East Coast Bias – January 25, 2021

In 2021 and beyond, one of the main goals of the East Coast Bias experiment is to give equal time to the women’s clubs playing in this region. Last year I was finding myself falling into the usual trap of focusing on the men’s clubs and then doing the ‘oh, by the way’ treatment of the women.

That stops now.

The ECB will alternate between men and women throughout the year. That is my promise.

Here are the leagues that I will be covering:

WPSL - East Region

The conferences are still being realigned as we speak (no, really – right now). The clubs from this area play currently in the Metropolitan Conference, as well as the Mid-Atlantic Conference which breaks down further into the Keystone Division and Colonial Division. A number of clubs that we know from the mens leagues have clubs playing here as well, including New Jersey Alliance FC, New York Athletic Club, Westchester United FC and Philadelphia Lone Star. Lehigh Valley Tempest is a club that’s solely focused on the women’s game.

UWS

The big news so far out of the East in UWS is that NJ Teamsterz FC – that’s right, the one with the ‘Z’ – will be fielding a women’s team starting this season. There will also be a Teamsterz FC II playing in UWS League 2 (more on that in a moment). They will have plenty of regional rivalries with the likes of New Jersey Copa, Brooklyn City FC and Long Island Rough Riders playing in the same conference. And don’t forget about Lancaster Inferno, an independent women’s club based in central Pennsylvania.

UWS League 2

New this year is UWS League 2, a lower tier for UWS and an opportunity for more amateur sides to play in a larger league. Not fully formed yet, new clubs are being announced on a regular basis. The Mid-Atlantic Conference has six clubs so far, and that includes Lancaster Inferno Reserves, Keystone FC out of Mechanicsburg, PA, and Delaware Union (hopefully I don’t draw an offside flag from Dan Creel by dipping into Delaware.) And then there’s the Northeast Conference, and it’s an all-Jersey affair: New Jersey Copa Reserves, NJ Teamsterz FC II, and Steel United FC out of Bedminster, NJ. More teams to follow, I‘m sure.

UPSL Women

Once again, UPSL is making a foray into having a women’s league. The league is expected to start play sometime this spring, and clubs are slowly being announced. While we do not know all of the clubs, or even the conference alignments, one of the teams that will be competing from this region is the New York Magic. The Magic are solely focused on the women’s game and developing female players. I will be curious to see which other clubs will be their conference rivals.

New York Metropolitan Women's Soccer League (NYMWSL)

In New York City, the men have the Cosmopolitan Soccer League, and the women have the NYMWSL. In fact, some of the clubs have teams in both leagues. And like the CSL, the NYMWSL has its season run from the fall to the spring. Two divisions of eight clubs (A Division and B Division) with promotion/relegation between the two divisions. The 2019-2020 season was never completed, and no word yet on how the 2020-21 season will be handled.

GSSL Women Division

Still waiting on the spring schedule for Women A and B divisions. The story so far – in A division, North Jersey Alliance holds a three-point advantage over Jackson Lions FC, both having played eight games. B Division is also a two-club race right now, with Bulldogs SC and Beachwood Bombshells tied at 13 points apiece. The Bombshells have one game in hand.

United Soccer League of Pennsylvania

Like The GSSL, we have to wait and see how the second half of the Women’s Major schedule is handled. Right now, there are four teams with a legitimate chance to win the league. Lancaster City FC and United German Hungarians share the top slot with 19 points apiece, while Huntingdon Valley Pride are only one point behind. Danubia are four points back of the leaders, but have a game in hand - as do UGH and Huntingdon Valley.