Football Season Guide

Newport County will be looking up rather than down ahead of the 2016/17 season. The Exiles have endured a tough year or so following the departure of manager Justin Edinburgh in February 2015. He was replaced by assistant Jimmy Dack, who failed to keep them in the play-off shake-up and left last summer. He was soon followed by Chairman and owner Les Scadding, who resigned in June and left the club in financial peril. The Supporters Trust completed their takeover the following month but the appointment of former England international Terry Butcher was a spectacular failure. He allowed a whole host of players to leave the club, including striker Aaron O’Connor, whilst the few he wanted to stay also opted to leave, including full-back Ryan Jackson and midfielder Adam Chapman. They side lost seven of their opening ten league games and Butcher was sacked at the beginning of October. Former Plymouth Argyle John Sheridan took over the reigns and results improved immediately but then left in January to return to former club Oldham Athletic. His assistant Warren Feeney was placed in charge and he lost just one of his first seven league games to steer the side away from the relegation places. They suffered a dreadful end to the season however as they failed to win any of their last eleven matches and eventually finished in 22nd place in the League Two table. It has been another summer of wholesale changes and Feeney has been dealt significant blows with the departures of defender Andrew Hughes, midfielders Alex Rodman and Mark Byrne, winger Medy Elito and striker and leading goalscorer Scott Boden. He has replaced them with the likes of defenders Dan Butler and Scot Bennett, midfielder Joss Labadie, winger Jennison Myrie-Williams and striker Jon Parkin but it will take time for them to gel and a season of consolidation will do the Exiles no harm at all.