Niall Lepper

Niall Lepper
Personal information
Date of birth	June 23, 1981
Place of birth	Scotland
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Playing position	Defender
Youth career
1999	Mount Saint Mary's
2000–2002	Loyola College in Maryland
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2003	Baltimore Blast (NISL)
National team
1997–1999	Scotland U-18
Teams managed
2004–2005	Loyola College in Maryland (assistant)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Niall Lepper (born June 23, 1981 in Falkirk, Scotland) is a former Scottish international soccer player who competed for the Under 18 Scottish national team before playing NCAA Division I soccer, first for a year at Mount Saint Mary's (1999) before transferring for his final three seasons at Loyola College in Maryland (2000–2002). Following the conclusion of his collegiate career, Lepper was drafted in the first round and signed by the Baltimore Blast of the NISL (then MISL), but quickly withdrew from the indoor game and returned to Loyola to pursue his MBA and serve as the Greyhounds' assistant coach for the 2004 and 2005 seasons.^[1] Arguably considered to be the best senior central defender in college following the 2002 season, Lepper was mentioned as a possible first or second round draft pick of several MLS teams but due to strict foreign-born player rules that were then in effect, was never selected.

Career

Youth

Lepper gained notoriety for his play in the Scottish youth system as a rugged, powerful defender, earning him a place on the U-18 Scottish national team. He was a constant presence there until 1999, when he decided to take his game to the United States.

College

Lepper was recruited by coach Mark Mettrick to play at Mount Saint Mary's University in 1999 and made an immediate impact, being named as the Conference Rookie of the Year.^[2]

Following the 1999 season, Mettrick was hired as the new coach for the Loyola Greyhounds and Lepper – eager for the opportunity to join a superior squad and follow Mettrick – joined Loyola as well and was a dominating force there for the next three seasons. As one of Loyola's most important players, he helped lead the team to national rankings from 2000 to 2002, earning NCAA Division I Tournament appearances in 2001 and 2002 that included reaching the Round of 16 in 2001. Lepper was named First Team All-Conference during all three seasons, and twice was named the MAAC Player of the Year (2001 and 2002).^[3] Additionally, Lepper was named to the NSCAA South Atlantic All-Region team three times and was a two-time CollegeSoccerNews.com All-America selection (Third Team in 2001 and HM in 2002), quite a feat considering the tendency to ignore players from traditionally smaller schools and select those from schools that are perennial national powerhouses.^[4]^[5]

Professional/Coaching

Following his senior season, several MLS clubs as well as the indoor Baltimore Blast were interested in Lepper. He was eventually selected by the Blast and signed a one-year contract with the team for the 2003 season.^[6] However, Lepper was not extremely interested in the indoor game and despite other opportunities to continue playing in the US as well as in the UK, he ceased his involvement in soccer as a player. Lepper continued his association with Loyola, serving as assistant coach in 2004 and 2005 while finishing his MBA.

References

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