Ladies boss Davies assembles backroom staff for new season

» NEW Cheltenham Town Ladies boss Tom Davies has confirmed his backroom team ahead of the 2020/21 Women’s National League Division One South West campaign.

Morgan Hallett will be one of two first team coaches. The 20-year-old has previously worked in women’s football, setting up the Wildcats Girls’ Football Centres.

He spent two years coaching with the men’s performance team at the University of Worcester and then as head coach of the second team.

Uefa B qualified Calum Wands joins as the club’s other first team coach. The 23-year-old has experience at Bristol City Women’s Regional Talent Centre, Bristol Rovers Academy, Hartpury Women’s college and university programmes and he has also managed Gloucestershire FA’S male and female representative teams.

Alyta Norman stays on as goalkeeping coach with the Robins for a third season. She holds the FA Level 2 outfield and goalkeeping qualifications, along with a BSC in sports coaching and an MSC in professional practice of sports coaching.

Norman worked with Bristol Ladies Union Youth as a coach and E4S Goalkeeping Academy and is goalkeeping coach at Paulton Rovers Development Centre.

Jess Hawkins will operate as Cheltenham’s individual development coach, switching her focus from playing to coaching after an injury.

She is a sports coaching student at Hartpury University and has extensive experience in youth football coaching.

Josh Davies has been appointed assistant coach, while Matt Bedford is head coach of the development team, supported by Dene Field.

Bedford has five years’ experience of coaching in the USA. Since returning to the UK two years ago, he has worked with Redditch United Women.

Field manages the University of Gloucestershire men’s second team and is a former academy coach and scout at Core Football Coaching.