Andrew Christiansen: My Passion
This weekend, Manly United will see a familiar face when our Men’s 1st Grade team play Western Sydney Wanderers. The Wanderers are coached by Andrew Christiansen, who spent eight years at Manly as a coach and Technical Director.
Christiansen played junior football for Seaforth and Wakehurst before moving on to Warringah Dolphins, Northern Spirit and Sydney University, as well as a stint in Spain.
Unfortunately, injuries caused a premature end to Christiansen’s playing career. Coaching in MWFA Men’s Premier League brought him back to the game and he would end up as part of Manly United’s coaching team.
“When I stopped playing I was a little bit burnt out. I didn’t get back involved in football for about three years. A couple of friends were at CC Strikers in the local Premier League, they invited me to coach. I fell back in love with football and I helped coach CC Strikers with Nigel Mahoney, and then joined Manly the following year” (in 2014).
“That’s an important part of football, to have a sense of belonging. I think that’s a strength of Manly United, if you’re coaching the Under 13s or the 1st team, I felt a part of the club. It was always an enjoyable place to go, you never dreaded going into work.”
Christiansen was involved with the Men’s 1st Grade team as an assistant when they won the 2017 Grand Final. He gives a lot of credit to former head coach Paul Dee for providing the groundwork required for Manly to be Champions.
“It started with Paul Dee, he did a really fantastic job changing the narrative of what Manly United were and I always felt every year, every team was a fantastic one. There’s a lot of work that went into the success of that season.”
After becoming Manly’s Technical Director and Men’s Under 20 coach, Christiansen received interest from Central Coast Mariners. He started as an assistant before becoming 1st Grade head coach, and under Christiansen’s watch the Mariners would be promoted to the NPL NSW Men’s competition.
“I stayed in coaching while I was doing the Technical Director role because that’s my passion, I really enjoy working with players and being on the field. Manly allowed me to develop myself as a coach and then through the Technical Director role, I learned lots about the other side of football, the administration and everything that goes into running a football club.
“Ken Schembri was the Academy Director at Mariners. Ken and I had a good relationship just through the years of working in football and Ken is a supporter of mine, so he was keen to bring me in when there was an opportunity.”
Christiansen’s next move would be to join Western Sydney Wanderers, and Schembri would once again give him a helping hand when an opportunity presented itself.
“I can’t speak highly enough of Ken, he gave JP (de Marigny, WSW Academy Director) a call and put my name forward. I met with JP and Marko Rudan, we discussed what program they wanted to provide and they decided that I was a good fit.”
Now that he’s settled at the Wanderers, Christiansen is grateful for the support provided by those closest to him, and he thoroughly enjoys his current role.
“I’m fortunate that I have a supportive family and wife, and she is open to whatever opportunities present themselves.
“I’m happy at the Wanderers, I feel that I’m privileged to be in this position. Honestly, every day I wake up at 5am buzzing to get to training and work hard with the group.”
