Splash Hires Ian Fulton as Its Coach
Ian Fulton, promising a high-scoring offense that will put people in the seats at the Pond, will be the new coach of the Splash.
Fulton, an assistant the last two years with the now-defunct Las Vegas Dustdevils, and General Manager Don Ebert reached an oral agreement Friday on a two-year contract.
Fulton, 48, a native of Scotland who lives in Riverside, was an assistant with the Dustdevils, who won the Continental Indoor Soccer League championship in 1994, upsetting the Splash in the semifinals.
“One of the things I was adamant about was someone who had indoor experience and knew the league,” Ebert said. “Getting started so late, I didn’t want to go through a learning curve. Ian knows the teams, the arenas, the players. It’s his crack at being a coach.”
Fulton replaces George Fernandez, who coached the Splash to two division titles in two years but who wasn’t retained by the team’s new ownership.
Fulton also has started a boys’ soccer program at Murrieta Valley High and coached a local club soccer team. He was an assistant on the El Toro junior varsity team in 1990.
“I think the team is going to be a lot more exciting, a lot more attacking,” Fulton said. “We’re going to be much more offensive-minded.
“I realize we’ll give up some goals, but I want the fans to come out and see an exciting game. There’s a lot of attractions out there for that dollar. [Fans] want to see a lot of goals in indoor soccer. Why should they come see indoor soccer if it’s boring? We’re going to make it as exciting as we possibly can.”
Ebert said he wanted a coach interested in conducting camps and clinics, who knew the indoor game and its players, who wasn’t a coaching retread.
“I want a fresh start,” Ebert said.
Erich Geyer, who coached Monterrey to the league title last year, and Daryl Doran, who coached St. Louis to the National Professional Soccer League indoor title last year, were the other top indoor candidates.
Ebert’s decision to sign Dale Ervine this week led to Fulton’s arrival. Ervine fell out of favor with Fernandez last year and was traded.
