Houston Dynamo FC have announced the hiring of additional full-time staff for Dynamo 2, the club’s second team participating in the inaugural season of MLS NEXT Pro.
The team will be led by head coach Kenny Bundy, who most recently served as head coach of the Houston Dynamo Academy U-23 team. Bundy has been with the Houston Dynamo since 2016, serving as head coach of both the U-23 and U-19 teams. In the 2017-18 season, Bundy guided the Dynamo Academy U-19s to the Developmental Academy League national playoffs. During his time with Dynamo Academy, Kenny worked with a number of future professional players, including midfielders Juan Castilla and Marcelo Palomino.
Joining Bundy on his technical staff will be assistant coach Daniel Roberts, assistant coach Roy Lassiter, goalkeeping coach Jason Grubb, head of strength and conditioning Richard Moore, assistant sport scientist Ai Ishida, head athletic trainer Brandi Neeley and equipment manager Jaime Gonzalez.
"Houston Dynamo 2 is designed to bridge the gap between the Houston Dynamo Academy and the first team, so we built a staff with an impressive history of development, expertise in high performance, and a strong grasp of our club culture,” said Nick Kowba, Assistant General Manager. “I am excited to promote existing personnel from our Academy and welcome new members to our club. We aim to build one of the premier club environments in MLS and our staff will be fully committed to developing players who can impact our club’s first team.”
Roberts, the former Houston Dynamo Academy U-15 coach, has been with the Dynamo since he was a member of the first class of Dynamo Academy players in 2007. The Reading, England native graduated from Clements High School in Sugar Land before playing college soccer at University of North Carolina-Wilmington. Roberts was drafted by the Dynamo in the 2012 MLS Draft and played for the Wilmington Hammerheads in the USL from 2012-14. He holds USSF's A-Youth, National Youth, and Talent Scout Licenses. In his role with the Dynamo Academy, Roberts worked with notable Academy graduates including midfielder Diego Gonzalez and forward Daniel Rios.
Lassiter is one of the legends of Major League Soccer, having helped launch the League in 1996 and holding the all-time scoring record until 2004. His record of 27 goals in a season with the Tampa Bay Mutiny in the League’s inaugural season held for 22 years until it was recently broken by Josef Martinez in Atlanta United. He ended his career with 88 regular season goals, 13 Playoff goals, and a MLS Cup in 1999. Lassiter also earned 34 caps for the U.S. Men’s National Team. After retiring from playing, Lassiter moved into the coaching ranks, most recently having served as the manager of Kitsap Soccer Club in the National Professional Soccer League. Lassiter’s son, Ari, played for the Dynamo in 2020 and 2021, and currently plays for Inter Miami CF.
Grubb will serve as the team’s Goalkeeping coach and the Dynamo Academy’s Director of Goalkeeping. Grubb, a USSF and UEFA certified coach, has been with the Dynamo since 2016. Prior to coming to Houston, Grubb served as the goalkeeping coach with IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida and Quinnipiac University. Before embarking on a coaching career in America, Jason played at the Forest Green Rovers Academy in England. During his time with the Dynamo, Grubb has contributed to the development of MLS goalkeepers Michael Nelson and homegrown goalkeeper Xavier Valdez.
A graduate of Bangor University and the University of Derby, Moore comes to the Dynamo following a seven-year stint with English side Derby County FC, where he worked his way up to become the team’s lead sports scientist. Prior to his time at Derby, Moore started out as an intern with Ulster Rugby Academy. During his time with Derby County, Richard worked with notable professional players Johnny Russel and Chris Martin.
Ishida comes to Dynamo 2 as the assistant sports scientist after previously serving as a Sports Science and Strength and Conditioning Fellow for the Philadelphia Union and a Sports Science Intern with Orlando City SC.
Neeley joins the Dynamo 2 staff after most recently holding the Head Athletic Trainer position for the Dynamo Academy. Neely got her start in professional soccer as a part-time athletic trainer for the Dynamo Academy, a position she began at the start of 2020. When the Academy season was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Neely transitioned to a position assisting the Houston Dash during their championship performance in the first-ever NWSL Challenge Cup. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Neely completed her B.S. in Athletic Training from the University of West Alabama in 2014 then later went on to complete her M.S in Sports Administration from Texas A&M University – Commerce in 2018.
Gonzalez spent the previous four years as assistant equipment manager and travel coordinator for the United Soccer League’s RGV FC and as the equipment manager and travel coordinator for the NBA G League’s RGV Vipers, where he was a part of the 2019 G League championship. Gonzalez graduated from the University of Texas-RGV with a Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts. While there, he was the head student manager of the basketball team for four years.
