After suffering a crushing loss to Gateshead, Woking, a struggling team in the National League, decided to fire manager Michael Doyle. But who might be the next to go?
With just one league victory since September 10th, Woking has dropped to 19th place in the National League, one point above the relegation zone as the division nears the halfway point.
Following Woking’s 4-0 loss against Gateshead yesterday, Michael Doyle’s tenure as manager came to an end, and the team also fired assistant manager Ben Turner.
It remains to be seen whether the club want to find a new manager immediately or whether they are willing to bide their time slightly and make sure the appointment itself is correct.
Having said that, Woking may want to take a look at these four possible replacements.
Neal Ardley
One manager that remains out of work and has plenty of National League experience is former Solihull Moors, York City and Notts County manager Neal Ardley.
The 52-year-old confirmed back in October that he was ready to return to management but is yet to be handed an opportunity and has remained out of work since February 2024.
Ardley typically uses a 4-2-3-1 system, which is a system that Woking have been using over the last few weeks – meaning there won’t be a delay in tactics should Woking opt to pursue the former York man.
He led Solihull Moors to the National League play-off final before they were defeated by a slim margin in extra time, but may Woking sign him next?
Angelo Harrop
Following a similar ‘managers out of work’ idea, Angelo Harrop is the next name on our list following his most-recent exit from fellow National League side Braintree Town.
During his time with the club, Harrop established Braintree as a difficult side to break down and guided the club to promotion back to the National League last season as well as seeing them start the campaign strongly.
The 36-year-old established a PPG (points per game) of 1.56 over his 30 months with the football club and is also known for playing a 4-2-3-1 system, which once again suits the style that Woking play.
Similarly, Harrop has only recently found himself out of work and could be tempted to return to the dugout quicker than originally anticipated.
Spencer Day
Potentially a ‘bold call’ but Farnborough manager Spencer Day has experienced an excellent time in charge of the National League South side as they sit in the play-off places.
The 53-year-old had won back-to-back matches recently before being beaten by league leaders Torquay United at the weekend and has established the club as a play-off chasing side.
Similar to the previous two managers, Day also uses a 4-2-3-1 system which benefits Woking once again.
However, unlike the other two – Day is under contract with Farnborough, meaning Woking would need to pay a fee to prize him away from the National League South side.
Scott Bartlett
Following the previous entry, the final option on the list is another high-flying National League South manager in the form of Scott Bartlett who’s currently in charge of Weston Super-Mare.
The club have lost just twice in their last eight matches in the National League South and find themselves third having tasted defeat just four times thus far.
Just like the other examples in this article, Bartlett also uses a 4-2-3-1 system, and has built a strong squad with the likes of Sam Pearson and Reuben Reid at their disposal.
Again, Bartlett is in work so would cost a fee to persuade him to join Woking but he’s built an excellent squad in the sixth-tier this season and has done enough to justify an increased job role.
