FCD Hammers

After reading some of the posts about Reynolds on the 03 board I thought I should shed some light on the situation as one of those parents. First off your right, we wouldn't be in this situation with a simple phone call to The real FC Dallas organization. But several of us parents didn't see the writing on the wall. Everything he says is a smoke screen. He acts and talks as if he is a coach for FCD in the Arlington-Mansfield area. He's goes as far as saying he will send some of the players to Academy tryouts when he see's they are ready. He even told me to my face a couple months ago when I ask where one of his good players from his 02 was, he had to let him go to the academy to keep the club off his back. He lives this lie he cannot get out of. Everything from fundraisers to uniforms is all FC Dallas. Everything has the logo on it. We even had to order all uniforms from soccer.com. He also tells you that FCD had a deadline to have these mandatory items. He is supposed to be a mentor and coach these kids. My son went as far as telling me he wanted to quit soccer because he was embarrassed to tells friends he was lying to them for whom he played for. Even after all this came out and if you requested a release he totally ignores as if you didn't exist. I am mostly upset with myself for putting my son in this situation having wasted time and money on such an individual. Yes I am one of those parents that will be taking action.

Knew it would eventually boil over to the 04s, and it is obviously starting... The 03s seem to have folded (forfeit 3 games due to #s), and they have had the same problems... Sad for all these players...

Question, so is this for ALL the FCD Hammer teams they aren't really part of FC Dallas youth? ie. The 07's?

They are 0% FC Dallas...

soccermom, hanallalone is correct none of his teams are FC Dallas. Even though the contract player packet sent out says FCD Hammers West with the FC Dallas logo. He was a good scam artist. I will definitely learn my lesson from this as he should be taught a lesson for everyone he has burned.

Wow, I thought something was always fishy beginning with when the team changed its name from "FC Dallas West - Mansfield" back in the jr academy days to "FCD Hammers".  Maybe that was forced due to threat of litigation?

A couple of comments for those who feel like victims.  First...you are not alone.  So don't feel bad.  A majority of youth soccer clubs try to establish themselves by latching onto a brand that people are familiar with.  Look at Liverpool FCA for example. No common ownership with the mother brand...just a "franchise" or "branding" agreement that the owner of the club pays to the owners of the professional club.  And many smaller clubs have no legitimacy at all, calling themselves "Arsenal" or Man U, or whatever.  Id even go so far as to say that the real FC Dallas does not even share ownership with FC Dallas Youth, as FCD is owed by the Hunts, and the Youth portion apparently is one by a group of investors, which may or may not include the Hunts (maybe someone else can shed color on this).  I am not saying there is not a well planned coordinated integration between the two, because clearly there is.  I am just saying that wearing an FCD Youth uniform your whole youth career puts you in no better position to get drafted by FCD than wearing a Dallas Texans or Joes Soccer Club jersey your whole youth so long as you have the skill.  Skill wins out, not politics.  

Secondly, a question....who were the checks written to, and how much were dues?  How much did Hammers charge vs. FCD Youth?  Were you teams given access to "FCD Quality" fields to train on?  Or did have to do what most independent coaches do....find an open area in a public park or school?

The FC Dallas Youth Soccer Club is a legitimate part of the FC Dallas MLS Club and has an Academy program to develop homegrown soccer players.

PremierLeagueFan wrote:The FC Dallas Youth Soccer Club is a legitimate part of the FC Dallas MLS Club and has an Academy program to develop homegrown soccer players.

PLF knows what he is talking about... The REAL FCD Youth organization is legit, and is top shelf! The Hammers are not and never were affiliates of FCD or FCD Youth...

fraud is a legitimate out of the contract and North Texas Soccer will grant releases if the team/coach/club gave material misrepresentations. the transfer window is about to open. if there are copies of the documents, contract or fact sheet, with FC Dallas logos, game on.

PLF - What I was hoping to get some color shed on from someone that knows is about the ownership of FC Dallas vs FC Dallas Youth.  I believe they are two separate legal entities but I do not know that for sure.  Perhaps that is the way it has to be, does anyone know enough about the other MLS pro teams youth programs to educate us all?

Another question..Does anyone know if the Coach in question was ever a coach with FCD Youth?  Perhaps this is yet another case of a big club trying to screw over a coach and in this case, the coach took his team (as most do) and changed the name to "Hammers" while trying to hold onto some identification with FCD to retain visibility.  Perhaps the Coach felt that parents would not go with him if he told them he was no longer officially part of FC Dallas system.  This of course would be sad, because as I recall the FC Dallas West '04 Boys team was always a pretty solid team which would seem to indicate the Coach knew what he was doing, either with his training or recruiting.  Also...did he charge the same amount?  Does anyone know that?

He was never a part of them, and came from another club... It is what it is (a bad situation)...

From what I understand all parents affiliated with a true FC Dallas team pays the club directly. In turn the club pays the coaches. At least that's what I have been told from some parents that came from FC Dallas teams. We were told to pay him directly with a check or Paypal in his name. Keep in mind we were all pretty much from the Fort Worth area. Most of us have no clue how FC Dallas works as an organization. He took full advantage of that. He charged a couple hundred dollars less a year than the actual club fees. He said since we are this far out he didn't have to charge the full price. I will say this, we had some great kids and parents on our team. In this case, a coach is screwing over good kids and parents for personal gain. It's a trust thing for me.

So sorry to hear this.  Yes, you guys do have a great bunch of kids.  Maybe there is a small independent club in your area with a quality coach that can adopt your team(s).  Is Odyssey in your neck of the woods?  

One of the things I would like to do (and PLEASE anyone reading this can help me) is create a data base of quality NTX soccer clubs to share with parents that will include such information as what geography they operate, costs, etc.  Has anyone done this before?  Requirements are simple: Must have at least 2 teams total, with at least 1 in boys CL.  Sorry, i'm not concerned with the Girls side, so perhaps someone else can take the lead on that.

What I find surprising is that although there are 240 teams in CL, only about half belong to clubs other than the big 4 (FCD, DT, LFCA, and Solar), 126 to be exact.  These 126 belong to 80 different clubs, so clearly there are no shortage of clubs.  What there appears to be a shortage of is quality independent clubs that have multiple teams in CL, vs independent teams that are not trying to create a true "club" environment with all of the benefits that come along with it (dedicated training facility, CP utilization etc).  Clubs with 2 or more number only 26.  And if you say 4 or more, then the list is even smaller at less than 12, with 6 being the household names that everyone know (add Andro and AYSES the Big 4).  So how many independent clubs are out there with quality programs and are committed to offering a lower priced alternative for top level competitive soccer in NTX?  My initial research says less than 20, and these are the clubs that everyone needs to be aware of to prevent stories like this one from happening.

As a former member of Hammers and now a member of Odyssey, I can certainly tell you that the difference is literally night and day...  Odyssey is run very well, the training is the best I have ever experienced (I am extremely picky), and the practice facilities are excellent as well...  Our parents are a great group, and I could not be prouder to say that my boys are a part of Odyssey 03...  This age pure thing will certainly be a curve ball for all teams, but I have a feeling it will only strengthen the teams who's coaches are doing it "right"...

Teams always seemed well coached. Too bad the name of a team had to be misleading to attract parents/players; but clearly the Hammers knew their customers. After all car decals are important.

allen04 wrote:Teams always seemed well coached.  Too bad the name of a team had to be misleading to attract parents/players; but clearly the Hammers knew their customers.  After all car decals are important.

So true.  Makes me wonder how many parents/players bought a Liverpool based on the decal:)

Not trying to argue, but the name was NOT the selling factor for many of these parents...  They (WE) were told that our boys would be able to player pass up into the system at times and have the opportunity to make the PRE-ACADEMY team...  In my case I had 2 boys there with that dream, and now both of them are playing Academy ball elsewhere and start on the top 03 team (so they obviously have the talent)...  I know it seems like the team just used the name to attract people, but I can assure you that the misrepresentations run MUCH DEEPER than just a uniform to put on...  Not trying to put anyone down here, but I TRULY feel bad for the parents who were mislead; I was one of the lucky ones who called FCD and got out in time to join elsewhere...

boomstick wrote:From what I understand all parents affiliated with a true FC Dallas team pays the club directly. In turn the club pays the coaches. At least that's what I have been told from some parents that came from FC Dallas teams. We were told to pay him directly with a check or Paypal in his name. Keep in mind we were all pretty much from the Fort Worth area. Most of us have no clue how FC Dallas works as an organization. He took full advantage of that. He charged a couple hundred dollars less a year than the actual club fees. He said since we are this far out he didn't have to charge the full price. I will say this, we had some great kids and parents on our team. In this case, a coach is screwing over good kids and parents for personal gain. It's a trust thing for me.

I feel bad for everybody involved but I want to point out something here and hopefully this will help somebody going forward. I don't believe any club, regardless of size, will have you pay a coach directly. Even the smallest clubs will have you make a check out to the club name. The only case I can see where you would pay a coach directly would be an independent team, meaning this is the only team and no plan for expansion. But even then, most people would create an organization so they would not be responsible for the taxes.

The one thing that bothers me is how was this coach allowed to go for so long without being noticed by FC Dallas? There are plenty of FCD teams in CL and you would assume somebody would ask questions about them.

The one thing that bothers me is how was this coach allowed to go for so long without being noticed by FC Dallas?  There are plenty of FCD teams in CL and you would assume somebody would ask questions about them.[/quote]

Me too.  Thats why I think might have prompted the name change form "FCD West - Mansfield" to "FCD Hammers".  Does anyone have the scoop on this?

and Hanallalone, a question for you.  I think you said somewhere that your BB's play for Odyssey.  If so, then how is it they are able to play PA?  I think there is a misconception that parents/players have concerning the whole PA/DA thing, that it requires playing for only FCD, DT, or Solar, when in fact, as I think I understand it, special arrangements can be made to allow a player to play for a smaller club, and play for one of these clubs PA teams at the same time.  How does this work?  I think many people, including myself, are not really sure.

winkipop77 wrote:The one thing that bothers me is how was this coach allowed to go for so long without being noticed by FC Dallas?  There are plenty of FCD teams in CL and you would assume somebody would ask questions about them.

Me too.  Thats why I think might have prompted the name change form "FCD West - Mansfield" to "FCD Hammers".  Does anyone have the scoop on this?

and Hanallalone, a question for you.  I think you said somewhere that your BB's play for Odyssey.  If so, then how is it they are able to play PA?  I think there is a misconception that parents/players have concerning the whole PA/DA thing, that it requires playing for only FCD, DT, or Solar, when in fact, as I think I understand it, special arrangements can be made to allow a player to play for a smaller club, and play for one of these clubs PA teams at the same time.  How does this work?  I think many people, including myself, are not really sure.[/quote]


With DA ( Development Academy) you have to play for FCD, DT or Solar to be on one of those teams. They are the only three clubs that have a team in the DA leagues for U14, U16 and U18.

PA is run by a different organization and there are two PA leagues I know of. One of the leagues has Solar, DT and FCD PA teams and the other PA League has City FC ( a group of teams, including Odyssey) and Liverpool in the league. SO, yes, you can play PA if you are on one of the City FC feeder teams or Liverpool or FCD, or Solar or DT. You cannot play DA unless you are on FCD, DT, or Solar.

I agree with what some of you are saying. Sometimes folks shop just for the name. I for one wanted my son to play classic and he was one of the closet teams for me. A shot at the pre-academy was just an added bonus to it. So that was the attraction. I just don't understand why he felt to put on a front. Live and learn.

Sprint answered the question about PA (thank you)...  As for the reason why nobody said anything, I don't know...  I think that people DID object, but were ignored by those whom they took the complaint to...  For me, the only issue I have is that the players who join actually believe they can player pass or be moved up within the FCD system (but they are never able to because they arr not part of the club they thought they signed with)...  When I found that out is where I started to feel differently...  The Hammers say you are an "affiliate" if you ask them, and they DO tell you that you can play for the Academy team...  It sounds like a good deal, and I even enjoyed the company of the coach...  The factor that turned me away was the swarm of lies I was told...  I have said this before: I was very fortunate to make a move to a better club with a future (a few others bailed as well)...  However, there are several who believed the "we have players coming" lies who are now stuck on a team that forfeit 3 CL games... The kicker is they will not be released to competitive (many have been denied)... It is sad for the club, sad for the coach, and down right rotten for the kids caught up in all of this...

again, if you have a fact sheet, copy of a contract, an email, or any other document that indicates or suggests that the team is part of FC Dallas youth organization, contact North Texas Soccer and ask for a release/transfer hearing. You WILL be freed by NTSSA to go to another team.

Even if the representation was verbal, do it. If multiple people make the same accusation, you may still win.

They told me they tried but it was not that easy... They have all that info with FCD Logo on it, and tons of other CLEAR CUT evidence that they presented to them when they went in... I was not a part of it, but they asked me to be a witness in an ethics hearing before they just decided to get release to rec due to the hassle NTX was making an obvious case of fraud out to be... Others followed suit, but now another wave of people are trying to get out after this whole thing blew up and they had to forfeit several games, play short, and get blown out every match... I know them all and support their efforts, but they do need additional help...

one of the acceptable reasons for transfer is specified in the rules ("Competitive Policy Manual"):
"Upon finding that a substantial misrepresentation was made on the team/club fact sheet handed out at tryouts and the incorrect information was an influential part of the player’s decision to join a team. "

Anyone who has tried may have been restricted by this rule:
"Transfers that are contested by the coach may be granted only between December 1 and January 31 for U-11 through U-14 players."