Last-place FC Edmonton extends coaching deals for Sinkgraven, Schrijver

Harry Sinkgraven

Coach Harry Sinkgraven and assistant Hans Schrijver got more than a vote of confidence from FC Edmonton’s ownership — they both received contract extensions.

The club announced Thursday — while the first team is on a road trip that will see it face Atlanta on Saturday — that Sinkgraven and Schrijver’s contracts will be extended through to the end of the 2013 season.

The signings put to rest any though of an FCE coaching change, as the team has won just three times this year, has scored the least amount of goals in NASL and sits in last place in the league, despite pre-season predictions of a strong showing.

In fact, Dwight Lodeweges, the Eddies’ coach during its 2010 season of friendlies, and the man who recommended Sinkgraven as his replacement, has been spotted in the crowd at Clarke Stadium a few times this season, spurring rumours that he might be returning to the fold now that he is unemployed. Lodeweges and Schrijver coached for less than a season at Japanese side JEF United in 2011 before they were terminated by anxious ownership.

But this move means that the Eddies will ride out this stormy season with its current coaching staff — and it will give Sinkgraven the opportunity to turn things around.

“I signed because I really like it here and the franchise and the club is growing so I see a lot of potential in this club,” Sinkgraven said in a statement issued by FCE. “We have a good owner who really wants to build something here. It’s nice to be a part of a growing franchise from the beginning.”

“Really, I’d like to stay here much longer because the job is not nearly done,” Schrijver said. “We are building a club together and a winning team. We’re in a situation where we aren’t winning games and that makes the challenge even bigger. I’m not happy that we’re not winning games right now but by sticking together, we’ll get there.”