Darren Tilley Out as Rhinos Coach, GM Ford also Released
In the first 2009 postseason firing in USL-1, Rochester Rhinos owner Rob Clark has told Darren Tilley he will not be managing the Rhinos in 2010. Clark also said in a press release he will not renew Rhinos general manager Matt Ford’s contract but Ford will stay on for the transition.
“We would like to thank coach Tilley for his commitment to the organization over the past two years,” said Rhinos owner and CEO Rob Clark in the press statement. “Darren will always be regarded as one of the best players in Rhinos history.”
Tilley spent two seasons managing the Rhinos and was 25-21-16. The Rhinos coaching position was the Keynsham, Somerset, England native’s first head coaching position.
Tilley played for Bristol City Rovers, Bath City FC, and York City FC before moving to the States and playing for the Toronto Lynx in 1997. He then moved to the Montreal Impact and played for Rochester in the 1998 and 1999 seasons. He also played for the Vancouver 86ers and appeared in 86 games for their team in the 2000 and 2001 seasons.
Ford took over the GM position in 2006 with the former Rhinos ownership group, but was retained by Clark until his release today.
The timing of the release has been a bit awkward for the players according to Jeff Di Veronica of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. The press statement came less than 16 hours after the Rhinos crashed out of the USL-1 playoffs and were still in Bayamon, Puerto Rico.
“I feel terrible for Darren and Matt,” goalkeeper Scott Vallow told Di Veronica. “As players, you can’t help but feel a sense of responsibility. They put their trust in the players to get a job done and we, collectively as a group, didn’t get a job done. It’s a terrible situation.”
According to Di Vernoica, Matt Ford told the players himself before they boarded the plane to bring them back to Rochester, NY.
For more player reaction please see Di Veronica’s blog post.
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