New Zealand Football’s former head of high performance, Gareth Jennings, has been appointed to the board of English League Two club Grimsby Town.
The club says Jennings will act as an advisor “to bring a wealth of strategic football knowledge”.
In its statement announcing the appointment, Grimsby Town says:
“Gareth sits on the Technical Committee of the Association of Sporting Directors and is also the Technical Director of the UAE Pro League.
“As well as this, he has held various roles across the professional game, including Head of Technical Leadership at FIFA and General Manager of High Performance at New Zealand Football.
“Gareth is also the author of the FIFA Technical Directors handbook.”
Jennings spent nine months as New Zealand Football’s general manager of high performance, having taken up the role in September 2021. He had moved from the UK to New Zealand during the COVID pandemic.
READ MORE: NZ Football’s Gareth Jennings to leave high performance role after nine months >>>>
READ MORE: NZF’s new high performance manager has good insight into New Zealand’s challenges >>>>
Jennings’ arrival at Grimsby comes as the club announced a partnership with Twenty-First Group, a London-based sports intelligence company.
Twenty-First Group use data intelligence to help English Premier League clubs such as Brentford and Tottenham Hotspur to inform them to better understand the “value of commercial assets” and enable better decision-making.
Jennings thanked the club’s co-owners Jason Stockwood and Andrew Pettit and CEO Debbie Cook for giving him the opportunity.
“It was evident from our first conversation that they are ambitious but, more importantly, have a desire to do what’s right not just for Grimsby Town Football Club but also the wider community.
“Our aim is to develop a long-term strategy based on true values. This will include building a game model and supporting (manager) Paul (Hurst) and (assistant manager) Chris Doig to bring it to life both on and off the pitch with our leadership behaviours and work ethic.”
Pettit, Vice Chair of GTFC, said: “We are delighted to add Gareth’s extensive football experience into the board conversations. As we look to set the ambition for the next ten years, we feel his knowledge – alongside Twenty First Group and the existing management team – will help us make informed decisions about where we can progress as a club.”
Kiwi goalkeeper in discussions with Grimsby
Auckland-born goalkeeper Max Crocombe is out of contract at Grimsby Town but is in discussions with the club who have offered him a new deal.
The two-cap All White played every minute of Grimsby’s last season as the club’s starting goalkeeper, and was a key part of the side that reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.
READ MORE: Kiwi ‘keeper Max Crocombe to be out of contract soon at Grimsby Town >>>>
More football stories
