The benefits of staying put

Last week, I touched on the issue of how the standard of soccer in southern Indiana could be improved if the will was there.

I felt it was a topic worth discussing because five of the best teams from Southern Indiana United and Net-Surfers went to the preliminary rounds of the Indiana State Cup recently, played 15 games, and came home without a single win.

There are many ways improvements could be made, and I mentioned just a few. An adequate indoor sports facility would be a big plus, and a number inside the game have suggested this could be supported by the parks department. Another is the addition of tournament standard fields, which wold bring in significant revenue.

The need for organized soccer leagues in elementary and middle schools; a successful academy system for those being introduced to the game for the first time; having a paid staff at club level; and the recruitment of the finest coaches who could attract players to local clubs are also worth noting.

So too is a unity from everyone in the area who has a common dream or goal for the benefit of the soccer community. All easier said than done, I know.

When the best teams are across the river, and the opportunity to play against top opponents regularly and be noticed for college scholarships is dangled carrot-like in your direction, it is hard to resist, and therein lies the difficulty in stemming a tide going in the opposite direction.

Therefore keeping players locally is a problem, but there are now some returning after a stint in Louisville. It’s a start.

Debbie Webb, SIU's vice president with responsibility for select soccer, said they are coming back for a number of reasons.

"Some are returning because they did not make a Louisville team, but also some are coming back because of the cost and the family friendly atmosphere that SIU offers," said Webb.

"Many see Javanon, United and Mockingbird as a better program but I guess it all depends what you are looking for in a travel soccer program. It is true that Javanon, United and Mockingbird have many more state, regional and national championships than SIU will ever have, but there is no guarantee that switching from SIU to one of these clubs will assure you a spot on a winning team. The skill level from age group to age group is not the same."

One to return is Jacob Trulock, who plays for SIU's U10 team. His mother, Donna Trulock-Jones, said they first started their journey into select soccer with Javanon.

"Jacob had fun playing with the other players and his love for the game developed," she said. "We enjoyed the experience and made some good friends along the way. We as a family had fun traveling with the other parents."

But something was missing, said Trulock Jones. Actually, time was missing.
"Our family spent an insane amount of time in the car traveling, 45 minutes back and forth to practices missing out on other events for siblings. This is not to mention, homework and just having a few moments of family time a night to get caught up on how everyone’s day was. That is when we decided to come back across the bridge and give it another try."

Donna said Jacob has excellent coaching, and a special goalie coach in Michael Davis.

"Since the spring, SIU has allowed the goalies for each team to work one on one with a goalie coach," she said. "In one season, Jacob's skills have improved tremendously. This is a great addition to the club.

"He also loves playing with kids that are from his community. It is also nice for him to get together with his soccer team and play on a non game day, since the families live so close."

Paul Chrisco's son, Kevin, started playing select for Javanon at U9 level.

"The first year was fun but it was a lot of work getting him across the bridge to practices," said Paul. "It really hit home when we passed one of the SIU practice fields half an hour into our trip home from a Javanon practice at the end of last season. When Kevin realized how much less driving would be involved playing for SIU we decided to try out for the SIU U10 team."

It ended up being the right choice for the family, said Paul.

"Practices are literally minutes from our house," he said. "Two of Kevin's friends from his school also made the team and I was able to get involved as the assistant coach.

"During his first year at Javanon it seemed as though our lives revolved around soccer. While soccer is important to our son, we don’t want it to completely dominate our lives."

Debbie Webb believes SIU can offer a player much more than the Louisville clubs at the U9-U14 age groups.

"When you get to U15 and older, which are college recruiting ages, Louisville clubs are definitely the best bet for the player who hopes to play in college. This is because of their focus on winning and exposing their players to the most competitive -- and expensive -- leagues and the most competitive, prestigious -- and expensive -- tournaments. This is more than SIU can do.”

And more than they want to do, she revealed.

“ We really don't want to be like Javanon or United or Mockingbird. We do not have the fields or other resources to do so. We want to offer a quality, affordable and fun program in southern Indiana."

And, of course, the expense is a big issue.

"SIU's travel program operates on a zero budget - we only charge what we must in order to run the program and most years we end with a loss," said Webb. "We are not in this to make money but to provide a service. We work with families who need to make payments on their fees."

Meanwhile, Net-Surfers' ability to hold tryouts earlier than usual has paid dividends, it has said. The girls' club received permission from the Indiana Youth Soccer Association for the exemption after the club complained that it would lose numerous players if it couldn't tryout until a month after Louisville teams.

"Players that tryout for clubs in Louisville will have to commit and may not risk that they will have a team to play with or make a spot if so for our club," said Greg Reger, the club's president, in a letter to the IYSA.

As a result of the exemption for Net-Surfers, tryouts were held on June 3 and 4, and coaches believe it has helped save one team and improve others. It will be interesting to see whether the club reaps benefits from the move come next season.