The Boston Breakers’ Jay Hoffman, whose coaching experience dates back to the NASL, got a head start in the top-level women’s game as a three-year assistant with the U.S. women’s national team.
Jay Hoffman didn’t get Tony DiCicco’s old job, but he did get something his former U.S. boss didn’t – a head-coaching position in the WUSA.
DiCicco’s former assistant coaches the Boston Breakers.
“It’s great that one of our staff is coaching and not turned into an administrator like Lauren and I,” joked DiCicco, who is the league’s chief operating officer.
Lauren Gregg, DiCicco’s other former assistant, is the league’s vice president of player personnel. The trio coached the United States to victory in Women’s World Cup ’99.
Hoffman had been a candidate to replace DiCicco as U.S. boss. When April Heinrichs got the job, a few WUSA clubs called Hoffman, and he ended up in Boston.
“I really enjoyed working with the Federation,” Hoffman said. “I had a very good run for eight or nine years with them. When this came along, I knew it was a great opportunity.”
MAKING THE ROUNDS. He became a U.S. Soccer coaching coordinator in 1992 after several years in college (Alderson-Broaddus and Fredonia State).
He spent most of his early years at U.S. Soccer on the men’s side.
He served as an assistant to the U.S. under-17s (1993) and under-20s (1994). As a head coach, he led the U-20s to ninth place at the 1997 World Youth Championship in Malaysia.
He worked with the women’s national team for three years (1998-2000) and coached the U.S. under-18 team to the 1999 Pan-American Games gold medal. Hoffman and Gregg co-coached a young U.S. team in the Australia Cup in January 2000.
He enjoyed working with DiCicco, who made Hoffman feel more like an equal than an assistant.
“It wasn’t a situation like, ‘You’re the assistant coach, put down the cones, enjoy the practice, and at the end of practice pick them up,” Hoffman said. “It was a very good team effort. He was open to ideas.”
The 52-year-old DiCicco wasn’t quite a mentor to the 50-year-old Hoffman, who has worked with many veteran coaches, including Timo Liekoski, Bob Gansler and the late Walt Chyzowych. Hoffman assisted Liekoski on four teams – the NASL’s Houston Hurricane (1978-80) and Edmonton Drillers (1980-81) and the MISL’s New Jersey Rockets (1981-82) and Cleveland Force (1983-88).
SCOUTING IN SYDNEY. One of Hoffman’s last jobs before joining Boston was scouting for the U.S. men’s Olympic team last fall.
That job has helped him in Boston.
While in Australia, Hoffman saw Germany play well in the women’s tournament. He resolved to take German stars Bettina Wiegmann and Maren Meinert in the WUSA’s foreign draft, selecting them with the sixth pick.
“[Exposure to the international women’s game] gives you insight into possibilities,” Hoffman said. “You like to think your experiences gives you a bit of head start over some other people, but you still have to make the thing happen. I’m glad I had that experience.”
by Soccer America associate editor Dean Caparaz