Home Forums Active Threads

The National Premier Leagues (NPL) continues to grow, as it welcomes the fourth newest member league for the 2020-21 season: the New England Impact NPL with clubs spanning Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

With additional member clubs to be announced in the coming weeks, the New England NPL will be led by these founding clubs:

Aztec Soccer Club (Topsfield, MA)
BEST FC (Westborough, MA)
Bayside FC (East Providence, RI)
Liverpool FC International Academy (Middleboro, MA)
South Shore Select (Hingham, MA)
Spirit of Liverpool USA (Oxford, MA)

The inaugural season offers competitive club versus club competition opportunities for U-13 through U-18/19 girls teams and participation in the NPL pathway.

“This is an important time for New England club soccer,” said Mike Kersker, President of the New England Impact NPL. “With the support of US Club Soccer, this group of like-minded clubs have been able to come together to form a league that places a premium on individual and team development and creates an effective pathway for our players to achieve success at the collegiate level both on and off the field.”

“The addition of the New England Impact NPL is yet another example of the continued growth and strength of the NPL,” said Leo Garcia, NPL General Manager and US Club Soccer VP of Competitions. “We’re excited to welcome this impressive group of clubs, and we know they’re bringing skills and enthusiasm to the entire NPL, on and off the field.”

As an NPL member league, the New England Impact NPL enjoys a pathway to postseason opportunities for its clubs. In addition to postseason opportunities, members of the new league also gain access to a plethora of US Club Soccer benefits, including player identification and development, cup-based competition, player health and safety resources, robust coaching education and more.

Quotes from founding member clubs:

Mike Kersker, Aztec Soccer Club President: “Aztec Soccer Club is honored to be a founding member of the New England Impact NPL. This is a perfect example of how clubs that share common goals and visions can come together to create a highly competitive and meaningful platform for our players, teams, and coaches.”

John Mark Andrade, Bayside FC President: “Bayside FC is excited for the opportunity to be part of the New England Impact NPL alongside like-minded clubs to provide our players a professional and competitive environment that will maximize their development.”

Paul Mumby, BEST FC Director of Coaching: “As a US Club Soccer Players First-licensed club, BEST FC is honored to be a founding member of the New England Impact NPL. BEST FC strives to provide diverse and high-quality opportunities for our players.

The New England Impact NPL will help our players achieve their personal goals by providing opportunities to participate in high-profile events, college showcases and a progression to a national competition platform. We look forward to collaborating on a local level with some of the area’s top soccer clubs and nationally with the other 21 NPLs to create a positive and impactful soccer development path for our players.”

Martyn Hollands, Liverpool FC International Academy Co-Owner: “Liverpool FC International Academy is delighted to be a founding member of the New England Impact NPL. Alongside five additional top clubs in our region, we are excited to provide a competitive, player-focused club league with exciting regional and national opportunities through US Club Soccer.”

Steve McAuliffe, South Shore Select Executive Director: “South Shore Select is thrilled to be part of the New England Impact NPL. We are excited to be working alongside other like-minded clubs in a collaborative environment focusing on competitive player development.”

Bernie Grimes, Spirit of Liverpool USA President: “Spirit of Liverpool are excited about the opportunity to become a founding member of the New England Impact NPL. Together with five other like-minded soccer clubs who have the best interest of the players and their families in mind, we look forward to the growth, development and educational opportunities that the New England Impact NPL will provide.”

It’s magic

why did they get rid of like 4 fields....why the cancellation?

Most of the group stage games have not even been played yet, maybe an age group here or there but definitely not for 2009 boys.

SURF and Athletico O8 same players? Play both teams in Spring? Anyone know?

Yep...who cares about the paying customer...

He’s actually around and working with teams. Why do you want to stir up crap and bust that guys balls for is beyond me. Just stop it

Sounds like your son was a very talented player and sometimes they make great referees! As a referee he had enough experience in the game to be able to anticipate and young people like that really add a lot to the referee ranks! When he becomes a dad maybe he will coach or referee again and see the beautiful game again from a different perspective. I appreciate his contribution to the game we need more like him and his friends!

Youth club San Diego Surf, for noncompliance with COVID-19 Industry Guidance: Youth and Adult Recreational Sports, was issued a cease and desist order by the County of San Diego, which in January 2021 suffered its worst month of COVID cases, ranks second in average total cases among California's 58 counties in the last seven days, and is at a very high risk level.

Read the entire letter HERE.

California has allowed youth soccer clubs to practice while adhering to guidelines such as "face coverings to be worn when not participating in the activity (e.g., on the sidelines)" but has not allowed games between different teams at the youth or high school levels. The cease and desist order, dated Feb. 17, cites Surf SC for holding inter-team competitions, and stated that failure to comply "may result in criminal misdemeanor citations with a $1,000 fine for each violation."

ABC 10News reported that a county spokesperson said that it has had "repeated discussions with Surf Cup Soccer about what is allowed." It also aired video of players not wearing masks as required by state ordinance, and as recommended by U.S. Soccer's guidelines while not physically active.

Surf Club Soccer responded to the cease and desist with a Feb. 17 letter in which it stated, "If your choice is to send an inspector daily to our fields, please simply let us know and we will get out our checkbook. ... We will continue to let these kids play."

On Feb. 19, California public health officials green-lighted regular competition for outdoor sports such as soccer, beginning Feb. 26, in counties with COVID-19 rates below 14 people per 100,000 residents. San Diego County's current rate is 22.2 cases per 100,000.

The New York Times reported on Friday that in San Diego County, "Cases are very high but have decreased over the past two weeks. The number of hospitalized Covid patients has also fallen in the San Diego County area, but I.C.U. occupancy is still very high. Deaths have decreased. The test positivity rate in San Diego County is high, suggesting that cases may be undercounted."

In June, U.S. Soccer released detailed Play On guidelines for various return-to-play phases to be introduced only when “local authorities have deemed it safe." In a July interview with Soccer America, Dr. George Chiampas, U.S. Soccer’s Chief Medical Officer, said "U.S. Soccer [is] not an organization that has that authority" to punish clubs that don't heed state or local regulations. In a November interview, Chiampas said, "You should obviously follow your state guidelines."

The Elite Academy League (EA), launched in 2020 with two conferences, will expand to eight conferences with 90 elite clubs throughout the United States for the 2021-2022 soccer season.

The Elite Academy League (EA) launched in 2020 with two division and is dedicated to providing player development opportunities for Elite Academy clubs inside a National Youth Platform. The Southwest and Northeast were the first division to kick off, representing over 30 clubs in the boys age groups of U13-U19.

The Elite Academy League now has announced plans to expand to eight conferences with 90 elite clubs throughout the United States for the 2021-2022 soccer season.

The EA will be a national platform for clubs to play within their conference (region) while giving clubs, teams, and players national exposure and competition with regional and national showcase events culminating in a national championship in June.

THE EA PROVIDES PLAYERS OPPORTUNITIES TO BE EVALUATED BY COLLEGE COACHES.

With a commitment to quality and a proven track record of accomplishments in youth soccer, EA Chair Noah Gins said, “We are very much looking forward to offering clubs the opportunity in their market to be part of the platform to help develop and build their club model further.”

The EA has been built off the lessons of previous national platforms and will be governed by the leadership within each conference with soccer decisions guided by soccer leadership.

The league will create working and fluid conference schedules, allow players to prioritize high school soccer, provide standards to elevate clubs, and provide administration that help clubs be organized while promoting their players and teams through the EA platform.

“It is with this league that the clubs will be first and foremost the voice. The ability to truly have a league guided by soccer leaders working together to assure soccer decisions and the development of club, team and player are the priority.”​ said Mike Anderson, EA Director of League Development

The EA will make it very simple and clear for all members. It will provide a 20 plus game season, Regional and National events and all ages will be playing for a National Championship.

The clubs will be part of a standard that brings forth competition, meaningful games, and professionalism. The college recruitment for the players U15-U19 will be the priority of the league helping clubs bring the best exposure and resources with video, college attendance, and venues.

The clubs that have applied will be communicated between February 15 – March 1 with announcements around the accepted clubs, details around showcases with venues, dates, and all information for a successful 2021-2022 EA season.

“We can assure we will provide an incredible experience within the showcase events of the EA. They will be assured to have all elements making up the best of the best standards,”​ said Mike Libber and Andrew Dahir, EA Director of Events. Elite Tournaments is proud to announce we have partnered with the EliteAcademyL to host Regional and National Showcase events across the country! These events will provide clubs, teams, and players national exposure and competition.

“We’re excited to be included as part of the national launch,” said Shumaker. “The EA has set many high standards for itself that foremost offers the clubs a top resource to their pathway,” Blake Shumaker, FC Wichita

“Cedar Stars Academy is very excited to see the EA expand into a national platform. We look forward to being able to showcase our players at a high level and compete with other elite club from across the country for a National Championship,” said Anthony Dixon, Academy Director, Cedar Stars.

“To be part of the progressive approach to providing for all clubs with the games, showcases, and the competition that will help elevate each club is something all should be excited about,​” said Wayne Crowe, Director of Soccer, ALBION SC San Diego.

The ​Mission of the EA​ is to provide a National platform as a standards based league giving clubs the ability to provide a full development model and pathway with top competition and exposure.

The ​Vision of the EA​ will be to sit atop the youth landscape providing Elite Academy clubs and leaders the opportunity to guide and shape the league in turn developing the game in the US. This league will provide a seamless Elite pathway for clubs and players to excel in the competitive landscape.

The Elite Academy League is composed of member clubs that represent Elite Competitive clubs in their market and have shown to be the standard and will benefit from being part of this platform. By unifying clubs within the conferences, we have maintained the defining standards of previous elite platforms with a collective approach to making sure the platform sits atop the youth landscape.

Looking to add two experienced players 2007 for Spring. Most likely LIJSL division 4. 2008 players are welcome.
Looking for two field players
Must be committed, positive and play with sportsmanship.
professionally trained, fun and positive atmosphere.
Tournaments nearby, we offer play year round.
Not looking to waste a players time. Everyone plays here.

If interested in coming down to an open practice in March please contact me via phone or email

Joe
5165105570
jtbombers@verizon.net

Any word WHEN this MLS League will officially announce the new clubs joining for next year ?

What is this, the first BOTN conspiracy theory? Maybe you weren't here for a week, but that thread never left. Too funny.

by Dan Woog

Bryan Turner remembers all the times he was told he was not good enough.

He was cut from a club in California, because he said he only played up front. He went to work, and learned every other position. The next year, he made the team.

After moving to New Jersey, he was cut again. “You didn’t stand out,” a coach said. Turner went right back to work. At tryouts a year later, he scored three goals and had three assists. His standout performance earned him a spot on the squad.

Turner loved everything about soccer. He moved often with his mother, a project manager for tech startups. Though he was the only Black player on many teams, the game helped him make friends everywhere.

But constant travel every weekend, to games and tournaments up and down the East Coast, burned him out. As a high school senior, he turned down offers from college coaches. Turner headed to North Carolina A&T State University on an academic scholarship, to study engineering.
He soon realized he missed soccer. The historically Black school did not even have a team; the only people who cared about the sport, he says, were foreign students.

“I had no teammates. There was no competition to look forward to,” Turner says. So he turned his competitive nature to his classwork.

After graduation he joined Honeywell for three years, then as a civilian contractor for the Navy for two more, working from home.

In 2018 the contract ended. He was 28 years old, and had to figure out the next step in his life.

A few months earlier he’d been hired as head boys coach at Blue Valley North High School in Overland Park, Kansas. He realized that getting another office job would mean not committing himself fully to the team. Not coaching on his own terms would not be fair to his players, or himself.

“I went for coaching full time,” Turner says. “I had no other plan.”

He was named girls coach at Blue Valley North too. The same year, he started No Stress Midwest.

The name refers to the training environment he wants to create: customized for individual players, small groups and entire teams, with high standards and hard work, but the acknowledgment that teenage athletes face many pressures off the field that trainers must understand.

No Stress Midwest began while COVID ravaged the country. Turner saw that many players struggled academically. So he added a tutoring component, using former student-athletes who are licensed teachers. “They do more than tutor,” he says. “They know the stress of trying to fit in school, practices, games, social life – you name it.”

Turner developed a fact sheet, listing the limited number and amount of college scholarships available. He does not want players to feel burdened by the unrealistic lure of Division I. Instead, he strives for an environment – on the field and in tutoring sessions – where players feel comfortable. That’s the best way, he says, for them to excel.

Turner paraphrases José Mourinho: “I treat every player the same. But I treat each person differently.”

Last August, Turner added a podcast to the No Stress Midwest mix. He’s educating listeners – and he’s learned a lot himself too.

His first season of eight guests included no women. After a friend chastised him, he devoted his second season to women’s soccer. Guests included top professionals. “They were bad-ass,” he says admiringly. “That got me into the NWSL. It was a facet of the game I hadn’t been involved with. It opened my eyes wide.”

Each podcast season has a theme. Coming up: Black excellence, followed by soccer entrepreneurs, then coaches.

Underpinning all Turner does is his desire to be the best coach possible. He knew nothing about United Soccer Coaches – the 30,000-member organization covering youth through pros – until someone told him about the 2019 convention. He went to four or five sessions a day in Chicago, and earned high school and advanced youth diplomas.

The next year, in Baltimore, he attended some of the social events. “Walking into the suite for the Black advocacy group, seeing more than 100 Black coaches, was so powerful,” Turner says. “Growing up, I’d never had a Black coach. I had coaches who were great role models, but I couldn’t relate to them in terms of race.” His goal is to be “that coach I never had.”

At the high school coaches events, he meet leaders like Rusty Oglesby, Greg Winkler and Howie Putterman. All encouraged him to take an active role in the association. He reached out United Soccer Coaches director of coaching education Ian Barker. They talk at least once a month.

Last month, Turner was a co-host for United Soccer Coaches’ virtual convention. He previewed upcoming events, chatted about soccer with Barker and others, and served as one of the organization’s public faces. When Brandi Chastain interacted with him on Zoom, he was thrilled.

“I watched her take off her jersey when I was younger. Now I was conversing with her. I thought, ‘And I was supposed to be an engineer!’ That just affirmed that my decision to leave the corporate world was the right one.”

Turner’s goal is to coach at the highest level possible. “I’ve been told I can’t be an MLS coach because I don’t have enough playing experience. But I was told I didn’t stand out when I was younger, too. I like when people doubt me. That motivates me.”

He is motivated by more than pride. “There are no Black head coaches in the NWSL, or in the (U.S. Soccer) national teams program,” he says. “There are only two in MLS. This is 2021. We can’t just talk about how far we’ve come. We have to open doors. I want to help.”

Still, he says, his goal is not just about race. “The best coaches are the best coaches. If you’ve got it, you’ve got it.”

Turner is part of a cohort of young coaches, ready to make their mark on the soccer world. His generation “will bring hope and change,” he says. “We’ll be in positions of power soon. We know women have been treated unfairly, especially at the national level. We can create exponential growth in the game in fairness – race, gender equity, everything. As we rise through the ranks, the tide will turn. I’m ready to ride that wave.”

By Jonathan Sigal

The inaugural MLS NEXT season's second half is nearly here for teams from New England, and we're getting you prepped with our club-by-club preview.

Teams are currently planning for a March 13 opener, picking up from a Fall 2020 portion that included several stops and starts. The COVID-19 pandemic still looms, of course, and its complications are bound to impact the Spring 2021 portion as well.

As clubs get prepared, our preview includes U-15 through U-19 teams at Beachside, Oakwood and Seacoast United, as well as the Boston Bolts and New England Revolution. Bayside FC, NEFC and Valeo FC all have MLS NEXT teams, too, though they're at the younger age groups.

With that preamble, let's get underway.

NYFC 07s are fantastic.
BWG 07s very good.

Then a drop off to SUSA Alby.

The rest are Barca Pro, KP and few others Amityville and BWG East 07s on the rise .

Accurate assessment.

The Girls Academy (GA) has announced the launch of a new Champions League competition for the 2021-2022 season.

The Champions League will provide an additional platform for the league’s top clubs, who will earn qualification through their success in the regular season.

Champions League qualifiers will consist of the top two (2) clubs in each of the seven (7) GA conferences, based on final league standings, with the addition of the two best performing/highest ranking wildcard teams from each age group, based on National Playoff results, for a total of sixteen (16) teams per age group.

Clubs and teams will qualify on an annual basis. The competition will consist of two (2) events for qualifying teams and clubs in the U13-U19 age groups, culminating with a Champions League winner per age group that will be crowned in the spring of 2022.

“The Girls Academy is excited to extend its competitive programming to our membership by adding the Champions League for the 2021-2022 season. It will provide a new opportunity for the players to showcase their talents and compete against some of the best players in the country,” said GA President Wes Schevers. “The Champions League will be made up of the best of the best from each conference.”

The event-based competition will kick off in Fall 2021 and be scouted by college coaches and U.S. Soccer scouts. Additional details will be released later this spring.

“Creating a Champions League event within the Girls Academy is exciting for our players,” said GA Commissioner Leslie Gallimore. “When asked what they want in their experience with our league, the ability to be rewarded for what they’ve proven on the field with their performances is a high priority.”

Currently in its inaugural season, the GA consists of 69 total clubs including 7,500 total players across the country.

Do you mean this page?

https://www.backofthenet.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/744485/2