Cleveland City Stars finally name new head coach
Cleveland City Stars will announce on Thursday that their new coach is Ron Underwood. The 41 year old Underwood spent the previous two seasons as first assistant for the Portland Timbers of USL-1. His head coaching experience includes winning a USISL D-3 title with Albuquerque in 1997. The next year, Underwood coached Albuquerque in the USL A-League.
The City Stars’ emphasis on community involvement, particularly in the inner city, excited Underwood.
Ron Underwood, newest Cleveland City Stars coach
“As a coach, you want to win every game and fight for championships –that’s what being at the professional level is about,” he said. “But there’s also the bigger picture. We want to have an impact in the community, as well. I believe very strongly in the City Stars’ mission statement.”
Underwood, who has played or coached soccer since he was 8 and played four years at Furman, is one of the few African-American coaches in professional soccer.
“I strongly believe in being a role model,” he said. “The game’s been very good to me, and I want to help make it that much better for the next generation.”
Underwood will have big shoes to fill as the the popular former coach, Martin Rennie went 26-7-16 with the City Stars, including a combined 6-3 mark in postseason and U.S Open Cup matches.
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