Atlanta Beat names O’Sullivan head coach

Former State University of West Georgia women’s soccer coach Gareth O’Sullivan has been named the head coach of the Atlanta Beat.

The native of Ireland has been coaching professionally in Ireland, but his background includes a number of coaching and playing stints in the United States.

O’Sullivan was the first coach at West Georgia when it created the program in 2004.

His staff staff includes Kennesaw State and Georgia ODP goalkeeper coach Russ Stroud and Leslie Marcus (neé Gaston), a defender for the first Atlanta Beat franchise.

The Beat, reprising the same nickname of its Women’s United Soccer Association predecessor, begins play in the Women’s Professional Soccer league next spring.

Here’s the official release from the Beat/WPS site.