The Pittsburgh Riverdogs, who will begin play in the A-League in 1999, have hired former Tampa Bay Mutiny coach John Kowalski as the team’s first head coach. “We are very pleased to have a coach with his experience and coaching background taking us into our first season,” said Pittsburgh GM Dave Kasper. “He is among the top coaches in professional soccer who knows how to evaluate talent, manage players, and he knows how to win. Kowalski’s last head coaching position was with the Tampa Bay Mutiny of Major League Soccer. After joining the club as head coach on November 15, 1996, he led the Mutiny to a second place finish and a playoff appearance in his first season. Prior to coaching the Mutiny, Kowalski spent eight seasons at Robert Morris College in Pennsylvania, where he guided the Colonials to four straight Northeast Conference titles from 1992 through 1995 and back to back NCAA playoff appearances in 1993 and 1994. Kowalski was also the head coach of the Pittsburgh Spirit of the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1981-85. During his four seasons behind the bench, Kowalski led the team to two playoff appearances. He left the Spirit with a record of 108-82. “John certainly has a very recognizable name in Pittsburgh,” Kasper said. “We are happy to have him back in town.” Kowalski is the only coach in U.S. soccer history to lead a national team to a medal. In 1989, Kowalski’s squad captured the bronze medal at the FIFA World Indoor championships in Holland and followed that performance up by winning a silver medal while competing in Hong Kong in 1992. He also served as interim head coach of the U.S. national team in 1991, posting a 2-0-1 record before Bora Milutinovic took over the U.S. “Obviously, I’m very excited about the challenge of coaching the Pittsburgh Riverdogs. It’s a great feeling to be back and coaching in southwestern Pennsylvania,” said Kowalski. “We have over 250,000 people who are connected to the game of soccer here in the region. Our job is to create our own niche within the community and generate a sense of pride about the game of soccer.”