Dutch club Sliedrecht has announced in its official website that coach Matt Van Wezel will leave the team at the end of the season to ta,e over Norway’s Women’s National Team head coaching duties. Wezel has been with the club for the last three years, winning a Dutch Championship and Cup along the way, and also participating in a CEV Champions League. He has also had a brief stint as Nepal’s Men’s National Team coach in the past. Here is what he had to say about this new stage in his career:
“I have a lot of fun working in Sliedrecht Sport. However, to work as national team coach is a nice step for my career. But, it is still only January. First we will concentrate on the coming months with Sliedrecht. We are competing for the title, are in the semi-finals of the Dutch Cpup. I would like to say goodbye to the team with a title.”
In turn, here is what Cees Boer, Sliedrecht’s president, had to say about his departure:
“Too bad. Matt has achieved great results with Sliedrecht. Dutch and Super Cup champions, and victory in the Champions League. It is therefore not surprising that he is internationally in the spotlight. Together we looked at whether there was anything we could’ve done to keep him in Sliedrecht, but there were too many factors to concsider. We have considerable goals and ambitions with the team. That simply requires a lot of time and attention from our head coach.”
The Norwegian women’s national team is currently pointless in FIVB’s senior rankings, but are currently ranked 42nd and 45th, respectively, in FIVB’s U20 and U18 ranking. With the hiring of Van Wezel, the Norwegian Volleyball Federation hopes to change this scenery.
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