(May 9, 2007) This year the Player/Club Development League (PDL) clubs’, boys & girls U14 teams will not be participating in Washington State Premier League (WSPL) and the League Placement Tournament (LPT). This has caused many of us to ask questions about how this impacts my player, their team and our club. In response we asked some questions of PDL Committee Chair Todd Lincoln and PDL Coaching Director Representative (and Crossfire Coach) Neil Megson.
First, where can I find some background on the PDL and its formation? The best background information can be found in reading one of the initial proposals for what was then called the Premier Development League dated in April of 2006 (click to read). Additionally a more complete article on the subject was included in the February 2007 issue of the newspaper “Play On" (more). This article, “RPI, CYL, and the PDL: A Primer on Developmental Perspectives,” provides a very good background on the perspective of the many parties involved.
What Clubs are a part of the PDL? Currently the list of the PDL clubs is maintained on the District IV website (here). This list is not static and the PDL committee regularly reviews clubs for inclusion or removal. As an aside the PDL web site will soon be moving to its own home at http://playerdevelopmentleague.org.
What is the purpose and ethics policy statement of the PDL? The purpose of this league is to set the highest standards to develop youth players to their fullest potential – both physically and emotionally. As such, participants must conduct themselves to that same highest standard. At all times, adult participants are expected to be role models for the youth involved in this league - exhibiting good sporting behavior in both victory and defeat. All participants in the Player Development League (PDL) are members of WSYSA and therefore must adhere faithfully to its stated bylaws, rules and policies as well as to their intent. (Note this is a direct excerpt from the PDL Policy #01)
So what is this Spring League and if my players is not in it are they also not in the Fall League? No, or at least not because they did not play in the Spring League. The Spring League is an optional program of organized “friendlies.” Games results are not maintained and referee’s are provided by the teams involved. Fall League participation is first based on the team being in a club in the PDL and second, the team being seeded into the league based on competitive play results as determined by the PDL Competition Committee and as approved by the Coaching Directors. There is no exception to the first requirement.
So we are in PDL this year, what does the Fall League look like, and when will I know where we are seeded? The Fall League is the main season for the U11-U14 boys and girls programs for the PDL. The format for each age group does vary in regard to structure, alignment, timeline, and placement. The current plan of record per the PDL Competition Committee can be found here. Actual brackets and seeding is expected to be released by June 26th. Note this is a preliminary date and subject to change.
Can a team/club petition to play in PDL in just one age/gender group? No.
Can a team which is supposed to be in the PDL play WSPL instead? No, but the opposite is true. If a PDL club team does not measure up to the competitive standards of the PDL, the team may opt out and play State or District. A team chosing to do this can be reconsidered in future years based on State Tournament performances.
How is a team seeded into a specific division for Fall League? Fall league is a consensus of ability and level according to the Coaching Directors. At U14 a Relative Power Index (RPI) is used as a tool by the PDL Competition Committee along with approval from the Club Coaching Directors to seed the teams.
RPI, what is that and why use it versus LPT (League Placement Tournament)? The Relative Power Index or RPI weighs wins, ties, losses according to the strength of opponent and regularly adjust league strengths to actual results in cross-over competition. In evaluating its use for the PDL a study was done against league and cup results for the last 3 years. The RPI was shown to have 90%+ accuracy is estimating future LPT results. This accuracy increased to above 95% when you included promotion/relegation at the end of the U14 season.
My player is on a “C” team, will we be playing in the PDL in the Fall League? It depends entirely on level of play, then on approval of either a coaching subcommittee or the the PDL committee itself. Crossfire Premier’s plan (2007-08 season) is to field 3 teams in the PDL Fall League. Still it is possible a "C" team for a specific age/gender will not participate in the Fall League as each team will be individually evaluated. In the case of U13/U14 teams this decision will need to be made sooner so that the affected teams can participate in the appropriate state league and/or attend the League Placement Tournament (LPT). Parents of players of these teams should talk with their team manager, coach, and the appropriate Coaching Director to get more information.
Is a team able to play up in the Fall League? Yes, this is possible but should be a rare circumstance. Doing so is an exception requiring Coaching Director and PDL committee approval.
Can a team be relegated out of the PDL or promoted into it? Yes a team can be relegated out or promoted into the PDL. Note, only a team in a PDL Club can they be promoted into the PDL League.
I have heard something about a Club Player Pass what is this? The Club Player Pass, which has not been approved by the PDL, has emerged as a potential tool in assisting the development of youth soccer players across the US. At a high level it is the ability to allow a player to “play-up” in age or between “same age” teams to foster the players development while managing playing time issues, injury recovery and/or preparing players tactically for roles in which the player is struggling. Currently the PDL is reviewing a recommendation on this issue.
The current recommendation is as follows:
Moving forward, if the club pass should be adopted implementation should involve these policies:
- Supervision by Directors of Coaching
- Documentation at each game
- Consider no more than 3 halves played in a day and no more than one movement from one team to another (helpful for teams traveling in tandem)
- Abuse of the system treated as an ethics issue.
- Use player pass initially in developmental age groups, as player movement in promotion / relegation age groups could skew results in an unsporting way.
