Capital United Premier Soccer
A Vision
Keith Villamil, founder of the Capital United Premier Soccer Program, was a USYSA licensed coach with a long history of coaching excellence in upstate New York. In 1988, Keith envisioned the potential benefits of bringing talented players from across the Greater Capital District to train and compete, together. Keith believed promising talent of the Capital District deserved the opportunity to better their game through advanced instruction and elite competition. Through the years, Keith maintained this vision, exposing his players to highly regarded coaches and top notch competition; continually allowing players to heighten their level of play. As a result of his efforts, Keith provided many of his players with the tools to be successful at the collegiate level and beyond.
Program Philosophy
The mission of the Capital United Premier Program is to provide all players with the opportunity to learn, mature and enhance their soccer ability, both individually and collectively; allowing them to compete at the highest possible level. The Capital United Premier Program provides an exclusive combination of specialized training with top notch competition. The Program has garnered seven State Cup Championships and numerous State Cup Final appearances. Even with all this success, the Program remains focused on its tried and true philosophy, player growth and development.
Player Development
The building block of the Capital United Premier Program is the various Coerver Coaching® methodologies. This specialized training and advanced tactics and game strategies allows players to master the critical skills associated with the game. Younger players (U9-14) have two weekly practice sessions, which includes specially developed Coerver® training curriculum, emphasizing technical and tactical development. In addition, these players compete in various leagues and tournaments; and, are provided with indoor clinics and outdoor camps.
Older players (U15-18) train from November-July. Teams attend multiple College Showcase Tournaments throughout the year, allowing them maximum exposure to collegiate coaches at Division I, II and III schools. For the more developed player, a more rigorous and intense Coerver® training curriculum, focusing on advanced technical skills and tactical development is instituted. As our players reach the high school level, they are continually awarded with All-Area, All-Region, All-State, State Player of Year, and All-America honors. In addition, many of our players garner scholarships through their soccer ability and academic achievements to highly regarded colleges and universities. As a result of individual and collective performances at many of these College Showcase Tournaments, former players have gone on to play at schools such as: UNC, Penn State, Maryland, UCONN, Rutgers, UNC Charlotte, UMASS, Davidson, and hundreds of others.
Premier Training
Individual Training:
All players follow a thorough technical training curriculum to prepare them for any level of competition. Rob Bruley, the Director of Coerver Coaching® for New York State, and our Technical Director, emphasizes individual ball mastery, speed and coordination, receiving, passing and finishing.
Team Training:
Teams are instructed on the tactical, physical and mental aspects of the game. Coaching staff introduce game-like situations including structured scrimmages to create the proper environment for teams to prepare for the pressure and intensity of weekly games.
Goalkeeper Training:
The soccer goalkeeper is one of the most important players on the field. Goalkeeper specific functional training emphasizes techniques and tactics, footwork and also touches on the psychology of goalkeeping.
Speed and Agility Training:
This instruction centers on enhancing players lateral speed, quickness and acceleration by improving overall speed. Techniques are centered on speed intervals, cutting, starting/stopping, changes of direction, and reaction. Improving these mechanics is essential to preventing potential injury and improving body control. Speed and quickness should be consistently cross-trained with soccer specific methods. There are varying methods to assess a player’s speed and quickness. Due to the variations in the game of soccer, a combination of elements are trained.