We would like to thank the Bolton representatives for the professional manner in which they undertook the negotiations and their respect for the compensation clause within Ian’s agreement. Once Ian had expressed last Friday his desire to leave Barrow AFC we felt it only fair to honour our agreement with him.
Chairman Paul Hornby commented, ‘it’s always disappointing when someone decides to move on especially when they’ve had such a positive impact. Ian did a wonderful job over the time he was here and he leaves us with a blueprint and identity of how we want our team to play and a great group of players. We shouldn’t let his departure distract from a fantastic season and the massive opportunity promotion creates for this club going forward.’
We are very confident we can recruit a new management team that can take us to the next level also playing attractive, possession based football. We wish Ian all the best in his future career and look forward to seeing him again next season.
Ian joined us over 2 years ago and in that time we have seen a transformation on the pitch. From a side which had just avoided relegation, he implemented a possession based footballing philosophy which culminated in us winning the league.
As part of Ian’s exit the deal also sees assistant manager Peter Atherton and first team analyst Lewis Duckmanton leave the club too.
Finally we would also like to confirm that included in the agreement is a 2 year embargo that means Bolton cannot approach any Barrow players under contract.
The search for Ian’s successor has already begun and we’ll be keeping the fans updated on how that process develops.