Alistair Edwards - Coaching Career

Coaching Career

In 2004 he was Assistant Coach at the FIFA U/19 Women's World Championship in Thailand and then progressed to become Head Coach of the Australian team at the AFC U/19 Women's Championships in Malaysia where they become the first Australia team to qualify for a FIFA World Championship since joining the AFC. The FIFA U/20 Women's World Championship were held in Russia. From 2006 to 2009 Edwards became the FFA Development and High Performance Consultant where his main tasks included conducting research in Japan, Holland, France and England on Talent Development and Identification as part of the FFA Development Review and to assist in the development of the FFA National Curriculum. Edwards, along with Paul Okon and Alex Tobin was awarded one of the inaugural FFA Elite Coach Development Scholarships in 2008. As part of this scholarship he spent one month in Holland on attachment with Louis Van Gaal at AZ Alkmaar and Han Westrhoff at Vitesse Arnhem. Upon his return he took the Matildas to the 2008 ASEAN Women's Championship in Vietnam where they won the tournament. Edwards is also an AFC/FFA Advanced Licence Coach Instructor and conducts Advanced Pathway coaching courses for the FFA. In 2008 Edwards was invited to Cambodia to conduct an Elite Coach Development Course on behalf of the Australian Sports Commission. In August 2009 Edwards was appointed to the position of FFA Assistant Technical Director working alongside Dutchman Han Berger. His duel role at the FFA also includes the Assistant Coach role to the Young Socceroos where he works alongside Jan Verslijen, the Head Coach of the AIS, U/17 and U/20 National Teams.

In February 2013, Edwards was named the interim manager of Perth Glory after previous manager Ian Ferguson was sacked. Edwards is expected to manage his former club for the rest of the 2012–13_A-League season.