Former Yeovil Town defender Roy O’Brien has been named the Under-19s manager for the upcoming season.
Part of the Glovers’ side who won the FA Trophy in 2002, the National League title a year later and the League Two success in 2005, O’Brien is well known and well thought of at Huish Park and steps into the role ahead of the 2025/26 season.
The Under-19s finished third in Group E of the National League Under 19s Alliance League last season, two places but 16 points behind league winners Dorchester Town.
The appointment follows the announcement of an “elite football and education pathway” between the club and Yeovil College. In simple terms that is an academy for 16-18 year olds which means that players will study a Level 3 BTEC in Sport Coaching & Development (the equivalent of A Levels) at Yeovil College and train several times a week with coaches from the college and the club at Huish Park. Those players will also represent the clubs Under-19s in the Alliance Under-19s league and potentially the FA Youth Cup.
Announcing the partnership, Bhavna Vohra, director and co-owner, said: “Giving young people a real route into careers through sport has been a passion of ours from the start, and in Yeovil College we have found a partner who shares that vision completely. Their team has been outstanding to work with, and together, as two of the town’s cornerstone organisations, we are building a genuinely professional environment where the next generation can thrive. What we are creating goes well beyond playing football. It is about preparing young people for real careers right across the sport, whether they want to step onto the pitch, coach, analyse or manage. This is something we care deeply about, and we believe Yeovil’s young people deserve nothing less.”
The appointment of O’Brien as Under-19s manager makes sense in light of the partnership. The 51-year-old was appointed the college’s Head of Performance Football in late 2024 and this week’s statement said he would be joined by Lewis Winter, a former Yeovil Town Community Sports Trust coach who now works for the college.
Quite what this means for the position of Jamie Phillip, who coached the Under-19s last season, is less clear. He is still listed as the only member of ‘Senior Management’ in his Chief Executive Officer role on the website of Community Sports Trust, which appeared surprised by the announcement of the new partnership with the College on Tuesday. The Trust posted on its social media channels: “We are disappointed to find out from social media about a new partnership between the football club and the college..” before going on to discuss its own Elite Performance Programme.
Cue a post on the YTFC Academy social media pointing to the application form for the course it is offering with the college which read: “This course is the club’s own and only club endorsed pathway giving participants the chance to represent Yeovil Town FC U19s.” Go figure as to what that all means – except that the academy set up now appears to be a club-college initiative.
Roy was a Gloverspast Episode guest in August, 2023 You can CLICK HERE and listen to the episode.
Welcome back Roy! Very underrated during his playing days, always put in a great shift.