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Today (Friday 16th October), the London City Lionesses announced that Melissa
Phillips has been appointed as the club’s new Head Coach. Melissa had been in
caretaker charge of the First Team and oversaw the first victory of the season,
against London Bees, last Sunday.
Melissa said: “I am incredibly humbled by the opportunity to lead the London
City Lionesses First Team in a greater capacity. For me, leadership isn’t a
matter of your title but rather the impact and influence you have on an
organisation. My role since joining London City has been to help drive the
vision, values and ambitions of the club forward.
“I am grateful for Diane and the Board’s belief in me and the opportunity to
continue doing so as the next Head Coach. I feel we have only just scratched
the surface of our potential and am excited for the journey ahead.
“I have so much respect and appreciation for the players continued
commitment to the club’s ambitions; they are truly a resilient group and
growing each day together. My aim is to create an environment that each
player thrives in, focused on holistic player development and elevating our
current culture and football philosophy.”
Diane Culligan, Chairwoman, said: “Mel has been excellent in every aspect since
she joined us, so the decision to promote her to Head Coach was a very easy
one. Mel was one of the US’ most highly-regarded young coaches and, in time,
we are confident that she will become one of the UK’s top managers.
“Specifically, I would like to thank Mel for her efforts over the last week
following Lisa’s departure. We were all delighted to register our first win of the
season and are sure that the team will build momentum over the coming
weeks.”
Melissa Phillips joined the London City Lionesses this summer. She moved from the
University of Pennsylvania’s coaching programme in America. There, Melissa was
the Women’s Team Assistant Coach – a role she held for five years, which was also
the most successful period in their history.
Phillips’ young Penn team won plaudits for their high-scoring, defensively resolute
performances. This culminated in them being crowned the 2018 Ivy League
Champions. Before Penn, Melissa was Assistant Women’s Coach at the University
of San Francisco and Head Women’s Coach at California State University
Bakersfield.