While I would agree you can find a pole on most A or AA teams who certainly can slot in at AAA or Elite, the main difference is the stick work - primarily on the clear.

There are certainly kids who are athletic and physical enough to guard a man one on one - but when the goalie saves the ball, an elite attack line ride will render the poor kid worthless.

One main reason Teams get annihilated at this age is they can’t get the ball over the midfield line and a lot of that is largely due to the poles ability to handle the ball.