One topic rarely discussed amongst high schoolers is the difference between club and school sports. Many passionate student-athletes compete in both in order to keep their skills sharp throughout the year, but which one is better?
Here are 5 reasons why I believe high school sports are, without a doubt, better than their club counterparts:
1) Playing with your best friends
In my opinion, nothing beats playing sports with your best friends. And in high school, you are granted the perfect opportunity to do just this. Your best friends probably go to your high school and don’t live 30 miles away; the kids that you get to play with in high school are those you hang out with on the weekends and compete with in a fantasy football leagues. The same isn’t true for club sports, where relationships are made but come nowhere close to the strength of those forged in your hometown.
2) Psychs
Psychs are awesome--they’re fun, unique, and hilarious. Despite the fact that there’s always that one kid who doesn’t do them because “they’re stupid,” the truth is that psychs are one of the most entertaining facets of being involved with a team in high school. Psychs give your team identity, attention, and the adrenaline needed to beat arch rivals later that day, which is something that club sports can’t match. Even if you did do a psych with your club team, who would even notice? From a bring-your-dad-to-school day psych to a Hawaiian one in the middle of the winter, nothing pumps you up before a game like a psych.
3) Fans
Playing in front of a big crowd is one of the best parts about sports, which is another reason high school sports are better than club. Let me first start with a little anecdote: This past summer, my club team, FC Stars of Massachusetts, made it to the National Premier League (NPL) tournament in Indianapolis. The NPL is the most competitive league for club soccer in the Nation, and the organization invites the winners of each of 16 regional leagues to compete for the national title. My team and I were fortunate enough to make it to the national semifinal this past summer, and we were all stoked to be playing in the biggest game of our lives in front of (presumably) a huge crowd, right? Nope. Besides our supportive parents and a few college scouts, there were no more than five true fans at the national club semifinal game. Now, let me take you to this past fall. It was a regular season game at 4 o’clock on a rainy Wednesday afternoon against bottom-of-the-league Waltham... and we had over 20 fans. That’s quadruple the number that my club team got for a national semifinal game and an example of just how significant the difference between fan numbers at high school and club sports games.
Ultimately, high school sports give a high school student-athlete the chance to play in an environment filled with chants, noise, and banter. Whether it’s Kicks for Cancer or a random, middle-of-the-week home game, fans will always be there for high school sports, giving you the motivation to play your heart out.
4) Media coverage
I know that this sounds silly, but it’s true: getting media coverage is very fun as a high schooler. No matter how important the game, most varsity (and sometimes even JV) games get coverage from local news outlets and sometimes even bigger outlets such as the Boston Globe. After games, it’s always fun to see the link that a teammate uploads to the group chat containing a newly-written article from the local newspaper. And if you’re lucky enough, sometimes a reporter might even want to interview you to get a few quotes for his or her piece, which, for most high schoolers, is one of the coolest things in the world. Again, club sports simply can’t compare in this respect.
5) Minimal traveling
Last and certainly not least, travel is a huge factor in my reasoning behind high school sports’ dominance over club sports. For most high-school athletes, the field you practice on after (or before) school is visible from your biology classroom window, and home games are played only a few hundred steps from the school. Even away games are easy; high school leagues--for the most part--group teams that are concentrated geographically. Even if some games feel like a hike, bus rides are fun for many reasons: You can talk with your friends, don’t have to wear seat belts, can take videos of your friends doing stupid stuff, etc. In club sports, however, an away game might be in Connecticut or Pennsylvania, and the car ride sucks because your mom wants you to read the directions to her every five minutes.
Still not convinced? Here are a few quotes on the matter voiced by students at Concord-Carlisle High School:
“Club sports have a much more competitive environment. If you are bad, you can still play a vital role in high school sports, something you don’t get in a club environment.”– Vy Vo, Swim and Dive and Crimson Aquatics, Class of 2019
“I like high school sports better because you play with the people you hang out every day with. Sports adds a new dimension to friendships and strengthens connections.”– Hugh Easton, Boys Varsity Soccer and Global Premier Soccer, Class of 2019
“As a fan, I would much rather go to a high school game than a club sports game! High school sports are so much more hyped up and fun to be a part of the crowd!” -Leila Gaasch, CC Super Fan, Class of 2019
“In high school sports, you get very close to your teammates because you are with them every day, but in club, your teams change so much, and you’re not with your team as much.” Abby Versaggi, Girls Varsity Field Hockey and Strikers Field Hockey, Class of 2019
“The times you have with your high school team will be remembered forever. In club sports, it’s simply not the same.”– Alex Ross, Boys Varsity Soccer and FC Stars of Massachusetts, Class of 2019
Have a different opinion? Share it in the comments!
Commentaires