Kelcey, Kace and Crystal Chaidez

Dearest Placer United Families:

It is with mixed emotions and heavy hearts that Crystal and I announce the current season with Placer United will be our last. Both of us have been presented with great job opportunities in Sonoma County where we are both from originally. The decision to raise our family closer to longtime friends and our immediate families is an exciting new chapter in our lives. We are very sad, however, to be moving away from a soccer club we have thoroughly enjoyed working for and truly love.

We hope the impact we have made on our players lives off the field is as significant as the successes we have made on the field. This is more important to us than any win! Crystal, Kace and I are a Placer United family through and through. There has been lot of hearsay surrounding the club lately and I think it is important to note that none of this has played any role in our decision to move home. Placer United has provided us with much support over the last five years. The club has encouraged and financed our coaching licenses and has given us the opportunity to work with some of the best players in the Sacramento region. The bonds of friendships and the experiences we have shared with fellow coaches, players and families have been some of the most memorable times of our lives and ones we take forward with us past the lines of the soccer pitch.

We will be finishing out the season with our older teams and then completing our move. Until that time, we will continue to be very active within the club, with both with our teams and behind the scenes and with any club-based events.

In closing we are proud to have been part of Placer United. It’s a great club with dedicated coaches and outstanding families.  In our opinion, no other club comes close to the number of players Placer United has placed onto US Youth National Teams and into colleges over the last five years. There is no doubt in our mind that Placer United is the best youth soccer club in Sacramento and the best soccer environment for your children to excel.

We hope to see you on the pitch in the near future.

Jay Roundtree, U14B Red

Congratulations to Jay Roundtree who was selected to travel to Las Vegas with the 98 ODP Boys team.

All the coaching staff at Placer United wish Jay the best of luck.

Go Placer!

Coach Matt Bernard

Former executive director of coaching for the North Bay Elite Football Club, Matt Bernard, has joined the Placer United coaching staff.  Matt brings a wealth of youth soccer experience to our club.  He is currently a member of  U14 U.S. Boys National Team coaching staff. He is also currently a scout for the USSF Academy program and U.S. Club’s  ID2  Identification Program. In addition, Matt is the head goalkeeper coach for the Norcal PDP Program.Before returning to California to take the executive DOC role at NBEFC, Matt was a Technical Director for Sereno Soccer Club, one of Arizona’s biggest and best known clubs.

From Coach Matt:

“I cannot express how excited I am to join Placer United Soccer Club. When I was approached by Ron and Paul about joining the club, I jumped at the opportunity to be a part of a club I once played for as a child. I first played for Placer United in 1989 when my family moved to Roseville from Sacramento. The club was in its infancy at that point and they have come so far in almost a quarter century. I laugh when I think back to the Placer United Board of Directors meeting in my parent’s living room many years ago, and now the club has over 40 teams, top notch facilities and an overall quality program that has state, regional and national respect.

I have been lucky to be involved in some very good clubs over the past twelve years and I know Placer United, under the direction of Ron and Paul, will be a great place for me to call home. One of the main attractions for me to join the club is the desire to compete at the highest level of youth soccer in the United States. I am looking forward to helping in any way I can to help Placer United continue to develop and grow. 

I have personal relationships with many of the coaches at the club and look forward to working with them all on a regular basis. The camaraderie of the coaching staff is second to none and I look forward to being a part of the team that has been working hard to develop the top players that are coming out of Placer County.

I look forward to my new role within the club and getting started with the players on the field”

Adidas USA and Major League Soccer announced Paul O’Brien, Placer United Director of Boys Coaching, has been named an assistant coach at the 2013 adidas MLS Player Combine held in Ft. Lauderdale January 10-15, 2013.

Congratulations Paul!

A big congratulations to Evan Panganiban and Garrett Bonzell who were both selected for Cal North ODP Boys Teams.

The boys tried out just before Christmas and received the news in time to add an extra special reason to ring in the new year. Garett, who plays for our U15 boys was selected for the ’97 age group, and Evan, who plays for our U13 boys, was selected for the ’00 age group.

The Placer United coaching staff wishes Evan and Garrett all the best when they travel to Las Vegas to represent Cal North.

Eleven Placer United girls players were selected to the Cal-North Olympic Development Program (ODP) State Team Pools this week:

97’s – Erin Barr, Alexia De La Paz, Emily Bringgold, Janae Gonzales, Anna , Macy Moen, Jessica Raybe and Sydney Talmi

98’s – Maggie Bell

00’s – Kylie Granno and Emily Talmi

These will be the players who are eligible to be selected to travel with the State ODP team for any event for the 2013 season.

Congratulations Ladies!

Pictured after their big win, are Nick Oh, Gavin Mann, Tobias Metten, Jackson Borba, Jared Miller, Zach Schreiner, Mac Learned, Donovan Sessoms, Jackson Tucker, Evan Schoer & Payton Brennan.

They get the call back! Because our Placer United 02 Boys White team advanced deep into State Cup and due to weather related reschedules, they had a conflict with a previously scheduled Copa Del Rey tournament. So in stepped the 03 Boys Red team to take their place. The Placer United 03 Boys Red team, while playing up in age, won the U11 Gold bracket in impressive fashion with a combined 17 goals for and 1 goal against. Wins included a 6-0 defeat of San Juan in the semi-finals and a 4-0 championship win over the UC Premier Earthquakes. Led by Coach Kelcey Chaidez, with help this past weekend from Coach Lee Callow and Coach Kevin Unsworth, the 03 boys Red team secured their second Copa Del Rey Championship in as many weeks.

Great job boys!

Pictured with Coach Darby are Elena Bateman, Nicole Couillard, Reagan Danielson, Sophia George, Sophia Gibson, Taylor Hartmann, Carson Killer, Sarah King, Lisa LeBel, Rachel Palumbo, and Allison Roide.

The Placer United U11G Black team finished off a great season with hard fought battle against local rival Folsom Lighting in the championship game for their U11 State Cup title. Their team this season took some time to find their “groove”, but their final battle is proof their coaching, dedication and passion for soccer, as well as hard work really paid off!   Led by Darby Anderson, the girls pulled off a 2-1 win in their semi final game before falling 1-0 losing the championship game.
Well done, girls!

Maggie Bell, Granite Bay High School

Freshman Maggie Bell competed on the Varsity Cross Country team for Granite Bay High School. Maggie won her league competitions as well as the section and state title for D2. She also won the Del Oro Invitational and the Stanford Invitational during the season. As a top five individual finisher for the state, she was invited to attend the Nike Cross National tournament recently in Portland. She finished in the top third nationally and then finished up the running season with a gold medal and National Champion title from USA Track and Field for winning the U14 girls division of the Junior Olympics held in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Congratulations Maggie!

Big congratulations to Ryan Hollingshead and Seth Casiple who are ranked in the 20 Best College Players list for the PAC 12 conference.

Ryan, a senior at UCLA, was ranked the #1 player in the highly competitive PAC 12 Division, and Seth, a sophomore at Cal was ranked #13.

All the coaching staff at Placer United are extremely proud of these player’s accomplishments and look forward to seeing you and the rest of the Placer Alumni at this year’s Placer Alumni Game scheduled for December 21st at Del Oro Stadium.

http://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer/college-conference-top-20/men