Bev Priestman at a press conference in 2024 while she was still coach of Canada. Photo: Wikipedia Commons - Robin Glover CC BY 4.0 cropped.

Bev Priestman at a press conference in 2024 while she was still coach of Canada. Photo: Wikipedia Commons - Robin Glover CC BY 4.0 cropped.

The Wellington Phoenix have announced its new A-League Women coach following Paul Temple’s departure, with the club signing former Canada Women’s National Team coach Bev Priestman.

The signing, first reported by Round Ball Australia in May, comes following the end of her 12-month suspension from FIFA for the drone scandal at the Paris Olympics.

Priestman said she was thrilled to be joining the Phoenix, and could not wait to get to work.

“I signed with this club because this club wants to win and I think I’ve felt that in both what they provide everybody involved in this team, men and women, but also in the actions that they’ve taken,” she said.

“Coming back to New Zealand and seeing the Phoenix week in week out as the only professional women’s team has been amazing. We have a responsibility now to fly the flag for this country and try to do something special.

“Sport has the ability to connect a country, not just in what you do but more importantly how you do it.

“There’ll be a hunger and a desire there because we know we want to achieve a first for this club and to do that is going to take something special.

“There are a lot of different factors that go into winning, but first and foremost it’s a given when you put on the shirt that you work hard. I’ll work harder than ever and the Phoenix will work harder than any other team.”

Phoenix chairman Rob Morrison said that Priestman’s appointment spoke to the ambition the club has.

“This is a step up in an exciting era for the Phoenix women’s team. Along with our significant ongoing investment in the women’s academy programme, we have doubled our investment in the women’s first team and this has resulted in us being able to recruit some great international players,” Morrison said.

“Signing one of the world’s best coaches is a statement for the club, but it is also a statement for the Ninja A-League, reflecting the ambition and investment from APL for the development of the women’s game in Australasia.”

What will Priestman bring to the team?

This marks the first time in her career that Priestman will be in charge of a club side, which presents a lot of new challenges compared to coaching national teams.

However, Priestman’s experiences as a national team coach will help suit her as she makes the transition into coaching a side week in and week out, particularly given the circumstances the Phoenix find themselves in of having to travel overseas to play away games, rivalled perhaps only by Perth Glory, who routinely travel cross-country when playing away from home.

For a club that has made no secret of its ambition to win silverware in the A-Leagues, as well as its level of investment for it’s A-League Women, with a full-time assistant coach when some teams do not even have a full-time A-League Women head coach, Priestman is a natural fit for the role.

Her history of success, including a Gold Medal at the Tokyo Olympics, will suit her well as she embarks on this new stage of her career.

For a team that in its five year history (including this upcoming season) is on it’s fourth head coach, with the winning records of the previous four seasons being two wins, three wins, nine wins, and seven wins, having a coach who knows how to win can only be a good thing.

Tags: