WPFC APPOINTS CRAIG PEARCE

AS PERFORMANCE DIRECTOR

West Pymble Football Club is delighted to announce the appointment of Craig Pearce as our new Performance Director for the 2027 season. ⚽

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Craig brings a huge amount of experience in youth and early adult football and will work closely alongside Technical Director Aron Chapman, with a particular focus on our older youth (boys and girls) players and their progression into senior football.

An FA B Diploma qualified coach, Craig has coached extensively across the U15, U16 and U18 Super League age groups, as well as All Age football. His teams have enjoyed considerable success, including NSFA Super League premierships at U15, U16, U17 and U18 level, as well as Football NSW Champion of Champions and State Cup success. 🏆

Craig will be very much hands-on. He will, initially, directly coach our boys U16 and U18 Super League teams, while working with Aron to identify talented players and provide them with the coaching, support and opportunities they need to continue developing. 

But the role goes considerably further than coaching two teams. We are building a unrivalled coaching capability to create pathways throughout all of our playing age groups.

A major priority for Craig will be establishing a much clearer pathway from youth football into our adult teams. We want our talented young players to see a future at West Pymble beyond U18s (or G18-20) and, importantly, to find the right level of adult football for their ability and stage of development. Craig’s focus during 2027 will therefore be on putting the structures, processes and organisation around that pathway in place and creating much stronger links between our performance youth teams and senior football. 

Craig also brings an extensive network across the football community. During his previous roles he has used relationships with NPL clubs to create opportunities for talented players to trial at higher levels, while his broader football experience includes taking young players into different competitive environments and supporting their development beyond their regular club program. 

Just as importantly, Craig comes to WPFC with an excellent reputation as a leader and mentor. Former colleagues describe a coach who invests heavily in individual players, develops other coaches, builds strong relationships with players and parents and is prepared to be personally involved rather than simply directing a program from the sidelines. 🤝

For WPFC, this appointment is another important part of building a football structure that allows players to develop, belong and achieve.