The Vancouver Whitecaps found a USL PRO head coach and kept their scouting network intact with one hire on Friday.
Vancouver announced the appointment of Alan Koch as Whitecaps FC 2 (WFC2) head coach prior to the club's inaugural season in USL PRO. Koch has agreed to a multi-year contract that will continue to include his role as the club's college scout.
Per club policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.
"Alan has had great success over the past seven years at SFU," president Bob Lenarduzzi said in a statement. "We're looking forward to working with him in the next step of his career as we get set for the inaugural season of WFC2."
Koch, 39, spent the last seven years as head coach of the Simon Fraser University men's soccer program, amassing a record of 126-21-7 and becoming the quickest coach in the school's history to reach the 100-win milestone. For his efforts, the North Vancouver, BC, resident was recognized as the Conference Coach of the Year in six consecutive seasons and guided the Clan to a top-10 ranking in either the NAIA or NCAA Division II in every season he's been in charge. Other highlights of his tenure at SFU include four Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) championships, two NCAA Division II regional championships, and two berths in the NCAA Division II Final Four.
"This is an amazing opportunity and one that I'm very excited about," Koch said. "I'm grateful to the club for bringing me in, and I'm looking forward to working with Robbo and his technical staff. We share a similar philosophy and vision. I'm ready to hit the ground running."
Last fall, the native of Durban, South Africa, worked closely with the Whitecaps FC first team technical staff as he oversaw the club's college scouting responsibilities. Koch was also with the club in 2009 as Whitecaps FC women's head coach in the USL W-League.
A former central midfielder who had professional spells in South Africa, Germany, and Ireland, Koch began his coaching tenure in 2003 as an assistant at Midwestern State University. After a two-year stint as head coach at Baker University, Koch then returned to Simon Fraser in 2008.
The club also announced on Friday that longtime Residency assistant coach Steve Meadley will join Koch's staff as WFC2 assistant coach and Residency goalkeeper coach Raegyn Hall will also work with the WFC2 side.
