Virtually Forbidding???? Kids leave GC program all the time for club and end up playing for GCHS. I would think GC is no different then any club (91/Express) in that they want to keep their best players. My take is that GC is good enough to field a solid club team and give kids significant rolls where it is less mercenary and a win at all cost attitude. That said, playing for clubs teams does help some kids get exposure to playing with top notch players but in club a lot of really solid players end up sitting on the bench and or getting their playing time in non meaningful games - less so in GC IMO
All true. However you're leaving out one key element. The level of competition. Come grades 7,8,9 there is no way GC is fielding a team that can play against top level clubs here or elsewhere. No way you're competing against Crabs, Dukes, FCA, Laxachusettes, WCS, 3D, etc... That's where your theory loses steam. In order to be the best, you must play with and compete against the best. Not happening with your GC travel team. Not putting down your team or town. However, it is the very reason why the best kids from your town and other top Lax towns will play on the top travel teams.
Does it really matter? All this wheel spinning, cash burning, chasing the carrot .......for what? 12.9 equivalent scholarships spread across a roster of 45? That's the reality of it!
You're uninformed. My son plays at a great D3 school. Got 30+ percent for academic and merit money. The Coach pushed his application through, had his acceptance in 1 DAY!!! Lax made the college acceptance process a breeze, and they found him plenty of money. Will save us nearly $75k. Oh yeah, money was locked in whether or not he ever stepped foot on the field. Not a bad deal, and the school is easily a better academic choice than many of the D1 schools. It's not all about D1... It's about education and leveraging your sport.
Based on your understanding of the process, I commend you on your strategy and approach. However, you were not the audience I was targeting with my post.
