Michael Flynn leaves Newport County as interim manager is named

It’s sadly the end of an era at Rodney Parade after long-serving manager Michael Flynn left his post after four-and-a-half-years in charge.

Flynn’s final match at the helm of Newport County was expected to be Saturday's clash at home to Scunthorpe, but the club have revealed that he's now left on Friday with immediate effect, on "amicable terms".

Flynn’s assistant Wayne Hatswell has been placed in interim charge and will reportedly take over for the rest of the season. The 46-year-old former Newport defender previously led Stamford to promotion to the Northern Premier League Premier Division, before joining Newport as a coach in 2013 through to 2015. He later took up a post as youth team manager at Gillingham, but returned to Newport in 2017 as assistant to Flynn.

After losing out in the League Two play-offs for the second time last season, Flynn admitted that he needed to consider his future as all had not been plain sailing: “A lot of things have gone on this season that I have not been happy with, I've kept them quiet, and we will be sitting down and having a conversation.”

But with a year left on his contract Flynn started the new season in the Newport dugout. They began brightly with three wins out of four in all competitions, however they’ve since lost four of their eight matches including an 8-0 defeat at home to Southampton in the cup.

Appointed caretaker manager in March 2017, Flynn somehow conjured up a miraculous survival after making up an 11 point deficit in just 12 games, which included seven wins. 

He was then handed the permanent post ahead of the 2017/18 season and has since propelled Newport to two play-off finals, heartbreakingly losing both.

Flynn’s side have become famed for their exploits in cup competitions: in his first full season Flynn took Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham to an FA Cup fourth round replay at Wembley, then the following season Newport reached the fifth round where they lost to Man City, after knocking out Leicester and Middlesbrough.

In 2019/20 Newport reached the quarter-finals of the EFL Trophy, and last term they took Newcastle to penalties in the fourth routh of the League Cup, having beaten Swansea and Watford.

Newport can be backed at 4/5 beat Scunthorpe this weekend, while they are priced at 6/1 to win promotion this season, and out at 40/1 to lift the League Two title.