Fulton Leaves Splash for Job With Portland

Ian Fulton, who coached the Splash through a disappointing indoor soccer season in 1996, was hired Thursday by the Portland Pride.

That creates an opening that will give the Splash its third coach in three years and the fourth in its five-year history.

Under Fulton, the Splash finished second in the Western Division and was eliminated in the first round of the Continental Indoor Soccer League playoffs. Both were the team’s worst showings since the franchise moved from Los Angeles to Anaheim three years ago.

“We didn’t win the finals--we didn’t get out of the first round--but that wasn’t Ian’s fault,” Splash President Gary Sparks said. “I’m absolutely delighted for him. [It’s] a good advancement for him. We were a struggling franchise. He wasn’t the highest paid coach in the league. This was a significant increase for him and he’s where his family is.

“He’s always welcome back as a coach for us.”

Fulton’s wife, Karen, had long wanted to live in Oregon; they moved to Bend after the season.

“I have no hard feelings toward the Splash,” Fulton said at a press conference in Portland. “This was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

Fulton was an assistant in Las Vegas for two seasons before getting his first head coaching job with the Splash.