Laval Comets News Release - www.lavalcometes.com
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
LAVAL, Quebec – Quebec native Cindy Walsh has been named the new head coach of the Laval Comets. The 33-year-old is no stranger to the team, as she wore the team’s colors as a player from 2006-10, as well as in 2012 when she was named to the W-League All-League Team and won the Defender of the Year award. She played in the W-League for 11 years on four different teams, the Laval Dynamites, the Toronto Inferno, the Western Mass Pioneers and the Comets.
Walsh also has a great deal of experience as a coach. She has been the assistant technical director of the Association régionale de soccer de la Rive-Sud since 2009, coaching Rive-Sud’s U-13 girls’ regional selection and being involved in the sports-study program at Collège français in Longueuil, Quebec. She has also been involved as an assistant coach with the Équipes du Québec from 2007-09.
“Since 2006, the Laval Comets have been offering an exceptional platform for female athletes, allowing them to develop in the best way possible," Comets General Manager Philippe Ciarlo said. "With the hiring of Cindy Walsh, we hope that we can now offer the same benefit to coaches. We are very happy to offer this opportunity to Cindy. Her career as a player is remarkable and we will try to help her achieve equal success in her coaching career.”
Walsh’s hiring represents a historical event, not only for the Comets, but for the entire soccer community in Quebec, as Walsh becomes the first woman in Quebec to hold a head coaching position at this level.
Walsh’s arrival as head coach also means the departure of Lyonel Joseph, who had been in charge of the team since 2009 after serving as an assistant coach from 2006-08. In four years as the head coach, Joseph helped the Comets reach the postseason three times. Last year, he led the team to the conference final for the first time in club history.
“Lyonel Joseph’s contribution over the past seven years has been extremely important, and we will never forget what he did for this organization," Ciarlo said. "His experience, his professionalism, his work ethic and his knowledge of the game in Quebec made the Comets one of the best clubs in the league on the field. Personally, I’m very proud of having worked alongside him since the creation of the Comets. On behalf of the entire Comets organization and myself, I wish to sincerely thank Lyonel for everything!”