Football Disappointed Garner thanks club for the opportunity

BEN Garner has spoken of the honour he felt in being manager of Bristol Rovers after his sacking by the club, writes Rob Warlow.

The former Crystal Palace and West Brom coach, pictured, was relieved of his duties on Saturday evening after a 4-1 defeat at home against Fleetwood Town, which left Rovers in 18th in League One, three points clear of the relegation zone.

Garner replaced Graham Coughlan in December but Rovers only won five league games across his 11 months in charge.

But Garner has now issued a statement thanking the club and its supporters for the opportunity after his first role in management and wishing the club well.

In a statement, released via the League Managers’ Association, he said: “It was an honour to be the manager of Bristol Rovers Football Club and I would like to thank Wael Al-Qadi for offering me the opportunity to do so . My ambition was to build a successful and sustainable football club in line with its vision to recruit and develop young players. In recent months, I have worked tirelessly to implement huge changes at the football club, during which the average age of the playing squad was lowered dramatically, talented prospects from the academy were developed and, alongside key members of the first team squad, those academy players were secured on longer term contracts in order to provide stability moving forwards.

“The infrastructure of the club has been massively enhanced in terms of recruitment, performance analysis, sports science, nutrition, and medical support. One of my proudest achievements was positively influencing the layout and design of the new training ground and overseeing the team’s transition to the site in recent weeks.”

He added: “I was excited with the direction we were heading, with strong performances and results in October, combined with three wins and two draws in the previous five away matches. Therefore, I am very disappointed that my time at Bristol Rovers has come to an end.”