Basingstoke ObserverROSS Weatherstone and Ty Newton have been appointed joint first team managers of Hartley Wintney FC, replacing the hugely successful outgoing first team boss, Anthony Millerick, who is now Director of Football at the Southern Premier League club.
Several good applicants came forward for the position. After careful consideration and a number of interviews conducted by a panel led by the new director of football, the choice was made to promote from within the club.
Ross Weatherstone has been with the Row since July 2020, joining as joint Under 23 Development team manager. Prior to his time at Hartley Wintney, Ross managed and coached at Bracknell Town, Binfield FC and Woodcote. He has a proven record of coaching and developing young players.
In his playing days, Ross was a professional with Oxford United, Stevenage Borough and Boston United, playing over 100 games in the Championship and Leagues 1 and 2. He was a member of the Boston United team that won the National League Championship in 2002.
Tyrone Newton has been with Hartley Wintney since joining as a player in February 2019 from Colliers Wood United, where he had served as club captain. In recent seasons, Ty has been an important part of the Row’s first team coaching staff.
Speaking of the appointments, Hartley Wintney Director of Football, Anthony Millerick, said:
“Having worked with Rosscoe and Ty closely since Christmas, I saw first-hand the impact that they made upon the squad. They are organised, know their football, and critically both are capable of conveying their message to the player group.”
Ty was already a member of the first team coaching set-up, and Ross became more involved with the first team mid-way through the season when Steve Noakes relinquished his Assistant Manager role due to personal circumstances. Millerick continued: “I was impressed by their mannerisms, particularly in the last few months of the season where they showed the ability to stay calm throughout some tricky games, where the stakes were high. The positivity they showed, and their understanding of team spirit, clearly had an impact, as the squad we finished the season with contained all the vital ingredients of a good Hartley side.”
Millerick guided Hartley Wintney from step 5 to step 3 of the football pyramid on a modest budget, cementing his legendary status at the North Hampshire club. Post-Covid lockdowns, this season had been a tough one on and off the pitch, with relegation successfully avoided towards the end of the campaign. Does he feel the new management duo will be able to push the club on? “Naturally, they are a good duo and complement one another, so I have every faith they will continue to build on this good group of players, a group that finished the season in good form and showed a real togetherness.”
