Graham Barrow
Encyclopedia
Graham Barrow is an English
former footballer
who has since become a lower division manager
. He is currently part of the coaching staff at Premier League side Wigan Athletic
, where he has previously been both a player and manager.
at the relatively late age of 27 in August 1981 when he signed for Wigan Athletic from Altrincham
for £10,000, having earlier played for Chorley
and Southport
. He became a vital part of manager Larry Lloyd's
promotion winning side, playing as a hard man in midfield, and further endeared himself to Wigan fans by putting in a man of the match performance in the Freight Rover Trophy
final at Wembley Stadium
in 1985 despite playing in the unfamiliar position of forward. He left the club for Chester City
in 1986 for £6,000, after 212 appearances in all competitions for the Latics (179 games, 36 goals in the League).
Barrow had a difficult start at Chester, suffering five bookings in his first seven games, and in November 1986 he considered a move to Blackpool
. But he opted to stay with the Blues and went on to make 298 first team appearances over the next eight years, mainly as captain. He combined his playing role with an assistant manager position to Harry McNally
from 1988–89
onwards. On the final day of the 1991–92 season
, Barrow scored a late winner in Chester's final home game at Moss Rose
against Leyton Orient
to seal Division Three survival for the club.
in 1993
, Barrow inspired the Blues to bounce back the next season and gain promotion, but he resigned in the summer of 1994 amid frustration at key players leaving and a lack of financial backing from the board. He retired from playing following his departure, with his final appearance being in Chester's win 3–2 win over Preston North End
on 2 April 1994, just two months before his 40th birthday.
He returned to Wigan as manager early in 1994–95
and rescued the Latics from relegation to the Football Conference
. He was in charge of Rochdale
from 1996 to 1999, although the club failed to gain any success and he left after a third successive bottom half placing. A spell as assistant–manager at Notts County
followed before returning to Chester as manager on 31 May 2000, shortly after their relegation to the Nationwide Conference
. Barrow was forced to work in difficult circumstances under American owner Terry Smith
, who suspended Barrow's assistant Paul Beesley
from playing for failing to stand in the correct position at a set piece and banned Barrow from speaking to the press without his permission. Although Chester finished well out of the promotion race in eighth position, Barrow managed to guide Chester to an FA Cup third round tie with Blackburn Rovers
after eliminating Football League sides Plymouth Argyle
and Oxford United
. He also led them to the FA Trophy
semi–finals and victory in the final of the Nationwide Variety Club Trophy
, with the players saying he had "single-handedly put Chester back on the football map". Despite his cup successes, Barrow was sacked in June 2001, a move largely unpopular with supporters.
He was manager of Bury
, from January 2004 after a spell as assistant-manager to Andy Preece
. However the club did not progress satisfactorily and as a result Barrow was dismissed in September 2005.
He returned to Chester
at the end of the season, becoming assistant to manager Mark Wright. They were sacked together on 29 April 2007.
He returned to working in football the following January
, when he continued his trend of going back to former clubs in north-west England by becoming assistant–manager to Graham Heathcote at Altrincham
.
Barrow is scheduled to have a testimonial at Chester in the near-future, as a reward for his long service to the club. This came after he rejected an approach to become assistant manager at Swansea City in February 2007.
In July 2009, Barrow returned to Wigan as first–team coach under new manager Roberto Martinez
.
Manager
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
who has since become a lower division manager
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
. He is currently part of the coaching staff at Premier League side Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
, where he has previously been both a player and manager.
Barrow the Player
Barrow first entered the Football LeagueThe Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
at the relatively late age of 27 in August 1981 when he signed for Wigan Athletic from Altrincham
Altrincham F.C.
Altrincham Football Club is an English association football club from Altrincham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Conference North, having been relegated from the Conference National at the end of the 2010–11 season.-History:...
for £10,000, having earlier played for Chorley
Chorley F.C.
Chorley Football Club are a football club from Chorley, Lancashire, England. They were founded as a rugby union club in 1875 but switched to football in 1883. They have reached the FA Cup second round twice in 1986–87 and 1990–91. Their best performance in the FA Trophy was in 1995–96 when they...
and Southport
Southport F.C.
Southport Football Club are an English football club, based in Southport, Merseyside. They are currently in the Conference National, and play their home matches at Haig Avenue, which has a capacity of 6,008...
. He became a vital part of manager Larry Lloyd's
Larry Lloyd
Laurence Valentine Lloyd was a footballer, a burly and tough central defender who won honours for both Bill Shankly's Liverpool and Brian Clough's all-conquering Nottingham Forest side of the late 1970s....
promotion winning side, playing as a hard man in midfield, and further endeared himself to Wigan fans by putting in a man of the match performance in the Freight Rover Trophy
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
final at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
in 1985 despite playing in the unfamiliar position of forward. He left the club for Chester City
Chester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
in 1986 for £6,000, after 212 appearances in all competitions for the Latics (179 games, 36 goals in the League).
Barrow had a difficult start at Chester, suffering five bookings in his first seven games, and in November 1986 he considered a move to Blackpool
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
. But he opted to stay with the Blues and went on to make 298 first team appearances over the next eight years, mainly as captain. He combined his playing role with an assistant manager position to Harry McNally
Harry McNally
Harry McNally was a football player, coach and manager, noted for his spells as manager of Wigan Athletic and Chester City.-The Non-League Background:...
from 1988–89
1988-89 in English football
The 1988–89 season was the 109th season of competitive football in England.-Hillsborough disaster:On 15 April, a crowd crush at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough killed 94 people and injured more than 300. A 95th Liverpool supporter died in hospital...
onwards. On the final day of the 1991–92 season
1991-92 in English football
- First Division :The last-ever league championship before the creation of the Premier League was won by Leeds United who overhauled Manchester United thanks to the efforts of, among others, Gordon Strachan, Lee Chapman, David Batty, Gary Speed and Gary McAllister...
, Barrow scored a late winner in Chester's final home game at Moss Rose
Moss Rose
Moss Rose is a multi-purpose stadium in Macclesfield, England. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Macclesfield Town F.C....
against Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient F.C.
Leyton Orient F.C. are an English professional football club in East London. They currently play in Football League One and are known to their fans as the O's.Leyton Orient have spent one season in the top flight of English football, in 1962–63...
to seal Division Three survival for the club.
Barrow the Manager
Barrow began his managerial career with Chester City in 1992 (as player–manager), after collecting seven points from four games in caretaker charge. Although the team was relegated to the Football League Third DivisionFootball League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
in 1993
1992-93 in English football
The 1992–1993 season was the 113th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:This season saw the birth of the FA Premier League. This meant a break-up of the 104-year-old Football League that had operated until then with four divisions....
, Barrow inspired the Blues to bounce back the next season and gain promotion, but he resigned in the summer of 1994 amid frustration at key players leaving and a lack of financial backing from the board. He retired from playing following his departure, with his final appearance being in Chester's win 3–2 win over Preston North End
Preston North End F.C.
Preston North End Football Club is an English professional football club located in the Deepdale area of the city of Preston, Lancashire, currently playing in the third tier of English league football, League One...
on 2 April 1994, just two months before his 40th birthday.
He returned to Wigan as manager early in 1994–95
1994-95 in English football
-Premiership:Blackburn Rovers ended their 81-year wait for the league title thanks to the strike partnership of Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton which scored a total of more than 50 league goals. Manchester United would have made it three league titles in a row if they had been able to turn a 1-1 draw...
and rescued the Latics from relegation to the Football Conference
Football Conference
The Football Conference is a football league in England which consists of three divisions called Conference National, Conference North, and Conference South. Some Football Conference clubs are fully professional, such as Luton Town, but most of them are semi-professional...
. He was in charge of Rochdale
Rochdale A.F.C.
Rochdale Association Football Club is an English professional football club based in Rochdale, Greater Manchester. They play their home matches at Spotland Stadium. Formed in 1907, they were accepted into the Football League in 1921...
from 1996 to 1999, although the club failed to gain any success and he left after a third successive bottom half placing. A spell as assistant–manager at Notts County
Notts County F.C.
Notts County Football Club are an English professional football club based in Nottingham. They are the oldest of all the clubs in the world that are now professional, having been formed in 1862. They currently play in League One of The Football League, the third tier of the English football system...
followed before returning to Chester as manager on 31 May 2000, shortly after their relegation to the Nationwide Conference
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
. Barrow was forced to work in difficult circumstances under American owner Terry Smith
Terry Smith (football)
Terry Smith is an American-born American Football player, sports coach and businessman. After starting his playing career as a defensive back for American Football franchise New England Patriots, Smith went on to coach the Great Britain Spartans American football team...
, who suspended Barrow's assistant Paul Beesley
Paul Beesley
Paul Beesley is an English former footballer.-Playing career:Beesley joined Wigan Athletic in 1984, staying for five years and making over 150 league appearances. He joined Leyton Orient for £175,000 on 20 October 1989...
from playing for failing to stand in the correct position at a set piece and banned Barrow from speaking to the press without his permission. Although Chester finished well out of the promotion race in eighth position, Barrow managed to guide Chester to an FA Cup third round tie with Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....
after eliminating Football League sides Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
and Oxford United
Oxford United F.C.
Oxford United Football Club is an English association football club based in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The club play in League Two, following promotion from the Conference National in May 2010. The club had been a non-League side since their relegation from the Football League in the 2005–06 season. The...
. He also led them to the FA Trophy
FA Trophy
The Football Association Challenge Trophy, commonly known as the FA Trophy, is a knockout cup competition in English football, run by and named after The Football Association and competed for primarily by semi-professional teams...
semi–finals and victory in the final of the Nationwide Variety Club Trophy
Conference League Cup
The Conference League Cup was an English football competition open to clubs playing in levels 5 or 6 of the English football league system , which covers the three Football Conference divisions.The Conference League Cup was formed...
, with the players saying he had "single-handedly put Chester back on the football map". Despite his cup successes, Barrow was sacked in June 2001, a move largely unpopular with supporters.
He was manager of Bury
Bury F.C.
Bury Football Club is an association football team based in Bury, Greater Manchester. The team currently play in League One. The club's nickname is The Shakers which was bestowed upon them by club chairman JT Ingham, an industrialist and ironmonger of the late 1890s.-Formation of the club and the...
, from January 2004 after a spell as assistant-manager to Andy Preece
Andy Preece
Andrew Preece is a part-time English footballer and manager. He is currently the player-manager at Northwich Victoria.-Career:...
. However the club did not progress satisfactorily and as a result Barrow was dismissed in September 2005.
He returned to Chester
Chester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
at the end of the season, becoming assistant to manager Mark Wright. They were sacked together on 29 April 2007.
He returned to working in football the following January
January 2008
January 2008 was the first month of that year. It began on a Tuesday and ended after 31 days on a Thursday.-International holidays:* January 1 – New Year's Day* January 1 – Independence Day * January 7 – Christmas...
, when he continued his trend of going back to former clubs in north-west England by becoming assistant–manager to Graham Heathcote at Altrincham
Altrincham F.C.
Altrincham Football Club is an English association football club from Altrincham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Conference North, having been relegated from the Conference National at the end of the 2010–11 season.-History:...
.
Barrow is scheduled to have a testimonial at Chester in the near-future, as a reward for his long service to the club. This came after he rejected an approach to become assistant manager at Swansea City in February 2007.
In July 2009, Barrow returned to Wigan as first–team coach under new manager Roberto Martinez
Roberto Martinez
Roberto Martinez is the name of:* Roberto Martínez Lacayo, President of Nicaragua* Roberto Martínez y Gutiérrez, Mexican bishop consecrated by Moisés CarmonaSports* Roberto Martínez , Honduran boxer...
.
Honours
Player- Football League Division Four (League Two) promotion as third-placed team, 1981–821981-82 in English footballThe 1981–82 season was the 102nd season of competitive football in England.It was also the first season that the Three points for a win system was introduced.- First Division :Three points for a win was introduced for the first time in England...
(Wigan Athletic). - Freight Rover Trophy (Johnstone's Paint Trophy) winners, 1984–851984-85 in English footballThe 1984–85 season was the 105th season of competitive football in England.-Bradford City disaster:56 spectators died and more than 200 were injured when a fire ripped through the Main Stand at Valley Parade during Bradford City's Third Division fixture with Lincoln City on 11 May...
(Wigan Athletic). - Alliance Premier League (Blue Square Premier) champions, 1979–801979-80 in English footballThe 1979–80 season was the 100th season of competitive football in England.- FA Cup :Second Division West Ham United, managed by John Lyall, won the FA Cup, beating Arsenal 1–0 with a Trevor Brooking goal...
& 1980–811980-81 in English footballThe 1980–81 season was the 101st season of competitive football in England.-Overview:The Football League introduced a three points for a win system in place of the two points for a win system which had operated since the league's formation in 1889...
(AltrinchamAltrincham F.C.Altrincham Football Club is an English association football club from Altrincham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Conference North, having been relegated from the Conference National at the end of the 2010–11 season.-History:...
).
Manager
- Football League Division Three (League Two) runners-up, 1993–941993-94 in English footballThe 1993-1994 season was the 114th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:From the start of this season, the FA Premier League would be sponsored by Carling Breweries - an association which would last for eight years...
(Chester CityChester City F.C.Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
– player/manager). - Nationwide Variety Club Trophy winners, 2000–012000-01 in English footballThe 2000–01 season was the 121st season of competitive football in England.-Overview:Manchester United secured their 3rd Premiership title in succession and their 7th title in just nine seasons...
(Chester CityChester City F.C.Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
).
External links
- League Managers Association profile
- Graham Barrow Altrincham career profile (see third player down)
- BBC feature on Barrow (2008)