Australia No2 Arnold named new Central Coast Mariners coach

Football Federation Australia CEO Ben Buckley has endorsed the appointment of Graham Arnold as Central Coast Mariners coach.

"Graham has been a fantastic servant to the Qantas Socceroos as a player and in a coaching capacity,"

"Graham's current coaching contract with FFA is set to conclude at the end of the 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign, and although we are disappointed that he will no longer be involved with the National Team, we wish him all the best for his new challenge," concluded Buckley.

Arnold's appointment was also endorsed by Qantas Socceroos Head Coach Pim Verbeek.

"The Central Coast Mariners have had five fantastic years with Lawrie Mckinna and they are very fortunate to have Graham as their new coach," Verbeek said.

"I am sure that the players and club will benefit greatly from his knowledge and experience."

Graham Arnold began his club football career in 1980 with Canterbury-Marrickville in the NSW 1st Division before moving onto Sydney Croatia in the National Soccer League (NSL) in 1982. Arnold spent nine seasons with Sydney Croatia making 178 appearances and scoring 68 goals. From 1990, Arnold moved overseas to play for Roda JC Kerkrade (Netherlands), Liege (Belgium), RC Chaleroi (Belgium), NAC Breda (Netherlands) and Sanfrecce Hiroshima (Japan) and then returned to Australia to finish his domestic football playing days as player/coach with Northern Spirit in the NSL.

As an international footballer, Graham Arnold made his senior international debut against Chinese Taipei at Hindmarsh Stadium on the 23rd October 1985 and made 85 appearances in total (56 A-international/29 non–A internationals) over a twelve year period culminating in the FIFA World Cup Qualification match against Iran at the MCG on the 29th November 1997.

In 2000, Arnold was appointed as the Assistant Coach of the Qantas Socceroos and Qantas Olyroos under Frank Farina, a position that has held on and off for the past 10 years. After the 2006 FIFA World Cup Arnold was promoted to the position of Head Coach of the Qantas Socceroos for the AFC Asian Cup 2007 campaign where his team was knocked put in a penalty shoot-out by Japan in the quarter finals. In 2008, Arnold returned to the position of an Assistant Coach under Pim Verbeek alongside Henk Duut. As a coaching combination, Verbeek, Arnold and Duut successfully guided the Qantas Socceroos to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup which will be played in South Africa.

In addition to the senior national team, Arnold also held the position as the Head Coach of the Qantas Olyroos from 2007-2008. Arnold guided the Qantas Olyroos through a very difficult campaign to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games Football tournament where they drew Argentina, Serbia and Côte d'Ivoire in the group stage, but unfortunately did not progress to the quarter-finals

One of the most qualified coaches in the country, Arnold holds an A-Licence and is currently studying towards his FFA Pro Coaching licence.

Arnold will commence his duties with the Central Coast Mariners after the Qantas Socceroos complete their 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign.