Perth Glory’s next crop of football stars will be in safe hands following the appointment of inaugural club captain, Gareth Naven, as coach of Glory’s new Youth League side.
Perth Glory-s next crop of football stars will be in safe hands following the appointment of inaugural club captain, Gareth Naven, as coach of Glory-s new Youth League side.
Naven enjoyed a long and successful career with the Glory, including 143 matches and Most Glorious Player honours in 1999/00. Naven-s passion for the game saw him move into the coaching arena after hanging up the boots and he has built an impressive record of youth development in WA.
Perth Glory Chief Executive Scott Gooch said the club received a number of high quality applications for the position of Youth League Coach however Naven-s experience and knowledge of youth development stood him out from the rest.
“Gareth-s appointment is a coup for our new youth programme,” Mr Gooch said.
“He has a strong history of identifying and developing players in Western Australia and a vast knowledge of the exciting talent that is coming through the state-s youth system, many of whom we hope will one day take the field for the Glory in the Hyundai A-League.
“It is a bonus that he happens to be a former captain and player, but first and foremost we were looking for a coach with the right mix of experience and passion for this vital role and Gareth ticked all the boxes,” said Mr Gooch.
The appointment is a part time role, which has the potential to be expanded in the future, and Naven will combine his commitments at the Glory with his family engineering business.
“I-m delighted to be at the Glory in a coaching capacity and look forward to putting together a youth structure from the ground up,” Naven said.
“There is enormous potential in our state-s young footballers and we-ll be doing everything we can to provide a pathway for them to achieve their dream of playing at the highest levels,” Naven added.
Mr Gooch also confirmed that Assistant Coaches- Robbie Dunn and Kenny Lowe will again play a vital role in the club-s 2008/09 campaign alongside senior team Head Coach Dave Mitchell.
“The structure we now have in place with Dave, Robbie, Kenny and Gareth is a very strong coaching line-up and I-m confident they can take the club back to the top of Australian football,” Mr Gooch said.
PROFILE
Gareth Naven
Born: 3 March 1969
Coaching Experience: 2004 Assistant Coach Perth SC, 2005 U/13 WA State Team South (Capital Cup Canberra), 2006 Assistant Coach National Training Centre (WAIS), 2006-07 Director of Coaching Cockburn Junior Soccer Club, 2008 U/14 WA State Coach.
Playing Experience: 1985/86 Australian Institute of Sport Scholarship, 1989-91 Adelaide City, 1991-95 Perth Italia, 1994 Perth Kangaroos, 1996-2002 Perth Glory 143apps (6gls), 2003 Perth SC.
Honours: 1992 WA Premier League Gold Medal Winner, 1995 Australian U16 Representative, 1999/00 Perth Glory Most Glorious Player, 2004 Perth Glory Life Member, 20 appearances for WA State Team.
