Swindon Town FC is delighted to announce the appointment of Paul Jewell, as Director of Football.
Paul will bring a vast amount of experience to the setup at SN1 and will oversee recruitment for Richie Wellens, working closely with Chief Scout Ben Chorley. Paul will also assist Richie with general football operations.
Paul has spent 36 years in the professional game, as a player and then as a manager, with his playing career starting in 1982 at Liverpool, and ending at Bradford City in 1998.
The 54-year-old’s time as a player was spent almost solely at two clubs – Wigan Athletic and Bradford City – he went on to manage both clubs following his retirement as a professional.
At Wigan, Paul totted up a total of 35 goals in 137 league appearances before moving to Bradford in 1988, scoring 56 in 269 run-outs while at Valley Parade.
Paul started his coaching career before retiring as a player, joining Bradford’s coaching staff during the successful 95/96 campaign in which they won promotion from Division Two.
Two seasons later, Paul took the top job at Valley Parade and returned the club to the top flight in his first full season in charge, after an absence of 77 years.
After keeping up Bradford up, Paul moved onto Sheffield Wednesday before heading to Wigan Athletic – arguably his most successful spell in management.
In his second season in charge at Wigan, the 02/03 campaign, Paul won promotion as champions of the 2nd Division – entering the top half of league football for the first time in the club’s history.
In their first season in the Championship, Wigan were pipped to a play-off place on the final day but were not made to wait for the Premiership for too long and a season later Paul took his side to the country’s top division for the first time ever.
However, the achievements didn’t stop there and one year on Paul was in the League Cup Final with Wigan, a phenomenal achievement despite their eventual loss to Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United.
Wigan stayed up that year and the next with Paul resigning ‘for health reasons’ a day after the completion of the 06/07 season.
After his stint at the then-JJB Stadium, Paul spent time at Derby County in the Premier League, Ipswich Town as Manager and Oldham Athletic assisting Richie Wellens as Assistant Manager.
On his appointment, Paul Jewell said:
“When Richie called me about the job he basically asked: would I help him? And I said I would in any way I can. The job is full of pressure and I just said, if I could take some of the pressure off him with agents, watching games or in any way I can then I would.
“You’d have to ask Richie whether it’ll be a help to him, the fact that he asked me to come in it makes you feel good about yourself.
“It’s an opportunity that is coincidental because I played with the Chairman and have seen him from time to time after playing together at Bradford a long time ago, so hopefully, I can help, Lee, Richie and the club improve. That’s what I’m hoping to do.”
Richie Wellens welcomed the addition to the club:
“I think one of the main strengths Paul can bring is the analysis in the recruitment of players. One of the most draining things you can have as a manager is working with agents, having players thrown at you all the time.
“It allows me to concentrate on the players we’ve got. I can spend more time with them on the training ground, and then speak with Paul regarding players that could come in and narrow it down to the good ones. We want to try and get them in rather than the mass quantity that get thrown at you.
“He brings his expertise but also his contacts in the game – when Paul Jewell rings you up from another club, he’s a recognisable name. He’s not just got an eye for a player but he’s been there and done it at every level which was a draw for me to ask him to come on board and help here at Swindon Town. At this stage in his life, I think it suits him that he can be involved in the game but also try and get his golf handicap down - which he wouldn't be able to do if he was on the training ground every day.
"He’s a good guy and I enjoy working with him, we only had a short time together at Oldham because of circumstances there. This time round, we can work together to bring the club forward.”
