Experienced pair in charge of U23s
‘We were blown away by how our views on footballing philosophy, culture and ambition aligned with that of the club’
BACUP Borough has announced the arrival of a New U23 Management Team.
Garry Johnston and Nigel Langley will take charge of the youngsters, in a move designed to improve the pathway for yongsters looking to break into the first team and fulfil their potential.
The duo bring a wealth of experience from their time spent in all levels of football across the North West of England.
Johnston started his journey in professional football with Bolton Wanderers, where he represented England Youth before joining Oldham Athletic.
His professional career was cut short due to injury. However, he went on to make numerous appearances at semi-professional level for Northwich Victoria, Horwich RMI and AFC Darwen.
As for Langley, he has taken a different pathway into football beyond playing at a town team level. He spent extensive time in the Talent ID/ Scouting space, and also shadowed and was mentored by his father, who was a prolific scout and Head of Academy recruitment seeking talent for professional clubs including Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United between the ‘90s and ‘00s with players such as James Beattie, Damien Duff, Tom Cleverley, Michael Keane and Marcus Rashford to name a few among his success stories.
This upbringing in a professional environment cemented his understanding of the critical nature of creating talent pathways and successful club cultures.
Johnston and Langley have gained various FA badges over the years; both started coaching with a mixture of amateur clubs before joining forces after many years sharing the sidelines.
They went onto a string of successes at a local level, including multiple winning years in the Lancashire FA Youth County Cup, then in the Junior Premier League, where they won the North Division with a county team.
During this time and most important to them both, they supported and exported talent to professional clubs including Bury FC, Bolton Wanderers, Blackpool, Oldham and Oxford.
The last few years has seen them at semi-pro level managing the U23s for Ramsbottom United. They’ve focused on accelerating the youth pipeline for the club, with the team’s average age being under 19 and from the local area.
This team also brought success to the club with appearances in the Lancashire FA County cup final, going from strength to strength in the latest season and narrowly finishing runners up in the Lancashire Amateur League Cup final.
On joining Bacup, Johnston said: “After the close of the 2022 season, we had a fantastic introduction to the first team management at Bacup and the offer of becoming their new U23s management. We were blown away by how our views on footballing philosophy, culture and ambition aligned with that of the club.”
Langley added: “Our primary aim has always been to ensure we improve players in all aspects of the game, whether physically, technically, tactically or attitude-wise, to fulfil their potential.
“Everything tells us we can achieve success with the U23s with the club’s incredible support and infrastructure and the right attitude and application from the players.”
When asked further about their plans, Johnston said: “We are super excited to get going in the coming weeks and be part of the fantastic team that helps continue to develop this great football club with players that seamlessly transition to the first team and create future success.”