Cardiff City have named Brian Barry-Murphy as their new head coach .

The 46-year-old leaves his coaching role at Leicester City to take charge at the Bluebirds following their relegation to League One.

Talks between the clubs concluded on Monday afternoon with the former Manchester City youth coach signing a three-year deal until the summer of 2028.

Current Manchester City academy coach Lee Riley has been named Barry-Murphy's assistant, having previously worked with him at Rochdale.

Owner Vincent Tan - who had the final say on the appointment - said Barry-Murphy was "the right man" to take the club forward.


Charlton Athletic's Nathan Jones and Wales captain Aaron Ramsey, who had taken temporary charge after Riza's departure, had been targeted by Cardiff during the process.

But Barry-Murphy emerged as the frontrunner for the role after advanced talks last week and will now be given the task of preparing the team for the club's first season back in the third tier since 2003.

He leaves his role at the King Power Stadium having joined Ruud van Nistelrooy's backroom in December, Cardiff paying compensation for his services.

Prior his time at Leicester, Barry-Murphy had been under-23s boss at the Etihad for three years, helping the development of the likes of Cole Palmer.

His work with young players appealed to the Cardiff hierarchy, who are keen to utilise several promising academy graduates as they look to return to the Championship.

A former midfielder with Preston North End and Sheffield Wednesday, Barry-Murphy is returning to a frontline managerial role for the first time since a two-year spell in charge at Rochdale, where he also won praise for the side's style of play and use of local talent.

In a statement, Tan said: "Throughout the interview process, Brian showed a huge passion for our club because he believes in what we're trying to do.

"He knows this level having played and managed at this standard before, where he was noted for his style of play.

"Since then, he has only gone from strength-to-strength as a leader.

"He's got a proven track record in youth development having coached some of the brightest young prospects in the UK, many of whom are now playing at the very top of the game.

"He brings enthusiasm, vibrancy and an exciting outlook on what today's football is, while looking to play an attacking style that our fans are sure to enjoy.

"It's a combination of all of Brian's great talents that make him the right man to take us forward into this next chapter."

National League side Gateshead have appointed Alun Armstrong as the club's new manager.

The 50-year-old replaces Carl Magnay who resigned earlier this month after a run of just five wins from the final 22 games of the season meant the Heed missed out on a play-off spot.

"I see it as a challenge, and it's something I'm really excited by," Gateshead-born Armstrong told the club website., external

"I want to bring some of the identity back to this club that I think it used to have."

Armstrong has previously had spells as manager of Blyth Spartans and Darlington.

During his playing career, striker Armstrong had notable spells at Stockport County and Ipswich Town, where he scored the winning goal against Inter Milan in the 2001-02 UEFA Cup.

National League club Halifax Town have appointed Adam Lakeland as the club's new manager.

Lakeland moves to The Shay after leaving his position at National League North side King's Lynn Town, where he guided the club to a play-off finish last season.

Last month, it was announced Chris Millington had stepped down as boss of the Shaymen after they were beaten by Oldham in the National League play-off semi-finals.

Lakeland started his managerial career as head coach of Blackburn Women before becoming first-team coach at Curzon Ashton, helping the club achieve back-to-back promotions to National League North.

After a stint as head coach of Northwich Victoria, Lakeland moved to Farsley Celtic and guided them to promotion to National League North in 2019.

In 2021, he returned to manage Curzon Ashton before moving to King's Lynn two years later.

Here's the predictions league   

Championship

1. Champions  1st place   

2. Automatic 2nd place   


3. 3rd position playoffs     
4. 4th position playoffs     
5. 5th position playoffs     
6. 6th position playoffs       


7. playoff winner     
8. playoff runner up     


9. Wednesdays final position     

10. 3rd from bottom relegation     
11. 2nd from bottom relegation     
12  bottom of the league relegation       




13. Premiership winners 
14. Premiership relegation   

15. Facup winners     
16.Facup quarter finalists no premiership teams allowed

17. League cup winners 
18. League cup quarter finalists no premiership teams allowed

19. Pub league winners     
New 20. Pub league Automatic promotion
21. Pub league relegation     

22. Pub league 2 winners     
New 23. Pub league automatic promotion :
24. Pub league 2 relegation     

25. National league winners     
26 National relegation       


All incorrect positions merit note that relegations are classed as without significance of position apart from our league the championship and winners of the leagues need correct positions to merit



closing date August 1st all results will be carried over to the BML and BMPL remember last season this made a big difference to the final table the last 2 seasons so choose with care.

Anyone who doesn't predict on time will automatically have 12pts deducted from the match thread table and predictions. void on this thread.

Use numbers only for the predictions it makes life easier thanks and no comments as charlie will have extra work cleaning it up you f@cking retards

Plymouth Argyle have appointed former Watford boss Tom Cleverley as their head coach.

The 35-year-old has signed a three-year contract and succeeds Miron Muslic, who left the club last month to take over at German side Schalke.

Cleverley joins an Argyle side returning to League One this season following relegation after two years in the Championship.

The former Manchester United and Everton midfielder spent the bulk of his playing career at Watford before succeeding Valerien Ismael as head coach in March 2024.

Cleverley was sacked by the Hornets in May, having missed out on the play-offs after a poor second half of the season as Watford faded badly to finish 14th.

His 14 months at the helm was the longest tenure of any boss at Vicarage Road since Javi Gracia's reign from January 2018 to September 2019.

In total, Cleverley was in charge for 60 games, winning 20, drawing 14 and losing 26.

"When we spoke to him he was completely aligned with the vision and ambitions of the club and it was clear throughout that Tom was the right fit for us.

"He is young, passionate and did a great job at Watford. We are thrilled to bring him to Argyle and look forward to seeing the impact he has on the talented squad at his disposal."

Talks are ongoing regarding who Cleverley will appoint to his backroom staff, with a number of coaches appointed by Muslic still listed on the Argyle website as being on the club's staff.

Cleverley could opt to link up again with Damon Lathrope, his assistant at Watford, who has also left the club and spent more than five years in two spells as a player at Plymouth's Devon neighbours Torquay United.



Argyle say they had a large number of applicants for the role, with the Pilgrims now on to their fifth permanent manager in less than two years.

Cleverley replaces Muslic, who was at the club for four months after succeeding Wayne Rooney in January.

The former England captain was only appointed in May last year following the short-lived tenure of Ian Foster, who had replaced Steven Schumacher in January 2024 when he left Home Park to take over at Stoke City.

"We were inundated with interest from prospective candidates, which shows how exciting this project is," chief executive Andrew Parkinson said.

"But throughout the process, it was clear Tom was the perfect person to take the club forward.

"He's been highly sought after, so we are really pleased we have been able to bring him to Argyle and look forward to seeing him build a squad and style of play that will see us challenging at the top end of League One this season."

Tom Cleverley joins a club intent on returning to the Championship at the first attempt after their relegation last season.

Having gambled on head coaches with little positive first-team experience in Ian Foster and Wayne Rooney, Argyle have gone for a man who was well-received during his time at Watford.

Despite being Argyle's fourth head coach since January 2024, he is arguably joining a more stable environment for a manager than at Watford - Steven Schumacher and Miron Muslic both left for other clubs while Foster and Rooney's poor records required their removal.

Cleverley's major concern will be recruitment and retention - Adam Randell and Ryan Hardie both have 12 months left on their deals, while the club has players such as Michael Baidoo and Rami Al Hajj who struggled to adapt to the English game last season.

He will have a decent budget for the level, with owner Simon Hallett saying it is bigger than the club had when they won League One in 2023.

But that means the pressure will be on to produce a promotion push - especially with there being no mammoth spenders like Birmingham City and Wrexham in the division this season.

Hartlepool United have appointed Simon Grayson as the National League club's new manager.

Grayson replaces Australian Anthony Limbrick, who was sacked on Thursday after four months in the role.

The 55-year-old's most recent job was with Lalitpur City in the Nepal Super League, where he won the title in April. He has managed seven clubs in England, including Leeds and Preston, as well as Bengaluru in the Indian Super League.

"The club has gone through some tough times recently but by working hard together as a staff and fanbase we can bring back the good times which this football club deserves," Grayson told the club's website, external.

Pools finished last season 11th, eight points outside the play-offs.

"I'm delighted that Simon has accepted the role," said club chairman Raj Singh.

"Simon is someone who has been on our radar for a while and he's been my preferred candidate in the past when we've looked for managers, but for one reason or the other it didn't come off."

After retiring from playing in 2006, Grayson has won promotion from League One to the Championship with Blackpool, Leeds, Huddersfield and Preston in his managerial career.

Hartlepool have sacked manager Anthony Limbrick after four months in charge.

Former The New Saints boss Limbrick took over from Lennie Lawrence in February and guided Pools to an 11th-placed finish in the National League.

Earlier this week it was reported that Pools had an approach for Boston boss Graham Coughlan turned down.

Hartlepool are up for sale after owner Raj Singh resigned as chairman in March.

"We'd like to thank Anthony for all his hard work and efforts during his time with the club and wish him all the very best for the future," Pools said in a statement., external

"All board members were consulted and it was decided a change was needed

As a part of our continual review of not only the playing squad but also the professional football management and coaching staff, the following structure and appointments are being put in place for the start of the 2025/26 season.

In addition to the existing coaching staff reporting to manager Paul Heckingbottom – Stuart McCall, Peter Murphy and Mike Pollitt – we are delighted to announce the appointment of Jason Euell as a First Team Coach. Jason joins us having played over 400 league games in his career, the majority of which came at the highest level of English football, as well as representing Jamaica and England U21s internationally.

Andy Liddell joins us as Fitness Coach to replace John Lucas who is taking up a similar role within the Australian A-League. John leaves us with our best wishes and thanks. Andy, who made more than 650 appearances as a player, has previously worked in fitness coaching roles with Ipswich Town, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Rapid Bucharest.

The club’s Head of Recruitment, James Wallace will appoint Tom Reeves to his staff from 23rd June 2025 as Chief Scout. Tom joins us having had extensive scouting experience most recently with Middlesbrough and Norwich City. Ben Smith, who was originally a Performance Analyst, completes James’ in-house team as a Recruitment Analyst. We will no longer be using MRKT Insights but thank their staff for their work over the last few years.

The performance analysis team under Charlie Ager welcomes Joe Walmsley, who arrives from Wigan Athletic. James McGown and Tom Hughes have left this team and depart with our best wishes for the future.

The physiotherapy and medical team remain unaltered under Matt Jackson and Dr Dominic Lakeland.

The 2025-26 Carabao Cup will include a preliminary round to accommodate the increased number of Premier League clubs with European commitments.

Nine top-flight sides are set to participate in European competitions next season, prompting the change to help reduce the number of clubs in the first two rounds.

The preliminary round will feature the two sides promoted from the National League and the two clubs who finished 21st and 22nd in League Two.

They will be separated regionally, as is customary with the competition's early rounds, meaning Accrington Stanley will face Oldham Athletic while Barnet take on Newport County.

The home sides for those ties will be drawn at the same time as the draw for round one, on 26 June at 16:30 BST.

All EFL clubs - other than the two eliminated in the preliminary round - will participate in round one of the competition.

The 11 Premier League sides not in Europe enter at the second-round stage while the nine sides to have qualified for Europe - Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Tottenham, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace - come in at round three.

Palace are waiting for their participation in the Europa League to be rubber-stamped by Uefa, as John Textor's Eagle Football group has a minority shareholding in Palace and a majority stake in French side Lyon, who have also qualified for next season's European competition.

Carabao Cup 2025-26 fixture dates
Preliminary round: week commencing 4 August 2025

Round one: week commencing 11 August 2025

Round two: week commencing 25 August 2025

Round three: split between week commencing 15 September and 22 September 2025 to accommodate clubs participating in Champions League and Europa League

Round four: week commencing 27 October 2025

Round five: week commencing 15 December 2025

Semi-final first leg: week commencing 12 January 2026

Semi-final second leg: week commencing 2 February 2026

Goalkeeper Nick Townsend has joined National League side Eastleigh following his departure from Newport County.

The Antigua and Barbuda international was offered a new deal by The Exiles, but decided to leave Rodney Parade after seven years and 209 appearances.

Townsend, who was voted Newport's Supporters Player of the Year for the last two seasons, was out of contract this summer.

The 30-year-old former Barnsley keeper joins an Eastleigh side that finished 13th in the National League last season.

"It's exciting for me and my family to have a fresh start down here," Townsend told the club's website.