Changes with the Murfreesboro Soccer Club

Jan 04, 2016 at 10:42 am by bryan


Fulfilling a lifelong dream of living and working in Colorado, Erich Delfs, involved in multiple leadership coaching positions with Murfreesboro Soccer Club (MSC) for the past six years, has accepted a Director of Coaching position for the Trebol Soccer Club in a community near Denver, CO. Delfs' move paves the way for Ali Arman to assume the Director of Coaching position, and for Alan Oates, who has coached for MSC in a variety of roles for the past 22 years, to assume the Assistant Director of Coaching position.

The search for a permanent Murfreesboro Soccer Club Director of Coaching continues, led by a Search Committee named by the MSC Board of Directors.

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Delfs, originally from Vero Beach, FL, says the Trebol Soccer Club is very similar in size, history and scope to MSC.

"The club is in a growing suburb of Denver, a very similar community to Murfreesboro," Delfs said. "While I'm really excited about living and working in Colorado, I will greatly miss the players, coaches, parents and board of directors at MSC. MSC is a great club with a great future, with all of the systems in place to move and grow to the next level. The level of professionalism by our staff, the dedication of our leaders, the enthusiasm of our parents, and the best players you could ever hope for, are the best of any club I've ever been involved with. This program will stand the test of time and I only expect great things for MSC's future."

Leanna Wright, MSC Board President, said "Erich is a true professional in every sense of the word, and he will do a great job in Colorado. We will miss him very much, but we're all excited to see him achieve this life goal. We have great professional coaches in Ali Arman and Alan Oates who are well versed in our philosophy and our systems. They have known each other for years, and work together seamlessly. We continue to move forward in implementing our strategic vision of providing the area's best soccer experience for young people into action, helping develop a strong curriculum, building a strong stable of coaches and improving the success of all of our teams."

Director of Coaching Ali Arman has served as MSC Technical Director for the U8-U12 age groups for the past three years. He also has coached soccer at Riverdale High School since 1998, where his teams there have won seven district championships, five region championships and have made seven state tournament appearances. Arman previously served as Director of Coaching for Stones River Futbol Club from 2010 to 2013,

and is currently a coach for Tennessee Soccer. He also has served as a coach for the Olympic Development Program. Arman is a National Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Associate Staff Coach and a NSCAA State Director for Western Tennessee. He holds a NSCAA Premier Diploma, Director of Coaching Diploma and Goalkeeping (GK) Diploma.

"I'm looking forward to leading Murfreesboro Soccer Club as Director of Coaching," Arman said. "We are in a very strong position as we move into 2016. We are committed to the kids and young people of this area, to improve both their skills and their enjoyment of soccer."

Assistant Director of Coaching Alan Oates has worked with MSC for the past 22 years, and in his new position will serve as Assistant Director of Coaching for the U13-U18 age group. Oates is a lifelong soccer player and coach. He played for the Nashville Metros, for the Chattanooga Express and for the Krung Thai Bank in Bangkok, Thailand. Oates previously served MSC as Technical Director for two years, from August 2013 to July 2015. Under Oates' leadership, teams have earned four state championships, one President's Cup regional championship and national championship, as well as region Premier League finalists and D1 regional quarterfinalists. Oates has a NSCAA Advanced National Diploma and a NSCAA GK Diploma.

"I'm excited about taking on this position with the club," Oates said. "Our policies, procedures, curriculum and leadership throughout the organization are very strong. MSC's kids can expect a great year of soccer."

Wright added, "We continue to work our plan of providing a comprehensive, well-rounded experience for every MSC player, working very hard to make sure all of our recreational and select players have the chance to succeed, both on the soccer field and in their lives, by modeling and teaching the values of optimism, trust, perseverance, focus and commitment articulated in our strategic plan. We will continue to build on this foundation with new leadership."

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