Former Stockport County player Damien Allen will take over from Alan Lord to lead the Stockport County Academy.
Damien made 57 appearances for County before playing for Morecambe, Bangor and Aberystwyth. A UEFA A licensed coach with a Masters in Sports Directorship, he has recently led the coaching team at Box Football in Stockport, training and developing emerging talent.
Michael Raynes will join Damien in the management team after recently retiring from a long and successful playing career to transition into coaching. Michael made 153 appearances for County before going on to play for a number of League clubs including Oxford United, Crewe Alexandra and Carlisle United before finishing his playing career with Hartlepool United. Michael currently holds a UEFA B licence, along with a degree in Sport Science.
Alan Lord, who has led the academy since 2015, will move to a newly created role as 1st Team Scouting Consultant, supporting the club with the identification and transition of talented young players into the 1st team squad, leveraging his years of spotting talent to advise on player recruitment.
Simon Wilson, Director of Football, said:
“Young players are a crucial element to the Club’s future success and sustainability. As a club we have a heritage of nurturing talent, which Alan has been integral in and both Damien and Michael have lived through.
“Moving forward, we want to both safeguard and improve on this by investing in infrastructure, access to coaching and development opportunities, to create one of the most dynamic pathways for young talent in the country. Alan, Damien and Michael are not only outstanding professionals but also outstanding people and together with our growing team, will play a huge part in our exciting vision. ”
