The managerial merry-go-round arrives at Exeter City with a familiar face

Welcome aboard the Exeter City rollercoaster – buckle up, the ride just got even more hair- raising!

Just when you thought things were going steadily, February turned out to be something of a busy one - with Gary departing for Wigan, Dan Green stepping in as interim manager, followed by the welcome return of a familiar face.

It was with great reluctance that we said goodbye to Gary. He’s lived and breathed our Club for the last three-and-a-half years and achieved the near possible, maintaining our League One position.

Although it was a ‘Goodwill Hunting Moment’ we were not going to stand in the way of him returning to be closer to his family, and to rejoin Wigan – a Club which is also very close to his heart.

I don’t know about you, but I definitely had something in my eye when I watched his final Club interview. We wish him all the best – apart from on March 21, of course!

As ever with football, things move quickly and within a matter of days of being approached, he was packing up his things. I even saw him loading Perks into the boot…Sincerely, though, we thank both of them for their service to our Club.

And thanks also to Dan, who stepped into the breach, assisted by Kev Nicholson. Times like these can be unsettling for the players, so to keep that consistency was really important and they did that with great skill and commitment whilst we explored the best options to take the Club forward, with a focus on completing the season as positively as possible.

With a dozen or so games remaining, it was important that Gary’s successor knew the Club well and could get up to speed quickly. Enter, one Matt Taylor. He’s a brilliant manager as we all know and it was a fantastic welcome home.

It was a second time for me, as when he first arrived in the city in 2007, he was living in my spare room. Having been both player and manager, he understands how special our Club is, and also the undeniable challenges of this very competitive league.

Gary, Dan and Matt are three very different characters and each with their own unique skills. What they share, however, is a deep understanding of and passion for our Club. For each of them, this isn’t simply a job - it’s a commitment to Exeter City and everything it stands for and we’re grateful to each of them.

It’s also been a busy time for the team at our partner charity, Exeter City Community Trust, with work beginning on the transformation to the King George V Playing Fields on Topsham Road, keeping the area open and accessible, and fit for use for all.

It’s a project which has been a long time in the planning, so it was amazing to be able to announce a contribution of £2million from the Football Foundation towards the project. That’s an incredible amount of money to be able to bring into our city.

There are some fantastic people from both the charity and the Club working together to make the project a success and provide an incredible resource for today and many generations to come.

Back to the football - Exeter City Women beat Hashtag United 1-0 away on Sunday in a hard-fought win on the road. Their next games are at Coach Road against AFC Bournemouth on Sunday March 15, followed by Real Bedford on March 22. Get along and support them, if you can.

Meanwhile, the men’s team are on the home run with just five matches left at SJP. And we need you more than ever to back the boys to a successful end to our fourth season in League One. We’ve got the big boys of the League – Cardiff – on Saturday March 14, followed by two away trips to Luton and Wigan, then it’s back to SJP where we take on

Leyton Orient on Saturday March 28. See you there – UP THE CITY!

By Julian Tagg
President and Director of External Affairs at Exeter City Football Club