Richard Nuttall
Head Coach
Richard Nuttall, a former professional soccer player in England and a former member of the Long Island Rough Riders, is entering his 19th season as Hofstra University Head Soccer Coach in 2007. Nuttall has guided the Pride to a 171-150-33 record in his 18 seasons and has transformed the program into one of the most competitive in the Northeast.
Last season, Nuttall led Hofstra to its third consecutive Colonial Athletic Association championship and NCAA Division I Tournament berth, making Hofstra one of only three schools in the nation with three straight conference titles (joining Western Illinois and New Mexico). The Pride finished the season with a 12-6-3 record, and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 2-0 home win over Providence in front of 1,450 fans at Hofstra Soccer Stadium.
The Pride finished the 2005 season with a 14-5-3 record, tying for the most wins in school history at the Division I level, while also earning its highest ranking in school history at #13 in the final National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll. Hofstra earned its CAA championship with a 1-0 win over #7 Old Dominion in the championship game, the highest ranked team that the Pride has ever defeated. Nuttall was one of eight coaches to earn Regional Coach of the Year honors from the NSCAA.
During the 2004 campaign, Nuttall guided the Pride to one of their most memorable seasons in school history. After an up-and-down regular season, Hofstra rallied to win the Colonial Athletic Association championship with a dramatic postseason run, outscoring their three opponents (all of which were nationally ranked) by a combined 4-0. Hofstra then went on to receive its first-ever NCAA Division I Tournament berth and defeated nationally-ranked Seton Hall 2-1 in the opening round, before finally seeing its run finally end with a loss at third-seeded Maryland. That loss snapped a six-game win streak, with five of those six wins coming against teams that were nationally ranked.
Prior to his arrival in Hempstead, the soccer program had posted five losing seasons in nine years, including a 3-9-6 season in 1988. Hofstra has had just six losing seasons in the last 16 years and four of those came during the first four years of Nuttall's tenure. Nuttall's teams have finished .500 or better 10 times in the last 12 seasons, including a streak of seven straight at one point - a remarkable feat considering that Hofstra has been in three conferences (East Coast, America East, Colonial) during that time, each more competitive than the last.
The 1997 campaign saw Nuttally lead the Flying Dutchmen to a 14-4-3 record, including a 9-0 mark in America East play. The team was the top seed in the postseason tournament, but lost a close game to defending champion Boston University in the finals. Despite that loss, Hofstra was still considered for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Nuttall was named Division I Coach of the Year in Region II by the NSCAA.
In 1999 Nuttall led Hofstra to an early season national ranking, before finishing with a 9-9 record. 2000 saw Nuttall lead the Pride back to the America East Championship game, a 2-1 overtime loss to Vermont, and an 11-6-3 overall record. In 2001, Hofstra's last season in the America East Conference, Nuttall led his team to a 9-9-1 record and a berth in the America East Tournament for the fourth time in five years.
Nuttall, a native of South Yorkshire, England, played with Leeds United and Stoke City of the English Football League. He graduated from the Carnegie School (College) of Physical Education in West Yorkshire in 1984. It was during this time that Nuttall received his Football Association coaching certificates.
Nuttall, who moved to Long Island permanently in 1988 after spending summers in the United States since 1983, taught physical education at North Shore High School. He is also a partner in the highly successful Pro Excel summer soccer camp on Long Island and is active in working with many Long Island communities.
Nuttall and his wife, Christine, reside in New Hyde Park, New York, with their three children.
Brian Suskiewicz
Associate Head Coach
Brian Suskiewicz is entering his fourth season on the Hofstra coaching staff and his first as the program's associate head coach, after helping the Pride to its first three NCAA Division I Tournament berths in his first three seasons. He joined the Pride after serving for three years as an assistant coach at Bucknell University, where he also helped the Bison achieve unprecedented success. Bucknell set school records with 13 wins and 10 shutouts in 2002, and then finished the 2003 season undefeated in Patriot League play (5-0-2) for the first time in school history. The 24 combined wins the Bison had in 2002 and 2003 were the most wins in program history over a two-year period.
Suskiewicz helped Bucknell tie for the third best single-season improvement in the nation in 2002, a six-and-a-half game improvement over its 2001 campaign. Bucknell also had the fifth best team defense in the country in 2002 (0.62 goals against average), as well as the sixth best shutout percentage in the nation (10 shutouts in 19 games).
Bucknell also had success off the field under Suskiewicz's guidance, as its 3.31 team grade point average in 2002-2003 was the second highest in the country in Division I. The Bison received a National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Team Academic Award for its efforts in the classroom.
Prior to coaching at Bucknell, Suskiewicz served as an assistant coach at Washington & Lee University, where he helped his team to a 19-2 record, the best in the 56-year history of the program. The 19 wins shattered the previous school record of 12, while the program also earned a No. 8 national ranking in the final NCAA Division III poll. His squad captured the Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship, earned its first-ever NCAA Tournament berth and advanced to the regional finals.
Suskiewicz was a four-year letter winner at Boston College, where he was named to the NSCAA All-New England team as a senior. He also received the Athletic Director's Award for academic achievement with the Eagles. He helped his squad to a 1995 Big East Championship.
Gary Book
Volunteer Assistant Coach
Gary Book enters his third season as a volunteer assistant coach with the Hofstra Men's Soccer staff after joining the program in 2005. Book joined the Pride after 13 seasons as an assistant coach at St. John's University, where he helped the Red Storm achieve unprecedented success.
Book was an assistant coach on the 1996 squad that captured the first national championship in St. John's history in any sport. His teams also qualified for the NCAA Tournament in all 13 seasons, while reaching the Sweet 16 nine times and the Final Four three times. In addition, St. John's captured five Big East regular season championships and six Big East Tournament titles during his tenure.
Book is also currently the technical director of the Long Island Junior Soccer League, where he is responsible for facilitating the soccer education process of over 150,000 soccer players in the Long Island area. He also holds the post of regional technical director for the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) and is a NSCAA national staff coach. In addition, Book is also the chief executive officer of NOGA soccer, a Long Island-based soccer services company which is one of the largest in the country in its field.
Peter Zaratin
Volunteer Assistant Coach
Peter Zaratin is entering his first season as a volunteer assistant with the Hofstra Soccer program, where he will work with the Pride's goalkeepers.
Zaratin is currently the chief executive officer of The Rough Riders LLC on Long Island. Prior to his current position, he formed Globall Soccer Concepts, Inc., an international soccer training and management company.
Zaratin played professional soccer in the United States and in Europe, competing with several A-League teams including the Staten Island Vipers, the New York Fever and the Montreal Impact. During a very successful season with the Impact, Peter was called to play for Spandauer Sport Verin in Germany, where he was voted one of the top goalkeepers in the German Regionalliga.
A 1995 graduate of Santa Clara with a degree in Communications, Zaratin played for Santa Clara under former U.S. World Cup coach Steve Sampson. He also played for the Regional and State ODP Program.
Zaratin also has some professional coaching experience. In 2003 he was hired as head goalkeeper coach for the New York Power in the former Women's United Soccer Association. He also provided training to the Rough Rider goalies last season and was the coaching director of the Rough Rider Super Y League teams in 2004. Zaratin has coached several youth teams and trained thousands of players on Long Island over the years and holds several coaching licenses including an A, B and Youth Licenses from the United States Soccer Federation.
Zaratin currently resides in Glen Cove, New York, where he was inducted into the Glen Cove Hall of Fame for his playing and coaching accomplishments.
