PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. - One of the newest franchises in the USL W-League revealed the names of their inaugural coaching staff today.  The Pali Blues announced that former W-League Coach of the Year Charlie Naimo will serve as head coach and General Manager, and Skylar Little has been named assistant coach.

“I have no doubt that we will put together a championship-caliber team this season,” Naimo predicted.  “The Pali Blues organization is very welcoming, and I look forward to getting everything started on and off the field.”

Over the last four seasons, Naimo has amassed an astounding 53-3 regular season coaching record.  He coached this past season for Jersey Sky Blue of the W-League with the team finishing 12-2 in the regular season before falling to the Ottawa Fury in the conference championship semi-final.  The club led the league in goals scored and goals-allowed while also producing the W-League Most Valuable Player, Lara Dickenmann.

“We believe that Charlie possesses the skills to create a winning tradition for our club,” Pali Blues co-owner Ali Mansouri said in reference to Naimo’s hiring.  “His enthusiasm for the game is matched only by his record of success.”

Naimo first put on the head coaching hat in 1998 with the New Jersey Splash, receiving W-League Coach of the Year accolades in 1999.  After a stop with the New Brunswick (NJ) Power, he took over a struggling New Jersey Wildcats club and orchestrated an entire reconstruction of the organization.  In his three seasons with the team, Naimo compiled a 41-1 regular season record, leading the club to regular season titles in 2004 and 2006 while winning the W-League championship in 2005.  In 2005 the Wildcats were named the USL Franchise of the Year, and Naimo won the FieldTurf W-League Coach of the Year award in 2006.

“Charlie has a wealth of experience working with players at all levels and has an unbelievable pool of players from which to draw,” Pali Blues Director of Operations Kenzo Bergeron stated.  “The southern California soccer culture will embrace Charlie as a professional and hard-working talent.”

In addition to the hiring of Naimo, the Pali Blues announced that Skylar Little will assume to role of assistant coach.  Along with her twin sister, Jacqui, the Palisades native was regarded as one of the most highly rated players to emerge from the region.  Little started every game over her four-year college career at UCLA, filling a trophy case along the way.  Her sophomore year, she was named the team’s Most Improved Player before being named team captain prior to her junior year.  In addition to being named an All-America honorable mention that season, the UCLA Most Valuable Player was named to the NSCAA All-Far West team and the Soccer Buzz All-West first team.  She was again named club captain and Most Valuable Player her senior year.  Little went on to play in the Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA) for the Washington Freedom for the three years that the league was in existence.

“I am really excited about the idea of having a W-League team in the Palisades ,” Little commented.  “I believe that it is a team that the community will really support.”

Bergeron also expressed his happiness regarding the hiring of Little.

“Skylar is regarded as one of the most talented female players to ever emerge from this area,” he continued.  “The relationships that she has with her alma maters, Marymount High School and UCLA, will be very important for our club.”

The USL W-League played its inaugural season in 1995, and it is recognized as the premiere development league for female players in North America .  The schedule is set to open next May and commence in August.  The Pali Blues have secured the newly-renovated Palisades High School field as their home venue in their inaugural 2008 season.