Battle continues over high school versus club soccer

Club sports have become ubiquitous part of the athletics scene, but soccer is the only sport that seems to have a conflict between club and school participation. Volleyball players don’t have to choose one over the other; neither do basketball players. Even individual sports like tennis and golf allow dual participation between school and junior tournaments.

But soccer always draws the most criticism.

“Coaching soccer is no longer a volunteer activity. It is a business and a very prosperous business,” said Phillip DeRosa, longtime Burlingame girls’ soccer coach as well as a former club coach. “[The club model] has become a year-round occupation for soccer coaches.”

Forcing players to choose took on added pressure a few years ago when the U.S. Soccer Federation started its Development Academy program that many clubs rushed to be certified. With it came a change in the club season. What was once one season that started in early summer and ended in late November, has morphed into a two-season format: a spring/summer season and a fall/winter campaign.

Up until a few years ago, the club season ended with a massive national showcase tournaments in San Diego at the end of November, meaning players would miss the first couple of non-league high school games. Now, these showcases extend into December.

That puts coaches in a bind. Woodside girls’ soccer coach Jose Navarrete, who has guided the Wildcats for the last 20 years as well as spending 23 years as a club coach, said he had a player come to him and ask if she could join the Woodside squad after a showcase event in December, meaning the player would be away from the high school team for about two months. Navarrete said it would be unfair to the players who had been with the team from the beginning of the season.

Even if not actively in league play, most clubs believe for players to reach their true potential, they need to be in the club’s system year-round. Navarrete said clubs are now using the allure of college scholarships — and professional prospects — to entice players to commit to them. Navarrete said that is a legitimate goal for some club players. But he believes a vast majority tend to overvalue their skills.

“That’s what propels those clubs: the average player who has the dream to get a college scholarship,” Navarrete said. “If you go to a club tryout, there would be 100 kids. Instead of just one team, [clubs] would say, ‘Let’s make five teams.’

“It’s a lot harder to make the Woodside team because we’re only taking 18 players.”

Many coaches can understand the allure of players trying to gain college scholarships or even taking advantage of high-level training and state-of-the-art programs. But high school coaches also believe that the high school experience can be just as rewarding.

“I will never say high school is better than club,” Navarrete said. “But it’s very, very different.”

Navarrete said there is a practical aspect to playing high school soccer.

“What I tell people about high school soccer is: I don’t have to recruit, I don’t have to find a field,” Navarrete said. “I can still coach and get these kids to compete and teach them a lesson here and there.”

But there is a more emotional reason to play high school sports. As corny as it sounds, there is still something to said about playing for the name on the front of the jersey than the name on the back.

DeRosa said he remembers the day the Panthers won their first Central Coast Section title during the 2007-08 season. It wasn’t after the game when they defeated Presentation, 2-0. It occurred as the team was boarding the bus and leaving Burlingame for Valley Christian High School in San Jose, site of the CCS Division II championship game.

“The kids got dressed and the bus was waiting. This is February. The football season was over, but the football team was in the weight room. We walk down the hall (in the gym) and the whole football team came out and lined the hall and were clapping and high-fiving and cheering,” DeRosa said. “The bus leaves the front of the school. … and passes the softball field and all the softball players were lined up on the fence, cheering us on.

“It was so emotional for me to see that. To see the excitement of the school, those kids (on the bus) will never forget that experience. … I’ll never forget that moment. That’s what high school sports is all about.”

Nathan Mollat can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: 344-5200 ext. 117. To report scores or have tips, email sports@smdailyjournal.com.