VANCOUVER, BC
– Vancouver Whitecaps FC announced on Tuesday that Jesse Symons will be leaving his position as Girls Elite Regional Excel Centre (REX) head coach. Assistant coach Emma Humphries will take over as Interim Girls Elite REX head coach.
“We are sad to see Jesse leave the club,” said Whitecaps FC director of soccer development Dan Lenarduzzi. “We’re very thankful for his contributions in helping to shape and build our Whitecaps FC Girls Elite REX program into what we feel is one of the best in the country. Jesse will continue with us this summer as head of our girls’ prospects camps. We look forward to continuing our relationship as he helps make this transition.”
“We're excited to have someone of Emma’s quality and experience ready to step in,” added Lenarduzzi. “When we brought Emma on board, we knew that her success playing and coaching would make her a tremendous role model for our girls programs. Together, we look forward to continuing to grow and build on the successful launch of the Girls Elite REX Program in Partnership with BC Soccer and Canada Soccer.”
“We are very fortunate to have someone with Emma Humphries’ coaching credentials to continue to grow the REX program,” said Chris Cerroni, BC Soccer director of soccer development and REX director “ We want to thank Jesse for all he has done for the program and we wish him the best in all his future endeavors.”
Symons will transition out of the Girls Elite REX and Academy Centre programs in mid-April. He will work closely with Humphries in the coming weeks, and will continue to take a lead role with Humphries on girls summer camp programs.
“Leaving the club was a very difficult decision for me,” added Symons. “This was a personal decision as I look to spend more time with my family. I’d like to thank everyone who has made the past few years such a great success. I leave knowing that the Girls Elite REX program is in great hands and on stable ground, and I look forward to seeing more and more players move on to the national team level.”
Humphries is a UEFA B License coach who previously worked as women’s national development manager in her native New Zealand under current Canadian women’s national team head coach John Herdman and Canada Soccer women’s EXCEL U-14/U-17 director Beverly Priestman. Prior to joining Whitecaps FC this year, Humphries coached with Mountain United FC in the EA SPORTS BC Soccer Premier League, as well as the BC Soccer High Performance Program.
In her playing days, Humphries represented the New Zealand women’s national team coached by Herdman at the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup, and also at the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. Collegiately, Humphries played at California State Fullerton and later Coastal Carolina in NCAA Division I.
For more information on Whitecaps FC youth programs, visit
whitecapsfc.com/youth
or contact Dan Lenarduzzi at
dlenarduzzi@whitecapsfc.com
.
