DJT
07-22-2003, 06:00 AM
Coach Duncan Wilde resigns from CPSL's first-place Hamilton Thunder
HAMILTON (CP) — Hamilton Thunder coach Duncan Wilde resigned from his post after meeting team owner Italo Ferrari on Saturday to discuss the club's future.
Wilde leaves the second-year Canadian Professional Soccer League franchise atop the Western Conference with a 4-0-3 record.
``I'm very disappointed to leave the Hamilton Thunder,'' he said. ``Our views are in no way compatible. The time is right for me to leave with the team being in such a strong position.''
Assistant coaches Billy Steele and Ammar Awad also resigned. Goalie and defensive coach Bosko Borjan will remain with the club.
Ferrari has already appointed Ivan Markovic as Wilde's replacement. The Croatian has coached and managed clubs across Europe and will be on the sidelines for the Thunder's next game in London Friday night.
``There was no falling out,'' Ferrari said of Wilde's departure. ``We're still friends and may work together. The team is going in a different direction and it was just a friendly departure.''
The Thunder recruited Wilde last winter to help mould the team into a top contender. The former Manchester United player helped lure talented strikers from around the world during the off-season and transformed the club into one of the top franchises in the CPSL.
But Thunder management hope this season is just a prelude to bigger and better things. The club already has a ``gentleman's agreement'' to join the country's top soccer circuit — the North American A-League — next season.
Hamilton would join Calgary, Toronto and Montreal as the Canadian franchises in the 19-team league. And with that in mind, Ferrari brought in Markovic and four Croatian players last weekend to help stabilize the club.
(Hamilton Spectator)
HAMILTON (CP) — Hamilton Thunder coach Duncan Wilde resigned from his post after meeting team owner Italo Ferrari on Saturday to discuss the club's future.
Wilde leaves the second-year Canadian Professional Soccer League franchise atop the Western Conference with a 4-0-3 record.
``I'm very disappointed to leave the Hamilton Thunder,'' he said. ``Our views are in no way compatible. The time is right for me to leave with the team being in such a strong position.''
Assistant coaches Billy Steele and Ammar Awad also resigned. Goalie and defensive coach Bosko Borjan will remain with the club.
Ferrari has already appointed Ivan Markovic as Wilde's replacement. The Croatian has coached and managed clubs across Europe and will be on the sidelines for the Thunder's next game in London Friday night.
``There was no falling out,'' Ferrari said of Wilde's departure. ``We're still friends and may work together. The team is going in a different direction and it was just a friendly departure.''
The Thunder recruited Wilde last winter to help mould the team into a top contender. The former Manchester United player helped lure talented strikers from around the world during the off-season and transformed the club into one of the top franchises in the CPSL.
But Thunder management hope this season is just a prelude to bigger and better things. The club already has a ``gentleman's agreement'' to join the country's top soccer circuit — the North American A-League — next season.
Hamilton would join Calgary, Toronto and Montreal as the Canadian franchises in the 19-team league. And with that in mind, Ferrari brought in Markovic and four Croatian players last weekend to help stabilize the club.
(Hamilton Spectator)