THE SIDE WELCOMES NEW STAFF FOR 2019-2020

WSA Soccer is excited to announce several new additions to the 2019-2020 Coaching Staff.  Coaches with world-class experience and professional coaching and playing backgrounds will sprinkle The Side's training academy this Summer and Fall and add to a club program which recently put together a dominant National Premier League and State Cup performance in Oklahoma.  The club adds USSF A and USSF B licensed staff to a long list of collective coaching credentials that serves to help foster the training environment for every player at The Side.

"Most importantly we have added quality people," reports WSA Executive Director, Roger Bush.  "As our current staff continues to cultivate a great culture for leadership growth, we are blessed with the ongoing arrival of new talent and more servant hearts.  It's an oustanding coaching and leadership community, and one that is built for kids!"

Highlighting the staff is Coach Mansour Ebrahimzadeh who has been ranked by IFHSS as a top-20 coach in the world! Coach Mansour has been working as a technical staff member for the past 18 months for WSA, and returns after having spent a stint in the Iranian Pro League the past year and a long career as one of the world's highest achieving professional coaches the past two decades.   New staff also include Associate Head Coach of the Tulsa Athletic, Brian McCurdy, who joins Coach Ebrahimzadeh on The Side's technical staff, and Coach Claudio Munoz, who brings a star-cladded international playing background and load of professional experience to offer the older boys program at The Side. 

The Side will highlight other new staff and new postions later this summer.  It's an exciting time to be a part of The Side! 

MEET A FEW OF THE NEW OR RETURNING STAFF..... 

MANSOUR EBRAHIMZADEH has joined WSA as one of the most prolific and accomplished soccer coaches to ever set foot in Oklahoma.  Mansour coached the Iranian National team between 2007 and 2008, and has had long stints in the Iran Pro League, leading Zob Ahan, Sepahan, Naft Tehran, Rah Ahan, Paykan, and Mes Kerman.  Coach Mansour was ranked as the 16th best coach in the world in 2010 and 2001 by IFHSS, a global football statistics organization.  Coach Mansour left The Side in 2018 January to take up a contract with Sepahan and has returned to The Side this past year, having spent the majority of his focus with the WSA girls program. 

CLAUDIO MUNOZ  joins WSA Soccer as a former Chilean National Team Member (U17, U23 and Full NT).  Coach Munoz has a sparkling playing resume which includes playing in Copa Libertadores, Copa SudaAmericana 8 times from 2003-2015.  He founded his own soccer academy GOSOCCERGO in Chile, and oversaw and managed operations from 2013-2015. 

BRIAN MCCURDY joins The Side as the current Assistant Head Coach of the local NPSL Tulsa Athletic.  He is also a current assistant coach for the ORU Men's Soccer staff, was previously head coach for Bacone University Men's, and assistant coach for the University of Tulsa men's program.  McCurdy holds a USSF National license, and had a sparkling collegiate career at the University of Tulsa, winning a conference title in 2007, and leading the Golden Hurricane to the National Elite 8 in 2004.  

SANTI RIVEROS has joined The Side in the past year having worked inside the Youth Academy program and the 05 Boys program.  Coach Santi is currently a member of the NPSL Tulsa Athletic, and formerly had a stellar career for ORU where he started 37 matches over two seasons (2016-2017) leading the Summit League in assists.  

MATT BLACKWELL joins WSA soccer as an Oklahoma Soccer journeyman.  From youth playing days that began in Broken Arrow, to a collegiate career at NSU, a semiprofessional career with the indoor version of the Tulsa Roughnecks, to multiple decades of coaching youth, Coach Blackwell has spanned time and territory spectrums few in NE Oklahoma have in the coaching realm.  Coach Blackwell's teams have won numerous local, state and regional accolades.  "Having coached soccer players for 20 years, I've learned the best thing I can do for a player is to be present, approachable, and available," reports Coach Blackwell. 

 

BRIAN ELLIOTT rejoins WSA Soccer for 2019-2020 after joining The Side in 2018-19 as a late addition to the staff of the 2001 Boys program.  Coach Elliott's long list of accolades is tough to beat in Oklahoma soccer.  He is a member of the Oklahoma Soccer Association Hall of Fame, led Union HS Girls to a state championship three-peat (2015, 2016, 2017).  He carries his USSF National "A" License (highest coaching license in the US), and has numerous other coaching achievements within the Oklahoma soccer community. 

AMY CARROLL joins WSA Soccer girls coaching staff.  Amy played collegiate soccer for the local ORU Golden Eagles where she was a member of the program from 2013 thru 2016. During that time the Golden Eagles set the program mark for wins and national ranking (15 wins & final National RPI of 51st in 2013), finished as a Conference Runner-Up 4X and Conference Semifinalist 2X.  

TARIK NICHOLLS rejoins WSA after he took a year off from coaching with The Side to focus on his senior year at ORU.  Coach Tarik previously coached at WSA in the Youth Academy,  After a stellar career with the ORU men's program Coach Tarik has recently re-signed with the NPSL Tulsa Athletic for the 2019 season. Tarik featured for the Trinidad & Tobago Men's U17 National team prior to arriving in the States.

JORGE PEREZ has spent his entire life in the game, as a referee, player, and the past several years as a coach. He joins WSA as part of the recent partnership with Tulsa Tornadoes, where has led the 07 Boys Black team to one of top rankings in Oklahoma soccer, a team that has twice won the Oklahoma Premier League Championship.  Coach Jorge also plays for the Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL) semi-pro Tornadoes team which was the 2018 National Champion. 



JAKE ROGERS joined WSA recently to step in as the interim head caoch of the 2002 Boys program which qualified for the Red River Conference Final-4 before bowing out 2-1 in the semifinal stages.  Coach Jake is the Head Coach for the Edison Women's HS team. Coach Jake enjoyed a career with the Tulsa Athletic as a player and currently serves as the club's GK Trainer.  

RHYS WILLIAMS joined WSA this past Spring and continues with The Side going into the coming year.  Rhys grew up playing rugby and soccer in Wales and England, and has 20+ years of experience in the game, with 7 years spent coaching.  Coach Rhys is pursuing his USSF Coaching Credentials, having recently completed the GrassRoots courses for 4v4, 7v7, and 9v9.  
 

ERIK BLOCK joins WSA this year as a former member of arguably Oklahoma's most accomplished youth team Pride '80, who finished 1999 as the US Youth National Runner-Up. Block was an Oklahom All-Stater at Sapulpa HS and then had a successful career at the University of Tulsa where he was 3X Letterman, and WAC All-Conference, All Academic selection.  

JAMES SUTTON rejoins WSA where he once helped coach & lead the WSA '98 girls team, a team which reached the US Youth National Elite 8 in 2017.  Sutton holds a USSF "B" license, among the highest credentials attainable, and has over 7 years of club coaching experience in Tulsa.  This quote sums up his coaching philsophy: "You can motivate by fear. You can motivate by rewards. But both are only temporary. The only lasting thing is self motivation."

ELIFAZ VELAZQUEZ has joined WSA as a part of the cooperative agreement between WSA and Tornadoes where coach Elifaz has led the highly successful 06 Boys Black progam for the past 3 years.  The 06 Boys Black team has won several league and tournament championships.  Recently Coach Elifaz was Co-Head Coach as the WSA 2006 Boys reached the Oklahoma Champions Cup Finals, one game away from qualifying for Nationals.