Next Forest Green Rovers Manager Odds: Six candidates to replace Duncan Ferguson

With Duncan Ferguson departing Forest Green Rovers at an unusual stage - just a month before the opening day - owner Dale Vince and Director of Football Allan Steele are on the hunt for another Head Coach.

Here are six candidates from the next Forest Green Rovers manager odds...

Brian Barry-Murphy

It may be that Brian Barry-Murphy doesn’t want to go back into senior management, after a chaotic experience at Rochdale in contrast with the lavish lifestyle coaching Manchester City’s Elite Development Squad affords him.

However, there’s only so much fulfillment that can really come from winning in front of an almost empty stadium, at a level of football that is exclusively about development, more so than making real memories.

As such, there’s a chance BBM might want to go back in, his reputation improved from his time nurturing the top talent in world football.

The Irish coach likes an extremely possession-heavy system, and has been known to favour a 3-1-4-1-1 at times, which he deployed in the second half of 2020-21, his final season at Rochdale.

If Barry-Murphy came to The New Lawn, his first step would be to build around Reece Brown, who could thrive as a deep-lying playmaker in his system with his patience in possession. 

Ian Foster

Forest Green went down the England youth route two years ago, when they appointed Rob Edwards as Head Coach, subsequently winning the League Two title.

The Green Devils may do so again, and Ian Foster could be keen for a shot as a number one, after his work with the Under-20s group of the Young Lions.

Foster assisted Steve Cooper as England’s Under-17s won the European Championships in 2017, then worked his way up as a Head Coach to the Under-19s, who themselves won the Euros in 2022 under his guidance.

Foster’s knowledge of the youth circuit is second to none, and Forest Green will feel they can maximize that in the loan market.

The 46-year-old is believed to favour 4-2-3-1, which with current personnel, would leave the Nailsworth outfit with a super attacking right flank, and a more conservative left.

David Artell

Having overseen five productive seasons at Crewe out of a possible six, including a promotion and a highest finish since 2006, David Artell is the cream of the crop in the out-of-work market.

Bringing a combination of successful experience, a track record of developing players worth millions, potential still to grow, and a wizened understanding of the operational non-negotiables, the 42-year-old has plenty to offer.

Although Artell dabbled with a back-three in his final season at Crewe, he’s broadly a 4-3-3 disciple and likes possession-based football with technical, intelligent full-backs and a brave #6 who will collect, turn, and ping.

The former Gibraltar defender likes his full-backs to invert themselves, subtly, while their corresponding wide forwards stay high and wide, tending to wait to get involved in the latter stages of moves.

Forest Green under Artell would likely be patient in their own half, draw the press at times, but then have the courage to play through the lines and release Little, who would act as a prompt for the wide forwards to attack inside.

Karl Robinson

Karl Robinson has been a 4-2-3-1 disciple for much of his career, although he deployed a 4-3-3 in the latter stages of his time at Oxford.

In the former strategy, the Liverpudlian likes his three behind the striker to operate very narrowly, and combine and interchange in front of the defence, with full-backs being the ones providing width.

After assisting Sam Allardyce at Leeds at the back-end of last season, the 42-year-old knows the top talents at Elland Road and might be able to land a gem or two in the loan market to enhance the quality of the squad, as well as having made other Premier League connections.

Plus, Robinson has a strong track record in the lower leagues, having led MK Dons to promotion from League One in 2014-15 and guided Oxford to successive Play-Off finishes, as well as a strong bid for the top six in 2021-22.

Jimmy Ball

Jimmy Ball is credited with steering Forest Green into the Play-Offs in 2020-21, at a time when things had threatened to implode for a second season running under Mark Cooper.

A Southern League Division One South winner last season with AFC Totton, the 48-year-old hasn’t had many opportunities in senior management but has excelled with the ones he’s had.

The Liverpudlian is fondly remembered from his previous stint at The New Lawn, and always carries himself with humility and class – the kind of person anyone would want representing their club.

Ball likes his teams to play good football but, based on his first caretaker stint at Forest Green, he likes the platform of a solid double-pivot, giving wing-backs and more creative players the freedom to shine.

Hannah Dingley

Hannah Dingley became the first woman to coach a professional senior men’s team on Wednesday night, leading out Forest Green in their friendly at Melksham.

Despite the national attention her role as caretaker will inevitably generate, Dingley has always come across as a humble person who will not want to stand on ceremony and will want to keep matters businesslike.

It’s difficult to ascertain Dingley’s formational preferences, though she was a coach at Gresley in the Northern Premier League Division One South in 2016-17, at a time when they played with inverted wing-backs under Damion Beckford-Quailey.

It’s also possible Dingley will favour academy graduates such as Harvey Bunker, Finley Bell and Jack Carter, having worked with them previously in the youth setup.

As such, the 39-year-old might be an appealing choice if Forest Green are keen to develop more homegrown talent as they look to rebuild in League Two.