defining the team hoppers

[InsidePitch]

If you change teams one or more times every year, either you've got very bad luck or you're a team hopper. The core of DD's team has been together for several years. When a new player joins who was with their previous team for more than a year, those players stick much better than someone who frequently moves around. Some people are impossible to please, or never figure out that you can spend your kid's entire playing career looking for the perfect team.

There were teams I knew we were leaving at the season 1/2 way point. I never talked to DD about this, we just went to see what else was out there in August. We did seem to be in sync with this.

 

[uncdrew]

I sort of felt that I moved DD a lot but each team was better than the last and she never moved to a team to be a starter. In fact she was always down in the depth chart and had to earn a starting position. She did stay with two orgs for two years including her last team. 10, 11 and 12 were new teams each year.

If you switch at the end of a full year, I don't consider that a team-hopper at all. You played the full year, and then went to tryouts and joined the right team for DD and honored your commitment to stay a full year.

For us (and most everyone, I think), that means tryouts in summer/late summer and stick with the team through the end-of-season tournament. If you move after that, that's just doing the best thing for your DD. Best thing may be to stay with the same team, but often it isn't.

 

[Schmick's Gloves]

DD is on first 12u TB team. Been in REC/All Stars/Select,etc here in So Calif entire time so far. For us the two top things that would make us think about switching are:

1) the coach's "style" is just way too negative all the time and my daughter dreads going to practices or games for fear of getting yelled at. Or philosophy is win at all cost (just not what I believe in).

2) travel or goals of team are more than we are willing to commit to. Not really a problem if all the families and girls want that, but going out of state a LOT or driving 2-3 hours for practices, etc would probably not be a good fit for our family/finances. I know many on here travel much farther than that due to the limited options where they live. But, for us out here, we can find closer options.

Difficult to find closer options in Southern California when the state has been locked down for a year. No tournaments available, very few if any official field permits. Last May we tried to go to a friendly and while the girls were warming up to take the field police cruisers drove on to the fields and threatened to arrest anyone who didn't leave. The pandemic has caused much more travel in the last year than we had done in the previous 6 years

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[Schmick's Gloves]

There were about 3 seasons where my kid switched teams during or right after the Xmas break.
The first season she moved up because she had her 11th birthday in December and as of January 1st she could no longer play 10U so she went from the 10U team she was on to a 12U team within the organization.
Then, after that 12U team she went to moved up to 14U 8 months later we had to find a team. The team we put her on barely played and had extremely high dues. After 2 months of not playing in any tournaments or friendlies we left to a team that played 3 weekends a month, had lower dues and was frankly a better team that Christmas break.
Then a few years later when her 2nd year 14U team was made up of all 9th graders and her, an 8th grader, wasn't looking to be dark for 3 months while they played in High School, we switched her to a team of 8th graders so she wouldn't be dark.

Now she plays with an academy that seems to have fluid movement between teams and age groups for many of the teams within the academy

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[bmakj]

There were about 3 seasons where my kid switched teams during or right after the Xmas break.
The first season she moved up because she had her 11th birthday in December and as of January 1st she could no longer play 10U so she went from the 10U team she was on to a 12U team within the organization.
Then, after that 12U team she went to moved up to 14U 8 months later we had to find a team. The team we put her on barely played and had extremely high dues. After 2 months of not playing in any tournaments or friendlies we left to a team that played 3 weekends a month, had lower dues and was frankly a better team that Christmas break.
Then a few years later when her 2nd year 14U team was made up of all 9th graders and her, an 8th grader, wasn't looking to be dark for 3 months while they played in High School, we switched her to a team of 8th graders so she wouldn't be dark.

Now she plays with an academy that seems to have fluid movement between teams and age groups for many of the teams within the academy

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Generally thought in the fall, most teams played whatever age they would be in the spring, to get ready? generally around here, August is tryout season, then most people stay put pretty much until the next summer

 

[Schmick's Gloves]

Generally thought in the fall, most teams played whatever age they would be in the spring, to get ready? generally around here, August is tryout season, then most people stay put pretty much until the next summer

That's how it is here too but it was our first full year of travel, she was the same grade/age as all the girls on her 10U team and I wasn't aware of the Jan 1 cut off date (her birthday is Dec 29). In the years of park and rec before they asked her what age she was before the spring and she'd play at that age, then in the fall she would do cheer for football.
The team she went to, all of the other girls were 2 grades ahead of her, which isn't a big deal now but when they went to 14U that August and she was 11 years old, we felt that was too big of a leap.

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[bmakj]

The team she went to, all of the other girls were 2 grades ahead of her, which isn't a big deal now but when they went to 14U that August and she was 11 years old, we felt that was too big of a leap.
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absolutely agree, big difference between 14 and 11

 

[ang2bmd]

We've been extremely fortunate with our older daughter. Played parks and rec until 2nd yr 8u. Played up that yr on a 10u homemade travel team cause we didn't know any better. Her 9u year moved to a bigger organization on their 10u team. Then found a home with a bigger organization for 2nd yr 10s and has been there ever since. Now 2nd yr 14u.

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