The Future of North Texas Softball?

[TRICKY DICK]

The downward trend in softball is not unique to NTX. ASA doesn't want to advertise the bad news, but their numbers overall are way down from ten years ago. Select registration numbers are fine, but the numbers for new players entering the game (rec) are trending down. This is not my opinion. It's a fact. Bad economy and all, the trends are upward for volleyball, cheer, dance. Soccer also remains strong.

See Joe is not a bad guy "HE JUST NEEDS A HUG EVERYBODY". He can be very intellegent at times.Thanks for the insite Joe I agree with you.Look forward to us coaching together in 2010!! GO!!! TEAM JOE DICK 95 !!!!!!!!! WATCH VTD FOR TRYOUT INFO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NTX SOFTBALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME

[Joe]

The downward trend in softball is not unique to NTX. ASA doesn't want to advertise the bad news, but their numbers overall are way down from ten years ago. Select registration numbers are fine, but the numbers for new players entering the game (rec) are trending down. This is not my opinion. It's a fact. Bad economy and all, the trends are upward for volleyball, cheer, dance. Soccer also remains strong.

See Joe is not a bad guy "HE JUST NEEDS A HUG EVERYBODY". He can be very intellegent at times.Thanks for the insite Joe I agree with you.Look forward to us coaching together in 2010!! GO!!! TEAM JOE DICK 95 !!!!!!!!! WATCH VTD FOR TRYOUT INFO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NTX SOFTBALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME

PuPA of the ROACH...

It's Christmas and slapping you around today just isn't in the plan. My family, my lovely wife, my beautiful kids are all here and playing trading posts with the evildoers today would be the ultimate insult to them and my 'Wonderful Life'. So no...today's your lucky day.

My 95's team ???

[TRICKY DICK]

The downward trend in softball is not unique to NTX. ASA doesn't want to advertise the bad news, but their numbers overall are way down from ten years ago. Select registration numbers are fine, but the numbers for new players entering the game (rec) are trending down. This is not my opinion. It's a fact. Bad economy and all, the trends are upward for volleyball, cheer, dance. Soccer also remains strong.

See Joe is not a bad guy "HE JUST NEEDS A HUG EVERYBODY". He can be very intellegent at times.Thanks for the insite Joe I agree with you.Look forward to us coaching together in 2010!! GO!!! TEAM JOE DICK 95 !!!!!!!!! WATCH VTD FOR TRYOUT INFO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NTX SOFTBALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME

PuPA of the ROACH...

It's Christmas and slapping you around today just isn't in the plan. My family, my lovely wife, my beautiful kids are all here and playing trading posts with the evildoers today would be the ultimate insult to them and my 'Wonderful Life'. So no...today's your lucky day.

My 95's team ???

ILL SEE YOU ABOUT 8 TONIGHT.Tell everybody im bringing gifts & I may bring 2PHAT FEATURING GRANDMASTER

[2fatoverdaplate]

The downward trend in softball is not unique to NTX. ASA doesn't want to advertise the bad news, but their numbers overall are way down from ten years ago. Select registration numbers are fine, but the numbers for new players entering the game (rec) are trending down. This is not my opinion. It's a fact. Bad economy and all, the trends are upward for volleyball, cheer, dance. Soccer also remains strong.

See Joe is not a bad guy "HE JUST NEEDS A HUG EVERYBODY". He can be very intellegent at times.Thanks for the insite Joe I agree with you.Look forward to us coaching together in 2010!! GO!!! TEAM JOE DICK 95 !!!!!!!!! WATCH VTD FOR TRYOUT INFO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NTX SOFTBALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME

PuPA of the ROACH...

It's Christmas and slapping you around today just isn't in the plan. My family, my lovely wife, my beautiful kids are all here and playing trading posts with the evildoers today would be the ultimate insult to them and my 'Wonderful Life'. So no...today's your lucky day.

My 95's team ???

ILL SEE YOU ABOUT 8 TONIGHT.Tell everybody im bringing gifts & I may bring 2PHAT FEATURING GRANDMASTER

Hey "Trickle". You will be the only one there, so, you better bring us just so there will be somebody there with some CLASS!

[2fatoverdaplate]

See Joe is not a bad guy "HE JUST NEEDS A HUG EVERYBODY". He can be very intellegent at times.Thanks for the insite Joe I agree with you.Look forward to us coaching together in 2010!! GO!!! TEAM JOE DICK 95 !!!!!!!!! WATCH VTD FOR TRYOUT INFO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NTX SOFTBALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME

Hmmm, your posts are looking more and more like Grandmaster's. A little drop in grammar and spelling and they should be a dead match.

Even though there is no love loss with Grannymaster, I still wouldn't compare him with "TRICKLE"! Trickle is in a "NO CLASS" by himself!

[Tom Collett]

Hello everyone, first please let me be up front and tell you all I am and have been a PONY softball director for 20 years and I don't understand why so many of you feel we are of no worth to kids playing softball. Unlike some we don't recive money from Pony to direct tournaments and often we have to pay our own expenses. My wife and I do it because we love the sport and the kids who play it. Pony is not now nor has it ever been in competion with ASA or any other group for ball players. If you have ever been around PONY you know we are not a GOLD, Premire or any other type league. We provide a place for those kids who love softball but are not at the level of professional players. We offer a Travel Select program for those who are truly interested in playing competitive softball but who want to play with us when not playing ASA or any of the other big associations. We are the place to come and play rec while developing your skills for the future. I think we all have a place in the building of better ball players while building better people. Just give us a chance to be a part of the softball family.

Thanks Tom Hey contact me if you have ideas or questions (I don't have all the answers)

[HUH???]

Hey Tom. I have met you and your wife personally and you guys are good people and sometimes things happen that are beyond your control, mainly down in THE VALLEY, but a few years ago (ALL STAR STUFF) my DDs team was doing the A.S. Tourneys and trying to qualify for your Nationals in Harlingen. The North Texas Pony "Brass" let Select teams into their ALL STAR tourney and (you guessed it) they cleaned up. They basically run-ruled everyone and took the qualifying spots except 1 (which my DDs team got). When brought to the "NTX PONY BRASS" attention: We were simply told that NTX PONY can't police everyone! If they say they are ALL STARS we can't police them! I don't buy that, nor does anyone else. Like I said before! You and your wife are good people. This is not about you. This has more to do with the Brand Brothers (Although I believe one may have passed away. Sorry for the loss if this is correct).

We go to Harlingen to the ALL STAR NATIONALS only to find the tourney was full of SELECT RGVALLEY TEAMS including 1-team who had won it the last 2-years (and from what I hear has won it every year since we were there several years ago).

We are soooo past All Stars now and into High School ball and such, but I have to ask you:
How was this fair?
What (if any) has NTX PONY done to change this for the new group of thriving ball players coming up?
Has NTX PONY figured out a way to police them yet?

You ask why has everyone left PONY for ASA!
The reason is simple! Why should we travel to Harlingen or Slidell, LA to play against Select teams when we have hundreds of the best ones right here in DFW.

That is my opinion. I could be wrong

[Tom Collett]

Hey you are right there have been so problems in the past and we have worked hard to fix those. WE now offer two seperate divisions for the Nationals a strictly select and a seperate rec division. We track the teams through out the season and have done a pretty good job of keeping them seperated. At some point I know not everyone is going to be happy but I imagine that is the case in all groups. Hope you will give us the benefit of the doubt.

Thanks

Tom

[JoeRussell56]

These are all legitimate concerns and well thought out by Slade.
However, no matter what governing body is handling team creation, I sincerely doubt they would cut off anyone who wants to form a new team.
If you wait for a governing body that charges team fees to police itself in that regard, you have a long wait coming.
This is just like the open market! People bring products to the market, some are successful others are not. Some stay in business, others go into Chap. 11! LOL
I feel that a lot of people would like the governing body to stop people from forming teams unless they can what, pass a test, run the 100 in 10 flat, etc etc.
I hate to say it this way but the only way to drive poor teams from the market is to not play them or destroy them!
I have seen poor teams play good teams and get crushed and literally dissolve on the spot, so be it.
The cream will rise to the top, it always has!

[slappy]

We go to Harlingen to the ALL STAR NATIONALS only to find the tourney was full of SELECT RGVALLEY TEAMS including 1-team who had won it the last 2-years (and from what I hear has won it every year since we were there several years ago).

I’m curious. How does ASA handle this differently? I have seen Tournament director police keeping, let’s say 96's from playing in a tournament put on for new 98 teams, but not governed by ASA per se. Am I missing something?