Metro Gerela
Encyclopedia
Metro Gerela is a Canadian soccer coach and former professional Soccer player in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

 and British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

.

In 1953, during the first Vancouver Sun Tournament of Champions (Youth Provincial Cup Competition Finals) played in Callister Park, Gerela (Powell River
Powell River, British Columbia
Powell River is a city on the northern Sunshine Coast of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Most of its population lives near the eastern shores of Malaspina Strait, that part of the larger Georgia Strait between Texada Island and the Mainland...

) was chosen to be the first "Sun Soccer Boy".

On October 17, 1964, Gerela led the New Westminster Royals
New Westminster Royals
The New Westminster Royals was the name of several professional and junior ice hockey teams based in New Westminster, British Columbia.The first team played from 1912-1914 in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association which was established in 1911....

 to a 5 – 1 victory over the UBC Thunderbirds
UBC Thunderbirds
The UBC Thunderbirds are the athletic teams that represent the University of British Columbia in the University Endowment Lands just outside the city limits of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are one of the most successful teams in the CIS, though a few of their teams are members of the U.S...

 with two goals.

Gerela was head coach of the Capilano College
Capilano College
Capilano University is an undergraduate-focused, public, coeducational, teaching-intensive university located in the District of North Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. It is enabled by the University Act...

 Blues women's soccer team from 1992 to 1994. He held the position of technical director at the Wesburn youth soccer club in 2004. He was the coach of the Croatia Sports Club soccer team in the Vancouver Metro Soccer League
Vancouver Metro Soccer League
The Vancouver Metro Soccer League ' is a soccer league for men operating in British Columbia, primarily in the Lower Mainland area.-History:The league is an amateur league, and does not compete against or promote teams to the Canadian Soccer Pyramid...

's Premier division.

He is married to Silvana Burtini, a police officer and formerly with the WUSA
Women's United Soccer Association
The Women's United Soccer Association, often abbreviated to the WUSA, was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the United States...

's Carolina Courage
Carolina Courage
Carolina Courage were a professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association. The team played at Fetzer Field on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus in 2001, and then at the soccer-specific SAS Stadium in Cary, North Carolina in 2002 and 2003. The team began play in 2001; the...

 and a past member of Canada women's national soccer team
Canada women's national soccer team
The Canada women's national soccer team is overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association. The team reached its all-time high of 6th in the March 2011 rankings. The team reached international prominence finishing in 4th place at the FIFA Women's World Cup 2003, losing to their archrival American team...

.

He was inducted into the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame as a member of the 2011 Team of Distinction. This was the 1979 Vancouver Whitecaps. Gerela was the head scout.

Gerela played two games (as a punter) for the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...

 of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....

 in 1968.

He has had two brothers who were also football placekickers: Ted Gerela
Ted Gerela
Ted Gerela is a former award winning kicker in the Canadian Football League.Gerela, a graduate of Washington State University joined the British Columbia Lions in 1967 and played with them for 7 seasons...

 played with the British Columbia Lions
British Columbia Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team competing in the West Division of Canadian Football League . Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, the Lions play their home games at BC Place Stadium in Downtown Vancouver, having previously played at Empire Stadium in East Vancouver from 1954...

 and Roy Gerela
Roy Gerela
Roy Gerela is a former American football placekicker best known for his years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, with whom he won three Super Bowl rings....

 with the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...

in the NFL.

External links

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