By John Baron
Farsley Celtic have added director of football Pav Singh to the current first team coaching set up as The Celts look to arrest an alarming slide which has seen them slump to 19th in the league – just five points above the relegation zone.
The short-term change will see Singh joining the current first team coaching set up in what the club describe as a ‘hands on role both in training and in the match-day dugout’.
The move comes as the Celts, who have spent much of the season in mid-table, recorded only one win from their last nine league games, and in the 15 games since their win against Gloucester on 23 December they’ve managed only three victories, scoring just 12 times.
In a lengthy statement on social media this evening, Farsley Celtic chairman Paul Barthorpe said: “We believe that with the strength and quality of squad we have we shouldn’t be anywhere near where we are in the league, and our form earlier in the season has shown this.
“I have therefore taken the decision to act early, while we still have a good number of games remaining (seven). We are still a fair distance from the relegation zone (five points) and while are still masters of our own destiny, to make some changes in the short-term managerial set up to ensure we pull further away from the relegation zone.”
On Singh’s appointment, Barthorpe said: “His perspective and experience will complement our existing coaching team, offering us another valuable lens.
“His energy, enthusiasm and passion for this club has never been in doubt, and in recent times his work with the ETS helping turn them into league contenders in the first season of existence demonstrates the type of individual Pav is and I believe that’s exactly what we need at the moment. His role in putting together the playing squad this season alongside the current management team, also gives him the knowledge and familiarity meaning he can walk straight into the culture and start work from day one.”
Barthorpe added: “When we appointed Clayton and his team we were confident that they were the right team for the job, and that opinion hasn’t changed! The only thing they don’t have is experience, so to put into that group an experienced footballing resource like Pav… is a no brainer.”
Barthorpe also confirmed today that Danny Ellis, 38, has also been brought out of retirement as a player as the club seeks to arrest its slide down the league table. Ellis is a member of head coach Clayton Donaldson’s coaching staff and a former Farsley Celtic defender.
“At the beginning of the season we also registered Danny Ellis as a player, as his on-field passion, aggression and leadership was something that made him the player he was!” the statement added.
“We knew one day we might need that bit of extra steel and passion. He will now be made available for selection, his steady experienced head with the Farsley passion and fight is something that we will need in these last few games, and to be honest if we are in the last five minutes of a game and need to shore things up at the back I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather bring on.
“As a fan of the club as well as the chairman, I will take whatever steps I need to take and be a pro-active as I can to be to make sure we get what we all want, and that’s a successful end to the season!”
The club was placed under a transfer embargo by the National League on 23 February, which has yet to be lifted.
Farsley slipped to a 3-0 defeat at Boston United yesterday, their third loss in a week.