Aldershot Town Football Club have extended Chris Barker’s tenure as Caretaker Manager until the end of the 2014-15 season.
The 35 year-old, who has guided The Shots to a run of six games without defeat after being appointed on 21 January, will continue to be assisted by Matt Gray for the final eight matches of the Vanarama Conference season.
The Club will then review the position before appointing a permanent manager for 2015-16.
“I’m very happy and it’s a very proud moment,” said Barker. “It’s probably one of the biggest achievements of my career. I’m delighted that the Board of Directors have given me their backing and hopefully I can now finish the job. I want to continue this unbeaten run and finish the season well because we still need to pick up points. We’ve got eight games to go and I want to get as many points as I can.
“Some of the boys have been given a new lease of life, we’re scoring more goals and we’re looking tight at the back. I can probably take a bit of credit for that, but it’s really down to the boys on the field. I’m still one of the boys in the dressing room but I also have a job to do, and decisions to make. The players have appreciated that and I’m very grateful to them.”
“We’re absolutely delighted with Chris’s performance to date and that he is able to continue in this role until the end of the season,” explained Director Andy Muckett, who admitted that Barker’s success to date has given the Board plenty of food for thought for the future. “If Chris hadn’t done very well it would have been a lot easier to make decisions about where we go next season, but for the moment those decisions have yet to be made.
“As a Board of Directors, we need to be absolutely sure that we do the right thing for the Club. We need entertaining football or the fans will vote with their feet – we, as Directors, are merely custodians of the Club and we must ensure that we provide sustainable, exciting football for the whole community to enjoy.
“We have spent a lot of time looking for the right person, and we will continue that search, but at the moment we are very happy with the way that Chris is managing the team and the results he has delivered.”
