AFC Mobile is looking for a new leader on the sideline. The Port City soccer club and head coach Steve Wieczorek have mutually agreed to part ways, one day after the Azaleas picked up their first win of the season.
The split comes as Wieczorek prepares to leave Mobile for a new job in the Northeast. He has been named head coach of the men’s soccer program at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York.
A short but eventful run in Mobile
Wieczorek had led AFC Mobile since the 2019 season, guiding the club through its early years in the National Premier Soccer League and its return to play after the pandemic wiped out the 2020 campaign.
“It’s been a great run over the last couple of years at AFC Mobile, but it is important for me to step down and focus on the coaching opportunity that’s ahead of me,” Wieczorek said. “And I also think it’s important for the club and for the players to have a new voice that will help us achieve the goal of reaching the conference playoffs, which I think is well within our grasp.”
Grube steps in as caretaker
Former AFC Mobile goalkeeper and current assistant coach Brent Grube will take over as caretaker manager while the club weighs its next move.
Wieczorek’s final match in charge was a fitting send-off. The Azaleas beat Pensacola FC 2-0 on Wednesday night at the match played in Foley, giving the club its first victory of the year before the coaching change was announced the following day.