It’s Kicks for Cancer weekend in Concord. The sidelines are filled with jubilant fans. Pink shirts and big smiles are everywhere. It’s a wonderful event that harkens back to a simpler time, when young athletes took immense pride in representing their communities, and club teams had not yet come to dominate youth sports. I miss those days.
I have been involved in youth soccer for 20 years as a coach and served three years as president of Concord-Carlisle Youth Soccer (CCYS). Over that time, I have watched with sorrow and frustration as for-profit clubs, preying on parental anxieties, have grown in influence. It’s now common for children as young as 8 or 9 to play club soccer, their parents paying thousands of dollars for the “privilege.”
A few years ago, I completed the U.S.Soccer C license course. Perhaps the best part was the opportunity to share thoughts with committed coaches. Roughly two-thirds of them were expats from the UK and all were harshly critical of youth soccer in Massachusetts. In their eyes, for-profit clubs had ruined the game. They were driven by money, not community, not sportsmanship, and certainly not fun.
We are fortunate in Concord-Carlisle to have an alternative. Under the leadership of Mark Thomas, CCYS coaching director, children have access not only to the in-town recreational and inter-town travel programs, but also Strikers United, a town-based club program for children with ability and a passion for soccer. Strikers offers competitive games and professional coaching, but emphasizes community, player development, and, most importantly, fun!
I hope more families in our towns and neighboring communities will support town-based club
soccer programs that put kids first. Then maybe the joy so apparent at Kicks for Cancer can
become a regular part of youth soccer once again.
Jon Grayzel
Grant Street