Gerard "Gerry" Lucey is an Irish retired

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

and coach.

Player

Lucey began his career with Home Farm in his native Ireland. He also played for Albertslund IF and Kobenhavns Boldklub. In 1990, Lucey moved to the United States where he attended

New York Institute of Technology The New York Institute of Technology (NYIT or New York Tech) is a Private university, private research university, research university founded in 1955. It has two main campuses in New York (state), New York—one in Old Westbury, on Long I ...

, playing one season on the school's soccer team. In 1991, he transferred to C.W. Post where he played three more seasons of collegiate soccer. After graduating from C.W. Post in 1994, Lucey played on local amateur teams. In 1996, he joined the North Jersey Imperials of the

USISL Pro League The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...

. On July 30, 1997, the MetroStars of

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

called up Lucey for an exhibition game against the

Long Island Rough Riders The Long Island Rough Riders are an American soccer team based in South Huntington, New York, United States. Founded in 1994, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays its home games at Mit ...

. In 1998, he moved to the Rough Riders where he played for three seasons.

Coach

In addition to his career as a player, Lucey worked as an assistant coach with the C.W. Post men's and women's soccer teams from 1994 to 1999. In November 1999, Lucey became the head coach of the women's team after head coach Bob Blizt died of pancreatic cancer. Lucey continued as head coach for the 1999 season, compiling a two-season record of 15–5–1 He was the 2000 New York Collegiate Athletic Conference Women's Coach of the Year. In 2006, Lucey returned to collegiate coaching with a single season as

West Chester University of Pennsylvania West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public university, public research university located in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university i ...

. He coached the team to a 23–1 record. In 2007, he moved to

University of Tampa The University of Tampa (UTampa, UT or Tampa U) is a private university in Tampa, Florida. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. UTampa offers more than 200 programs of study, including 19 master's degrees and a br ...

where he took the women's team to the NCAA Division II championship. He was inducted in 2018 into Tampa's "Hall of Fame" for being a noted contributor, and holds the record for their winningest coach. In the 2017–18 season, Lucey volunteered as an assistant coach to

Hofstra University Hofstra University is a Private university, private research university in Hempstead, New York, United States. It originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University and became an independent college in 1939. Comprising ten schools, includ ...

Pride Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

women's soccer team, before accepting the head coaching position in the same for the Dixie State Trailblazers^{(Now known as the Utah Tech Trailblazers)}. After a single year at Dixie, Lucey returned to Hoftra as an assistant coach to their women's Soccer program, where he still coaches. Lucey and Hofstra was named as part of 2021's East Region Coaching staff of the year by The

United Soccer Coaches The United Soccer Coaches (formerly known as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)) is an organization of American soccer coaches founded in 1941. It is the largest soccer coaches organization in the world, with more than ...

References

External links

Tampa Spartans: Gerry Lucey

TOP STAFF: Hofstra women's coaches earn East Region honors – Front Row Soccer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lucey, Gerry 1966 births Living people Association footballers from Dublin (city) Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland expatriate men's association footballers A-League (1995–2004) players Florida Southern Moccasins coaches LIU Post Pioneers women's soccer coaches LIU Post Pioneers men's soccer players Long Island Rough Riders players Men's association football midfielders North Jersey Imperials players NYIT Bears athletes Tampa Spartans women's soccer coaches USISL players Utah Tech Trailblazers women's soccer coaches West Chester Golden Rams women's soccer coaches 20th-century Irish sportsmen