August 6, 2024 – United Soccer League One (USL1)
Richmond Kickers News Release
RICHMOND, Va. – The Richmond Kickers are pleased to announce the addition of First Team Assistant Coach and Opponent Analyst, Lydie Doughty, to their technical staff. Doughty will also serve as Richmond United’s U16 and U17 Head Coach, helping to bridge the gap from youth to senior football in Richmond.
Doughty joins Kickers with extensive experience in coaching and player development in Europe and the United States. He holds a United States Soccer Federation (USSF) A-Senior License and a Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) A and UEFA Elite A Youth License. He holds a Masters in Soccer Training from the University of Porto (Portugal) and a Bachelor of Science in Sports Science from SUNY Cortland.
An expert in training methodology and tactical analysis, Doughty has spent much of his coaching career developing individual players in addition to a variety of head coaching and assistant coaching roles, utilizing a positional approach to help players become more versatile, master their positions and interpret a variety of situations that may arise on the pitch. In professional coaching roles in the United States and Europe, Doughty has led video analysis and created presentations for coaching staff and players to develop and prepare opposing teams.
Born in Tirana, Albania, Dauti most recently served as interim head coach of 1. SC Znojmo FK (Czech Republic) after serving as the club’s head assistant coach in the fall of 2023. Prior to taking up the role at Znojmo, Dauti served as assistant coach and personal development coach at Rio Ave U23 (Portugal) during the 2022-23 season.
After serving as the team’s head coach in 2016, Doughty enjoyed tremendous success as the head coach of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice men’s team from 2017 to 2019.
In his first year as head coach, the Bloodhounds posted the best record in program history at 9-8-1, finished as a City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) finalist, and earned their first Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) championship berth. Dauti was named CUNYAC Coach of the Year in 2017. In 2018, the Bloodhounds made their second consecutive playoff appearance, but lost in overtime to the No. 1 seed College of Staten Island in the semifinals.
Doughty’s final season in 2019 proved to be an exclamation point. John Jay advanced to its third consecutive CUNYAC playoff appearance, defeating fourth-seeded Brooklyn College 4-1, winning a shootout over first-seeded Lehman College in the semifinals, and then defeating second-seeded Hunter College in a dramatic 7-6 shootout in the finals to win John Jay’s first CUNYAC championship. The Bloodhounds qualified for their first NCAA Division III tournament, but lost to Johns Hopkins University in the first round.
After the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dauti announced in March 2021 that he would be stepping down to pursue job opportunities and a master’s degree in Portugal.
While coaching at John Jay College, Doughty also served as an assistant coach and opponent analyst for the New York Cosmos. He also coached the Cosmos Academy U13-U15 team in the American Development Academy League and played for ECNL club World Class FC. He also served as the head coach for the New York Athletic Club in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL).
Ridi Dauti said:
“After Mika (Elovaara) explained the club’s vision of creating a pathway for first-team players to develop, I was confident Richmond would be the best choice for my career. I enjoy working in a first-team environment but also enjoy developing young players so this role perfectly suits my career ambitions. I am very grateful for the opportunity to join both the Richmond Kickers and Richmond United staff. It is a great honour to represent one of the most historic clubs in the country. I would like to thank Darren and Mika for the opportunity and look forward to contributing as much as I can to the future success of the Richmond football community!
“The club’s connection to the community is very strong and I’ve felt it since my first day in Richmond. I’m delighted to be part of a club the city has such a strong attachment to and I look forward to contributing to its further success in the future.”
“We are thrilled to be part of this incredible journey,” said Darren Sawatzky, Richmond Kickers head coach and chief sporting officer.
“Riddy is a modern coach with great experience in player development and understanding first-team matchdays. We are working hard to develop player pathways at Richmond and Riddy is another great part of that work. The young players at Richmond will benefit hugely from Riddy’s experience and the first-team will benefit from another analyst and coach to help them prepare for matchdays.”
Mika Elobaara, Senior Assistant Coach and Director of Player Development and Methodology for the Richmond Kickers and Technical Director for Richmond United, said:
“Ridy will be a strong asset in both environments where he will work. I have known him for many years and am thrilled to finally have him join our staff here. He is an intelligent and expressive coach who forms strong bonds with his players. He has a keen attention to detail and his teaching skills are versatile. As we look to advance our programming and provide the best possible daily environment for all of our players, we need great people who can share in leadership roles. I am thrilled to be adding such a high-caliber and talented individual to our community.”
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