Introductory Press Conference for New Dash Leadership

 

Credit: Houston Dynamo FC

Dash President of Women’s Soccer, Angela Hucles Mangano   

“I’m ecstatic to be here right now with you all. I don't think there's any doubt what the responsibility is for both Fabrice (Gautrat) and myself being here today, and in part of that, it's to bring stability to this club so that we can be consistent in our long-term and short-term goals for this organization. We are bringing a vision to life. I've heard so much about the potential of this club, and I’ve seen the opportunity in a very short period of time and now it's time for some of that potential to be realized. I’m very excited to be here with you all today and to be joined by Fabrice as our next head coach.” 

 

When asked about the team roster, Mangano said,  “It's an evolving roster. We've already been very active this offseason, adding a few pieces to the roster and providing Fabrice (Gautrat) with a style of play that can be adaptable. When you look at some of the players that have been in this league and have really impacted teams, you look at (Barbra) Banda and (Temwa) Chawinga. The game itself is evolving, so to be able to have a roster that really matches that adaptability, allowing Fabrice to be flexible and having versatility within the roster has been something that we've really been homing in on for roster selections in some of these final pieces.” 

 

Mangano addressed the Dash fans by saying,  “We want to engage more with our fans. It’s what Fabrice (Gautrat) said. What value are we adding to our fan base? There are fans who have been here from the very beginning and continue to show up. We want to give more people reasons to show up even more consistently. I believe there are two types of people: those who give trust until trust is no longer given, and those who need to build into that trust. Ultimately, we want to give people reasons to trust the type of success we're hoping to build within this organization.” 

Dash Head Coach, Fabrice Gautrat 

“There are three things that really drew me to this project. The leadership, the staff and the players. As Jessica (O’Neill) mentioned earlier, I think we have a very high-potential group. I'm very excited to be a part of this group. One thing that was laid out from the get-go, and as I got to know Angela (Hucles Mangano), is how important trust is and how important trust is to keep building day in and day out. Those are a few things that really drew me to this project, and I'm excited to get started.” 

 

When Gautrat was asked about the roster, he stated,  “One thing that has impressed me since coming on board is how much data is used to influence the decisions we make within our roster, and you've seen already some of those players come in. It's more than just what looks good. There is a lot of detail and data behind that and that's important, especially in this day and age. The other thing is that if you look at the track record of this league, what you find is sometimes teams could be first and last within a year. Sometimes those margins are very small, and sometimes all you need is a couple of different players, maybe a different training environment, to just change things. I'm very excited with the decisions that have been made and with the current roster we have.” 

 

Gautrat view on what the fans should expect,  “First thing I’ll say is that the fans deserve more. Angela (Hucles Mangano) touched upon some of the goals that we have this year, and obviously, making the playoffs is one of them. For me, one thing I want us to create is something that goes beyond just that. When you see the Dash, you see that there's something unique about how they play. There's a culture, there's trust and there's resilience that really shines through the team. For me, that’s what we’re after and that's what we want to create. That's what you can expect from us as a team.”