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June 25, 2007

Revs' Nicol to coach MLS All-Star game

The New England Revolution have earned their coach, Steve Nicol, the honor of leading the MLS All-Stars when they face Scottish Premier League Champions Celtic FC in the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star game on July 19 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. Nicol will select five players to the All-Star team and his assistant coaches for the game against Celtic.

The honor is awarded to the coach whose team has the most points per game through games played on June 25. In 12 games this season, Nicol has led the Revolution to the top of the Eastern Conference standings with 22 points and a 6-2-4 record, good for 1.83 points per game. New York Red Bulls head coach Bruce Arena was second in the running to lead the MLS All-Stars, as his team sits second in the Eastern Conference with a 6-3-3 record and 21 points, good for 1.75 points per game.

This will be Nicol’s first appearance as a head coach in the MLS All-Star game. He served as head coach of the MLS Select Team that faced Real Madrid in 2005. Nicol is in his sixth year as a head coach of the Revolution, serving one of those seasons on an interim basis. The interim tag was lifted and he was named the head coach on Nov. 6, 2002, after serving as the interim for the final 21 games of the 2002 regular season. He has led the Revolution to the Eastern Conference Championship match in five straight seasons and has three MLS Cup appearances. In 2002, Nicol was named MLS Coach of the Year.

He boasts a 67-49-43 record and ranks 10th all-time in career MLS wins. In recent history, Nicol’s draft selections have proved to be up and coming stars as Clint Dempsey (2004) and Michael Parkhurst (2005) each won MLS Rookie of the Year honors. He began his coaching career in 1995 with Notts County then traveled to the United States as a player/coach for the Boston Bulldogs. Nicol took an assistant coaching position with the Revolution prior to the 2002 season.

Nicol, a native of Troon, Scotland, began his professional playing career with Ayr United before being transferred to Liverpool where he appeared in 467 matches with the English power and scored 46 goals. He won four English totles, three F.A. Cup tiles and the 1984 European Cup while with Liverpool. Nicol appeared 27 times with the Scottish National Team and started for Scotland in the 1986 World Cup played in Mexico.

The MLS All-Star First XI will be announced on July 5. The First XI are determined by online fan balloting comprising 25 percent of the total vote, with MLS coaches and GMs (25 percent), media (25 percent) and players (25 percent) accounting for the remainder. On July 10, Nicol and his staff will select five All-Stars who will join two Commissioner’s selections to complete the MLS 18-man roster.

--NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION

Posted by Corey Bourassa  at 4:39 PM to Revolution | Permalink

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