Chelmsford City FC can now announce the following updates to our backroom staff ahead of the 2023/24 Season
First Team Manager Robbie Simpson has provided the following updates regarding his backroom staff as we build up towards the new season.
Medical Team Updates:
Tom Hurding
“Head of Medical, Tom Hurding, will be departing the club. Tom has achieved a promotion at work plus he has other business commitments outside of his day-to-day job that while also having a young family he felt that in terms of commitments something had to give in his working life and unfortunately being Head of Medical at Chelmsford City FC is the one thing that had to give for his work/life balance. Tom has been brilliant since I came in as Manager, first as an apprentice to Dave [Lawson] and then up to Head of Medical, he took that in his stride really well and has been a great asset to the football club and we really wish him well. Tom will always be welcome back and he’s already told me that he will be back to watch as many games as he can. A big thank you to Tom for all his hard work.”
Dave Lawson
Sports Therapist, Dave Lawson, will be taking a step back from his duties at the club. “Dave isn’t getting any younger and he wants to spend a lot more time down in the South-West near to his daughter and his family down there. Dave will still be involved in and around the club but in terms of a formal committed role, he can’t commit to that. Dave will still be around and can use him when we need him. The players adore Dave, he is an amazing guy and a complete Club Legend and he is someone who we love to see more often than we don’t.”
We have agreed to a deal with a new Head of Medical and will be announcing that news later today.
Analysis Update:
Glenn Skingsley
Performance Analyst, Glenn Skingsley, will also be taking a step back from his duties at the club. “Glenn has also had a promotion at work which involves multi-national deals and International trips plus he also has certain family commitments that in terms of a full-on commitment to how he likes to work he won’t be at the same capacity but he has said when he has spare time he will still chip in and muck-in wherever we can, predominantly in an opposition analysis capacity. He’s not going to be in a fully committed role, he loves the club and is going to help wherever he can with his flexibility.”
“With Glenn we probably won’t look to replace Glenn’s role as such but will look to make more of an investment into our analytic technology to make our analysis jobs easier and less time-consuming so that’s the route we are looking to explore. We may look into getting a student or a volunteer in to work with us in that respect and we will always have Glenn to call upon when he has the time as well.”
Coaching Update:
Danny Clare
Goalkeeping Coach, Danny Clare, will also be departing the club. “Danny has announced that his time with the Clarets has come to an end. What a fantastic guy Dan is, a tremendous person and a tremendous Goalkeeping Coach. It’s been a pleasure to have him with me as a part of my management team over the past few years. He’ll be an asset to any club. The way we are looking to structure our management team next year in terms of a Goalkeeping Coach, we would like our Goalkeeping Coach to be able to play. This year we’ve seen the real benefit of having two available Goalkeepers to choose from and structurally we would like one of those Goalkeepers to take on more of a coaching role. We only train two night’s a week and a large volume of that involves Goalkeepers with our match preparation and our physical work. In terms of time actually spent coaching 1-to-1 with the Goalkeepers is limited. Structurally that’s the way we want to go and it’s just gutting that Dan isn’t in a fit state to be a player. Dan isn’t in a position to be a player anymore otherwise we would be wanting to keep him but we wish him all the best. Danny has loved his time here and the players love him, he’ll always be welcome back.”
Kit & Equipment Team Update:
Gary Kay
Kitman Gary Kay has committed to remaining with the Clarets for the 23/24 Season. “We’re delighted to announce that Kitman Gary Kay will be continuing at the club. He won Club Person of the Year for a reason, the squad love him and he does a fantastic job so we’re delighted to say that Gary and most likely his ‘little minions’ will carry on in Morgan Snow, Luke Iszatt and Harrison Snow.”
Recruitment Update:
Adam Drew
Head of Recruitment Adam Drew has decided to stay at the club for the upcoming campaign. “He’s made a great impact since joining the club and as mentioned at the end of our Awards Night he’s really bought into the long-term project that the club is going on and he will be a massive part of that going forward. So we are delighted to say that Adam is staying, I think undoubtedly Adam has had offers from other clubs to try and help them out with their recruitment where they perhaps got it wrong last year but we’re delighted that Adam has shown his loyalty and his commitment to us.
Assistant Manager Update:
Mickey Spillane
Assistant Manager Mickey Spillane will also remain with the club for the upcoming season. “He has his Academy ties but certainly, as an Assistant Manager, I’ve appreciated Mickey’s support throughout this season, his ability to disagree with me at times and potentially calm me down when I’ve been too emotional at times. He really is vital in me being able to perform my job to my excellent capacity so I’m delighted to say that Mickey is staying on as Assistant Manager”
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