Not impossible but very difficult.
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While this started about soccer, it’s kind of drifted back into this discussion about exceptional kids. And teams, of course, do not welcome all comers.
I would encourage you to remind them to take advantage of all they can in every realm. In particular, I would tell them to do whatever it is that sparks joy in themselves regardless of whether they are good at it.
We live in a culture that places, imho, way too much emphasis on doing things (extremely) well rather than for the pleasure of doing them and marking personal improvement. There’s a wonderful Kurt Vonnegut quote out there about someone telling him at 15 that it was OK to pursue things he didn’t do well because they would make him a more interesting person and how that advice changed his life.
It’s great to want to be your best. But in many cases, it’s less productive to want to be better than everyone else. You can’t control everyone else, and you run the risk of missing a wonderful journey because of the focus on the wrong destination. And you also can miss out on enjoying the gifts of those around you if they make you green with envy.
And in the context of sports, I had a kid who started on the thirds team his freshman year and didn’t make varsity until his junior year. He was an all league player senior year and had offers of roster spots at several D3 colleges he considered. I attribute this to several things, including lots of playing time on every team he was on, great coaching, and a work ethic that would not be sustainable without loving to play. I mention this because the slow path in his case actually took him further. So if your kid doesn’t make varsity freshman year, it’s hardly the end of their career. (It’s easy to lose perspective, especially if you are on the sidelines with a lot of parents…)
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For what it’s worth, my son played on a club team in the Boston area before going to boarding school. I was never entirely clear where exactly his team fell within the NEP, but I think pretty high up. If he had stayed for 9th grade, he likely would have been elevated to the ECNL team. He goes to a boarding school that isn’t in the ISL, but would be pretty equivalent to a middle of the pack ISL school. He was one of the better players on JV as a 9th grader, and played varsity as a 10th grader (usually didn’t start but saw significant playing time). He’ll start on varsity next year, and also plans to play club outside of school (would have done that this year, but for Covid restrictions).
From what I’ve seen, I think most of the boys playing at what was the Academy level are noticeably better than NEP/ECNL level, and might well start on varsity at an ISL school even as a 9th grader.
Could you share where your son went to bs? and does he play in college? if so, where? Thank you.
@Futbol1 if I posted that info it would not keep my son anonymous. I would be happy to speak generally about prep school soccer, or to PM.
understood
Since the unnecessary necrobump was answered, closing