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Martin Painter named head coach of Western Mustangs women’s soccer program
LONDON, Ont. - Martin Painter (BA ’98, LLB ’02, BEd
’07), a member of the Western Mustangs 1999 men’s
national championship soccer team, has been named the new head
coach of the Mustangs women’s soccer program. He returns to
Western after spending five seasons as head coach of the Fanshawe
College women’s program (2007-11). In addition, he has served
as head coach of the USL Premier Development League’s FC
London for the past three seasons and will continue in that
role.
“We are thrilled to have Martin re-join the Mustang
family,” said Director of Athletics Thérèse
Quigley. “His leadership, experience and passion for the game
are exactly what we were looking for to guide our program moving
forward.”
In 2009, Painter led Fanshawe to an Ontario Colleges Athletic
Association (OCAA) title and runner-up finish at the Canadian
Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championship. That runner-up
finish was the best national placing ever for a women’s
soccer team from the OCAA. The 2011 season saw Painter named OCAA
Coach of the Year as he led the Falcons to bronze medal at the OCAA
Championship.
Painter’s success on the pitch carried over to his tenure at
the helm of FC London where he guided his team to a record of
19-3-10 in 2010 and was a nominee for Premier Development League
(PDL) Coach of the Year after leading his team to the playoffs in
back-to-back years (2009, 2010).
"I am very excited and honoured to become the head coach for the
Western Mustangs women's soccer team,” said Painter. “I
was fortunate enough to spend four years playing for the Mustangs
and to return as a coach is a fantastic opportunity. We have eight
months to prepare for the 2012 season and that work will start
immediately. We are determined to build the profile of the Western
women's soccer team to be a leader and catalyst for the development
of soccer in the community."
In his roles with both Fanshawe and FC London, Painter showed a
knack for recruiting, much of which can be traced to his experience
coaching at the elite youth level. Since 2004 he has served as the
head coach of the North London Soccer Club, an organization
developed to prepare players to compete at the university and
collegiate levels.
As a player on Western’s men’s team (1997, 1999, 2000,
2004), Painter won three Ontario University Athletics (OUA)
championships competed in a pair of national championship
tournaments. In addition to his national championship in 1999, he
was part of the Mustangs team that earned a bronze medal in 2004
and was named to the CIS National Championship All-Tournament Team.
In 2000, he earned OUA all-conference accolades.
Painter replaces Dave Peak, who stepped down after guiding the
Mustangs for six seasons.
Source:
Western Sports Info
