After taking the 2025 PAISAA championship in a 1-0 victory over the Westtown School, Fords soccer will play the 2026 season with a target on their backs.
“The accomplishments of the past have earned us respect, but they guarantee us nothing. This year’s team will write its own story,” math teacher and Director of Soccer Mr. Keith Cappo said in a preseason meeting. “Our success will be determined by the commitment each of us makes to the team every single day.”
The captains—Sixth Formers Finn French, Graham Costello, Christopher Burnetta, Hudson Coulson, and Brody Collins—hosted additional practices under the blazing July sun.
Third Former Oliver Green attended these practices.
“Practices were hard, just because it’s a different level of physicality [from the middle school], but it unfolded well with the team in the games,” Green said.
The competitiveness during preseason has been at an all-time high, leading to the team performing well in Shipley’s play day against Conestoga, Germantown Academy, Episcopal Academy, and Shipley. They came out with a dominant 5-0 win against Peddie in their first scrimmage. The team recently won their first match 1-0 at Conwell Egan on September 4th.
“The expectations remain high because that’s what this program demands.”
Mr. Keith Cappo
Since August 24th, the team has generally had two practices per day: one from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and another from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Along with these practices, the coaching staff has raised the standard of the fitness test, known as the “beep test,” an arduous task.
“The expectations remain high because that’s what this program demands. Success isn’t something we inherit; it’s something we earn every day,” Mr. Cappo said.
The coaching staff also welcomes assistant coach Mr. Nick Dodds, a soccer coach with 10+ years of experience at Lower Merion Soccer Club and the Philadelphia Union. He founded ND23 Training, a developmental soccer program.
Players often feel pressure from external expectations and internal fears about performance.
“If I want to make a difference in this team, I cannot play scared, and I have to help my teammates around me,” Green said. “It’s gonna be an amazing experience playing with these guys.”
“I feel like a lot of seniors try to be big, bad, scary seniors,” Sixth Former Brody Collins said. “It was really just about being personable and kind to [underclassmen]. That makes them trust us more, and that gets them coming to the practices.”
The Fords will lose last season’s starting left back, Berkin Kinalikaya, to the new MLS Next Rule—if students play soccer outside of school at the MLS Next level, they won’t be able to participate in Inter-Ac competitions.
“So a big goal of the team is to compete to the best of our abilities, and if that’s winning Inter-Ac or a state championship, that’s what it is, but it’s [about] playing to our potential.”
Finn French ’27
To mitigate the loss, Fifth Former Andrew Yang, who could not play last season due to the Inter-Ac rules regarding switching schools, is now eligible to compete in Inter-Ac competitions.
The team recently went to Long Beach Island. Even then, they trained, did yoga, and recovered.
“So a big goal of the team is to compete to the best of our abilities, and if that’s winning Inter-Ac or a state championship, that’s what it is, but it’s [about] playing to our potential,” French said.
“We just gotta make sure we put our egos to the side,” Collins said. “Don’t make sure our heads are too big, and, honestly, if we keep it like that—put our egos to the side—then we’ll be successful for sure.”
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