Former Pompey signing Mike Williamson has been appointed the new head coach of League Two side Carlisle United. Pompey’s 2023/24 rivals sacked Paul Simpson last month and the club currently sit 22nd in the EFL fourth-tier.
Now, however, they have brought in Williamson from MK Dons with Carlisle having met a release clause in the 40-year-old’s contract with the Buckinghamshire club. With Williamson at the helm, the next task on the club’s agenda for owner Tom Piatak will be to recruit the club’s first sporting director.
The ex-Blues figure moves back to the north after spent six years as a player at Newcastle United and a further five as player and manager of National League side Gateshead. He headed to Stadium MK in October 2023 and would go on to pick up ten wins from his first 15 matches, winning the League Two manager of the month award for December 2023.
Williamson now embarks on his next managerial adventure as he takes on a side with just one win from their first six League matches and his first game in charge is set to be against Swindon Town on Saturday 21 September.
For Pompey fans, however, the name represents a very different time in Fratton Park’s history. Williamson was signed by Paul Hart from Watford for £3m in September 2009. However, he would not make a single appearance for the Blues and was sold to Newcastle just five months later.
He had nine outings under Hart but was an unused substitute in all. After Hart’s dismissal and Avram Grant’s arrival in November 2009 the defender may have thought his luck would change but it was not to be with the Blues opting to chose the likes of Marc Wilson, Younes Kaboul, Tal Ben Haim and Aaron Mokoena in central defence.
After Williamson’s move to St James’ Park where he made 170 appearances for the Magpies and was named as Player of the Year in 2013/14 campaign, he turned out for Wolves and Oxford United before heading to Gateshead.
On his most recent appointment, the former defender spoke to Carlisle’s club website detailing his hope of bringing ‘excitement’ to the side.
“We’ve got a certain way we want to play but mainly we want to bring intensity and excitement,” Williamson said.
“We want to attack the backline at every opportunity and we want to connect that with the fans. We want the fans to get behind us and create that real unity because when this place is rocking, it is a force. The club is incredibly well supported, it’s a passionate club, a historic club. I spoke to the owners and could see the passion and values they embodied. It felt right.”
Discussion about this post