Desperate Soccer Moms

pAs the head coaches look at the budget for their Competitive Club/one thing stands out very clear-the amount of money given to scholarship players! Without doubt some players could not play Competitive soccer, if they had to pay the fees which can range from $1200-$2000 per year, plus travel and hotel costs.However,no Head –Coach can avoid noticing blatant abuse of the scholarship programs within their Club /p pOver the years I have had many parents ask for a scholarship for their child, even though they can obviously afford to pay the fees /p pSome situations are annoying and unbelievable./p pIn one situation the parent apologised for not attending a parent- meeting as he was in surgery for 10 hours-then asked for a scholarship .I mentioned how well he looked after 10 hours of surgery, only two days earlier.He pointed out that he was not the patient,but was in fact the brain surgeon who had performed the operation.He then proceeded to ask for a scholarship for his daughter.Stunned, I asked him why he needed it He replied that he saw the scholarship information and “it seemed like a good deal”./p pRecently we received a request for a scholarship from a family of five, who had just arrived back from a two week trip to Europe!/p pOften we see Scholarship players wearing $200 cleats,expensive pro club shirts and designer clothes and travel to LA to watch the Galaxy and David Beckham-OBVIOUSLY THEY ALSO WEAR HIS $70 SHIRT/p pThe”business” side of the scholarship “underworld” is both fascinating and sad.Young players being offered to the highest bidder(also depending on the level of the team). In some cases it is a given that some players are “always scholarship’” –without their parents even pretending financial hardship./p pWith the economy producing more genuine families in need of financial help, with their soccer fees, the day has arrived when all Clubs will now have to honestly deal with this rampant abuse of their Club income,supporting bogus scholarship players as a matter of expedience/p pI welcome your comments and experiences/p pJeff Illingworth/p

pThe end of a Summer of soccer discontent!!!/p pEarly in the year all the Competitive teams in Southern California held try –outs and formed teams#160; for the 2009-2010 upcoming season.For many coaches and parents hopes were high,with new players giving hopes of a bright future for their team./p pAs the summer arrived and tournaments began, disappointing results and limited playing time left some parents disenchanted and frustrated.Already some coaches have been removed from their jobs,teams have suddenly left one Club to go to another and the merry –go –round continues.Teams with great ambition have found Tournament wins hard to come by,having realised the incredible depth and quality present in Tournaments around Southern California/p pBefore the transfer ‘window’ arrived many players#160; parents were frantically running around getting transfer papers completed as they search for the “right coach” for their child.Final attempts to lure star players away from their teams were made at the last minute./p pWith the League season ready to begin ,the frantic Summer schedule of Camps training and Tournaments,comes to a halt.It is clear that very few soccer programs have gone thru the summer without some form of upheaval,or controversy.A coach from a local Club told me he had already been involved in five meetings with different parents in one team alone!In an ideal World,Summer, Soccer and Tournaments should be fun ,enjoyable and relaxing.In fact, the intense pressure can be seen in the behavior of both the coaches and the parents,screaming insanely on the sidelines.Maybe the hot weather breeds discontent and tension!/p pDuring the summer some large Clubs suffered the loss of top coaches and Quality Coaches,as the coaches look for a better deal or environment,or more money and opportunity.Head-Coaches work hard to keep their Programs stable,yet dynamic and progressive.Volunteer Board Members,often new to the job try(hopefully),to help their Club work smoothly/p pOne thing is for sure.This Summer in Competitive youth soccer has been full of politics,passion and musical-chairs./p pTime to enjoy League play against our local rivals-I hope you enjoy a calm,thrilling soccer season/p