Alan Koch (soccer)

Alan Koch (born 30 April 1975) is a South African and Canadian football/soccer coach. Koch is a former South African youth national team player,^[1] professional player and coach.^[2] He is a graduate of Simon Fraser University where he earned his bachelor's degree. He earned his master's degree from Midwestern State University in 2005.^[3] He is currently the head coach of Whitecaps FC 2 in USL Pro.

Early life

Koch attended Westville Boy's High School in his native South Africa.^[4] He was there selected as the captain of the South African Schoolboys team in 1992.^[1] He played for Reservoir Hills United in 1993 and was coached by Professor Ngubane in the OK League which is now known as the Mvela League.^[5] He left South Africa in 1995 to sign with KTSV Preussen Krefeld of the German Oberliga. He was also briefly with Wattenscheid 09 and Bayer Uerdingen of the 2.Bundesliga. He signed for Limerick FC of the League of Ireland in 2000. In 2001, on advice from medical experts, Koch retired from football due to a heart condition. ^[6]

Midwestern State

Koch began his coaching tenure as an assistant coach at Midwestern State University. In his first season in 2003, Koch helped the Mustangs finish 17–5 and reach the NCAA Elite Eight. In 2004, he also help guide them to a 12–6 record. In his final year with Midwestern State University in 2005, while completing his master's degree, the Mustangs finished the season 13–3–2. Koch then moved on to Baker University where he was offered the Head Coaching position.

Baker University

At Baker University, Koch took on his first Head Coaching position and finished his first season in charge with a 9–9 record in 2006. The next season, Koch guided the Mustangs to a 13–7 record while reaching the Regional Semi-finals in the NCAA National Tournament. Koch was then presented with an opportunity to move to Vancouver, British Columbia to take over the Simon Fraser University Head Coaching position.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC W-League

Koch also had a spell in charge of the Vancouver Whitecaps W-League team in 2009. He guided the Women's team to a 5th-place finish which narrowly missed out on the playoffs.

Simon Fraser University

Koch has spent the last 5 seasons at Simon Fraser University^[7] as the Head Coach of the Men's Soccer Team. He was the 2009 and 2010 AII coach of the year,^[8] and also the 2010, 2011, 2012 GNAC coach of the year.^[9] 2011 was also a landmark season for the Men's Soccer Team as they became the first non-American school to be ranked in the NCAA top 25. On 18 October 2011, the Men's Soccer Team reached number 1 in the NCAA division 2 national rankings.^[10] At the conclusion of the NCAA regular season, the Men's Soccer Team remained as the number 1 team in the NCAA. In November 2012, Simon Fraser University became the first Canadian team to qualify for a NCAA division 2 National Tournament. The team went on a historic run and qualified for the Final Four hosted in Evans, Georgia. At the end of the NCAA season, the Men's Soccer team became the No. 3 ranked team in the NCAA. On 5 December 2012, Koch was named NSCAA Regional Coach of the year.^[11] During the 2012 season, Koch and the Simon Fraser University Men's Soccer team were featured in the New York Times!^[12]

Team Canada – Macabbi Games

Koch helped lead Team Canada in the 2013 Macabbi Games in Jerusalem, Israel to a Bronze medal after a hard fought 4–1 win against Mexico! Koch's Team Canada qualified to the quarter-finals as the runners up in the group after beating Chile 3–0, Venezuela 4–1 before losing to the defending champions Argentina 4–1 in the final group stage match. They were then drawn against heavy favourites Brazil in the quarter-finals and Canada thrilled the crowd with a big 1–0 win before moving onto playing the United States in the semi-finals. The United States proved to be too much for Team Canada who was sent to the bronze medal match against Mexico.^[13]

Certification

Koch currently holds many levels of coaching certification. These include his NSCAA Premier Diploma, his SKNFCA Level 2, and his UEFA B license. He is currently in progress of the UEFA A license.

Personal life

Currently, Alan lives in North Vancouver, British Columbia. Koch also speaks English, German and Afrikaans.

References

External links

• "Baker Men's Soccer Coach To Return To Alma Mater". Baker University. 1 February 2008. Retrieved 10 October 2013. 
• "Baker taps Koch men's soccer coach". LJWorld. Retrieved 10 October 2013. 
• "The Wichitan – The Student Voice of MSU". Midwestern State University. Retrieved 10 October 2013.