes there.

One thing you need to realize is how few spots there actually are on the YNTs. For a single club to place more than one player per age group on a YNT is actually quite a rare thing. As another poster pointed out, Stars currently has 2 players rostered on the U16 GNT, and one on the U15 GNT. There are several other players on Stars U16 ECNL that have been to at least one GNT camp, and most of those to more than one.

Based on that, it's not clear what perspective you're trying to put things into. Here's a little exercise for you; Name another current Massachusetts team that has sent more players than Stars U16 ECNL to one or more NT camps.

Face it. Both of these teams knocked off some big time clubs and teams to reach their respective ECNL Final 4s. Probably a good idea to save your talk about how weak the ECNL is becoming for another day.