Keam earns overseas invite to Scotland
Langley’s Colton Keam is off to Scotland next Friday for a tryout with Dundee United of the Scottish Premier League. The camp, which Keam is attending for the third time, is by invitation only. The 17-year-old, who just graduated from Langley Secondary last month, is hoping to land a roster spot with the pro club.
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Updated: July 10, 2009 11:39 AM
Colton Keam has been kicking a ball around since he was two or three years old.
His Dad, Rob, noticed a talent and gently nudged him towards soccer, the game which draws more spectators around the globe than any other sport.
Now he has the chance to score the biggest triumph of his sporting life.
In less than three weeks, the 17-year-old who graduated last month from Langley Secondary, will be off to Scotland for a three-week goalkeepers’ camp with Dundee United.
This will be Keam’s third camp with the Scottish Premier League club. Attendance at training camps is by invitation, and Keam knows that this will be a make-it-or-break-it year. It will be Dundee United’s chance to have a better look at how far he has progressed since last year.
“They will let me know if I will be staying a year, or longer,” Keam said. He already has plans in the event that he doesn’t break into professional soccer: he will apply to join the RCMP.
He names Joe Hart of Manchester City and Germany’s Jens Lehmann who plays for Stuttgart, as the goalkeepers he most admires.
And Keam’s goal is to be like them, playing goalkeeper in a professional atmosphere.
He credits Pedro De Norbriga for taking him as far as he has come with soccer.
A private goalkeeper coach, De Norbriga, who used to play for the South African national team, shares not only his goaltending skills with Keam, but also proves to be a constant, positive influence.
Keam was 11 or 12 years old when the thought came to him that he wanted to play professional soccer — or football as it is known outside North America.
His father, however, had already noticed traits that seemed to set his son apart from his peers.
“From an early age he was keen and committed to everything he did,” Rob Keam said.
He showed the depth of this passion when playing in a team that was struggling.
“He never got down playing with a weaker team that didn’t get results,” he said.
His son, who stands 6-2 tall, will practice with Dundee’s U-19 youth professional team, and train with the first team reserves. He will leave for Scotland on July 17.
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