Submitted by A. J. Musick, May 8, 2007 23:19

The US national team goal is become competitive in Europe. The Latino players that Mr. Gardner regards as important to our future success, in my experience, live in places like Garden City, Liberal, and Dodge City, Kansas. (Think 2 hours west of Greensburg, the town destroyed last Friday by the tornado and 2 hours east of the Colorado border.)

These communities are hotbeds of soccer, on the community level, with youth and adult players that are devoted to the game. Their heritage is primarily Mexican, but many come from Central America also, commonly El Salvador & Guatemala. These players are ignored by ODP, because that orgnization is dominated by parents from central and eastern Kansas.

These communities have a 4 hour drive to Wichita and a 5-6 hour drive to eastern Kansas, where ODP camps and practices are held. Eastern Kansas parents commonly refuse to attend proposed practices in Wichita, a 2 hour drive from their communities.

One male player, a natural striker and scorer (top high school scorer his senior year), made the state team a few years ago, but he was buried on the back line, and constantly called back to defend, even though he scored the only goal the Kansas team achieved at the regionals. He simply could not show his talent on a fair playing field.

The other Latino player who tried out did not return to practices after those players were separated at practices. They were playing on the same team for the "World Cup" competition at camp. When their team won their first game handily, an ODP coach announced, "We gotta split up the Mexicans!" Of course, the bleached-blonde Johnson County players were not "split up," and one of their teams subsequently won that competition. For several years, no Garden City player attended ODP camp.

A young woman, a 10th grader, should play for the state team this summer. I encouraged her parents to take her 4 years ago, but that did not happen, and she was not known about until she began playing on the high school team. She had all the technical skills 4 years ago, but...

In the last 3 years, in Garden City, former high school payers, with more or less community college success, have begun coaching youth and the level of play has begun to rise, because the coaching level has risen. The talent has always bneen here.

We have lived here for 16 years and can attest that cultural differences ON BOTH SIDES! are very difficult to conquer. I have just finished my 1st season coaching a Middle school girl's team. Wondrful kids, lots of potential, and 1 player who has true talent. She told me that her parents never came to any school event that she was involved in. Will ODP see her this summer, when she needs that training and competition? Probably not. When she reaches high school, she will be seen, but she may or may not have progressed as she would have, had she lived in Wichita, or Olathe, and had been able to compete and be coached there.

But as long as money talks and ODP camp is held so far away, many fine youth players simply are never seen by ODP personnel at the crucial U-12, U-13, and U-14 ages. The "infinite tournaments" that Tom speaks of cost a lot of money to attend and these kids' parents don't make that kind of money. This issue has been addressed many times in Soccer America and other forums. IT IS A REAL ISSUE!

The issue is complex. I wish we could click our heels together & get every deserving kid to ODP. Maybe some day.

A. J. Musick

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