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'''Rhian Emilie Wilkinson''' (born May 12, 1982) is a Canadian professional [[Association football|soccer]] coach and former player, who also served as head coach of [[Portland Thorns FC]] in the [[National Women's Soccer League]] (NWSL) until the end of 2022. During her playing career, she made over 180 appearances for the [[Canada women's national soccer team|Canadian national team]], with whom she won an Olympic bronze medal at [[Football at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women's tournament|London 2012]] and [[2016 Summer Olympics|Rio 2016]]. She played as a forward and midfielder, but was primarily an offensively-minded right fullback who carried the ball forward and made crosses in the attacking zone. As coach of the Thorns, she won the [[2022 National Women's Soccer League season|2022 NWSL championship]]. She resigned from her coaching position on December 2, 2022.
'''Rhian Emilie Wilkinson''' (born May 12, 1982) is a Canadian professional [[Association football|soccer]] coach and former player, who also served as head coach of [[Portland Thorns FC]] in the [[National Women's Soccer League]] (NWSL) until the end of 2022. During her playing career, she made over 180 appearances for the [[Canada women's national soccer team|Canadian national team]], with whom she won an Olympic bronze medal at [[Football at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women's tournament|London 2012]] and [[2016 Summer Olympics|Rio 2016]]. She played as a forward and midfielder, but was primarily an offensively-minded right fullback who carried the ball forward and made crosses in the attacking zone. As coach of the Thorns, she won [[2022 National Women's Soccer League season|2022 NWSL ]] from her coaching position on December 2, 2022.


==Early life==
==Early life==

Revision as of 02:20, 3 December 2022

Rhian Wilkinson
Wilkinson in 2013
Personal information
Full name Rhian Emilie Wilkinson[1]
Date of birth (1982-05-12) May 12, 1982 (age 42)
Place of birth Pointe-Claire, Quebec, Canada
Height 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)[1]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Portland Thorns FC (head coach)
Youth career
1997–1999 Quebec provincial team
1997–1998 Lakers Lac St. Louis
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2002 University of Tennessee
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2005 Ottawa Fury 38 (13)
2005–2012 Team Strømmen 71 (10)
2009 → Western Mass Pioneers (loan)[2] 1 (0)
2010–2011 → Surrey United (loan)[3] 10 (1)
2013 Boston Breakers 14 (2)
2014 Laval Comets 4 (0)
2015 Portland Thorns FC 1 (0)
Total 139 (26)
International career
2003–2017 Canada 181 (7)
Managerial career
2017-2018 Canada U-17 (women's)
2019-2020 Canada U-20 (women's)
2021 Great Britain (assistant)
2022– Portland Thorns FC
Medal record
Women's soccer
Representing  Canada
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2012 London Team
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Guadalajara Team
Silver medal – second place 2003 Santo Domingo Team
Bronze medal – third place 2007 Rio de Janeiro Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of February 14, 2016

Rhian Emilie Wilkinson (born May 12, 1982) is a Canadian professional soccer coach and former player, who also served as head coach of Portland Thorns FC in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) until the end of 2022, winning that season's NWSL Championship. During her playing career, she made over 180 appearances for the Canadian national team, with whom she won an Olympic bronze medal at London 2012 and Rio 2016. She played as a forward and midfielder, but was primarily an offensively-minded right fullback who carried the ball forward and made crosses in the attacking zone. As coach of the Thorns, she won their third 2022 NWSL Championship, shortly before resigning from her coaching position on December 2, 2022.

Early life

Wilkinson was born in Pointe-Claire, Quebec, to parents Keith Wilkinson and Shan Evans. Her Danish-born English father is a former director of the Canada national rugby union team. Her mother, Shan Evans, was born in Wales. She has an older brother, David, and a twin sister named Sara.[4]

In 1990, she relocated to Wales for one year, where she attended Bont Faen Primary School in Cowbridge. The school did not offer soccer to girls and Wilkinson's mother joined the Parent-Teacher Association to convince the school to have inclusive sports teams.[5][6]

She attended Villa Maria High School in Montreal and was valedictorian of her class. She played soccer for the Quebec provincial team from 1997 to 1999 and was named most valuable player in 1999 after helping the club to the silver medal at the nationals. In 1997 and 1998, she helped the Lac St. Louis Lakers earn two silver medals at the national club championships.[4] She was selected as the Greater Montreal Athletic Association's Most Valuable Soccer Player in 2000, and attended the national training centre camp for the under-19 Canadian national team in 2001.[4] Wilkinson competed for the Lakeshore, a female ice hockey team, and also played rugby from 1998 to 1999.[7]

Wilkinson majored in speech communication and English at the University of Tennessee and was chosen as the University of Tennessee's Lady Vols' Offensive Most Valuable Player in 2002.[8]

Club career

Wilkinson was named to the 2003 W-League All Star team and the 2004 W-League Championship All-Tournament team.[9] She won the W-League 2005 scoring championship and tied for the assist leader with 38 points on 13 goals and 12 assists.

She began playing for Team Strømmen of the Toppserien (Norwegian league) in autumn 2005 and maintained her relationship with the club over the course of eight seasons.[10][11]

In 2013, she played for the Boston Breakers in the new National Women's Soccer League. She played several games for Boston as a midfielder, scoring twice.

She signed with the Laval Comets of the W-League in 2014.

In 2015, Wilkinson joined Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League through NWSL Player Allocation.[12] In February 2016, the Thorns announced that Wilkinson would not play for the team in 2016, and she became unaffiliated.[13]

Rhian Wilkinson playing for Canada, 2011

International career

Wilkinson won bronze with Canada at the 2007 Pan American Games,[14] and gold at the 2011 Pan American Games where Canada defeated Brazil 4–3 in penalty kicks. She captured an Olympic bronze medal at London 2012 after Canada defeated France 1–0 on August 9, 2012, in Coventry, England.[15] She contributed three assists in the first two games for Canada at the 2014 Cyprus Cup.[16] Wilkinson announced her retirement from international football on January 13, 2017.[17]

Coaching career

Wilkinson was a volunteer assistant coach at her alma mater, University of Tennessee.[4] She also served as an assistant coach for the Canadian women's national team, and led their under-20 and under-17 programs.[18] In February 2021, she was appointed as assistant manager of the England women's national football team with Hege Riise in charge.[19]

In November 2021, she was named head coach of Portland Thorns FC in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL).[20] In her first year there, 2022, she coached the team to a second-place finish in the regular season, followed by victory in the NWSL Championship, winning the final 2-0 over the Kansas City Current, then resigned shortly after.[21]

Personal life

Wilkinson plays both the cello for fun and played the trumpet in high school, and has been a member of the Suzuki Strings Orchestra since 1994.[22] She participated in the 1997 Quebec Winter Games in ringette.

Honours

Player

University of Tennessee

Canada

Coach

Portland Thorn FC

References

  1. ^ a b "FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 – List of Players: Canada" (PDF). FIFA. July 6, 2015. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 8, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
  2. ^ Player Info – Rhian Wilkinson [permanent dead link]
  3. ^ Team Statistics: 2010–11 Metro Women Premier
  4. ^ a b c d "Rhian Wilkinson player profile". University of Tennessee.
  5. ^ "Re Seeing Women Excel In Tough Sports May Change Kids' Ideas About What It Means To Be Strong (Folio, Aug. 22)". Globe and Mail. August 25, 2016.
  6. ^ "Meet the Welsh Olympic medallist we never knew we had". August 19, 2012.
  7. ^ WOMEN'S SOCCER OLYMPIAN JOINS PRACTICE
  8. ^ TENNESSEE (W) OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE – Women's Soccer
  9. ^ University of Tennessee Lady Vols
  10. ^ asp FK Strommen Squad [permanent dead link]
  11. ^ Team Strommen Fotball Klubb
  12. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle, Rhian Wilkinson added to Portland Thorns FC through National Team Allocation Process". PortlandThornsFC.com. January 14, 2015. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  13. ^ Portland Thorns FC Communications (February 8, 2016). "Forward Christine Sinclair returns to Thorns FC through allocation process". Portland Thorns FC.
  14. ^ Rhian Wilkinson | Team Darfur Archived July 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ Fifa.com
  16. ^ "Schmidt, Sinclair power Canada past Finland at Cyprus Cup". CBC. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  17. ^ "Wilkinson, Tancredi, and Nault announce retirements". Canada Soccer. January 13, 2017. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  18. ^ Meg Linehan (November 9, 2021). "Portland Thorns to hire former Canadian international Rhian Wilkinson as head coach: Sources". The Athletic. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  19. ^ "Hege Riise to lead Lionesses' in February, with Rhian Wilkinson also joining". thefa.com. January 19, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  20. ^ "Rhian Wilkinson named Thorns FC head coach | PTFC".
  21. ^ "Thorns FC head coach Rhian Wilkinson to resign". Portland Thorns. December 2, 2022. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
  22. ^ "Profile". Rhian Wilkinson Soccer. Archived from the original on September 3, 2007.
  23. ^ 2000 SEC Women's Soccer Year in Review
  24. ^ Athlete Bios – Pacific Sport Archived October 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ FSQ 2007 ANNUAL GALA Archived October 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine>
  26. ^ Davidson, Neil (March 1, 2022). "Canada Soccer Hall of Fame adds Rhian Wilkinson, Martina Franko, Patrice Bernier". cbc.ca. The Canadian Press. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  27. ^ Azzi, Alex (October 30, 2022). "Portland Thorns win 2022 NWSL Championship, MVP Smith scores game winner". On Her Turf. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
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