Houma Conquerors

[sportznut]

http://www.houmatoday.com/article/20090111/ARTICLES/901119998/1032/SPORTS?Title=Tryout_impresses_Conquerors_coach

HOUMA -- Franklin Thomas walked away from Saturday’s Houma Conquerors tryout camp impressed.

“Wow, there was a lot of talent out there,” said Thomas, the Conquerors owner/head coach. “We didn’t expect that much talent, but that’s a good problem to have.”

Nearly 100 players turned out for the Conquerors tryout camp at the East Houma Recreation Complex. All of the participants had the same goal -- to earn a spot at training camp with Houma’s new Southern Indoor Football League team.


More at the Link!

[Hockey]

Another good title for the story. "Team makes $4,000 telling players they are good".

One of these leagues should establish some principals for these money grabs. Perhaps they guarentee 25% of the players make it to a second day and those players get their money back.

You can't even buy tickets yet for this team! That should be abother rule, the league should require the teams to have paid their innsurance, rent and made half a seasons worth of payroll into a holding account. Then they can use these money grabs to start paying themselves back.

[sportznut]

A team starting from scratch, I assure you the majority of these players are getting a second look.

Just one thing, you stated "one of these leagues", All of the leagues, and combine tryouts that i know about charge the players to participate... It is just the way it is. This Included the AFL tryouts..

[exit322]

Well, at least the ones that don't stink.

One thing teams do need to do a better job of is showing the world "this is what we got at our tryout," so that we do in fact know that good players showing up to them will get looked at.

Something that's not always the case.

[MR34]

Here is the way I look at it. If you think you are good enough to play at the top levels of football...put your money where you mouth is. If your scared to loose money and think you wont make the team, do not show up to the tryout. I have no problem with teams/leagues charging for tryouts.

[exit322]

There are advantages and disadvantages to it, for sure.

A good marketing ploy this time of the economy would be to have a "free tryout," but you'd get all kinds of guys that have no prayer in hell. At least with paying you're only getting ones that think they have enough a shot to pay $50.

Either way, Houma should advertise heavily which guys they got from doing this and how well they do this year.

[Geoff]

Much like hockey teams like Elmira does. They held a tryout and annouced 4 guys (Obi Aduba, Jay Bletzer, Chase Tippin and Miroslav Recicar) would be invited to camp. While none of those guys eventually made the team out of camp, all 4 have played professionally this season. Bletzer played 2 games for the Trenton Devils and then 6 for the Huntsville Havoc; Tippin played 2 games games for the Richmond Renegades and did what he does best and got 2 fighting majors; Aduba has played 19 games and has 15 pts for the Danbury Mad Hatters; and Recicar has played in 9 games for the Brooklyn Aces going 9-0-0 with a GAA of 3.22 and a save percentage of 0.891 and has been called up to Elmira for emergency purposes.

They all ended up playing pro hockey and while 2 didn't stick, 2 did and are continuing to improve their games.