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27
Jul
‘A third promotion is a massive ambition’: Simon Weaver on his future at Harrogate Town
This is the second in a two-part feature interview with Simon Weaver, Harrogate Town manager. In this article, he speaks about his future at Harrogate and the forthcoming season.
Simon Weaver’s trajectory as Harrogate Town manager is remarkable.
His first season saw Town saved from relegation due to the financial demise of Northwich Victoria, who were demoted in their place.
Weaver describes a campaign which was “all over the place”, with players coming and going, a tight budget and the club struggling to put wins together.
He said the reprieve which kept Town in the division was “a bit of a sliding doors event”.
I was on holiday and Mr Fotherby rang up and said ‘we’ve got a reprieve’. I guess even though money was so tight, at least the club didn’t spend beyond their means and it kept us in the division.
Fast-forward seven years and the club were celebrating promotion to the National League after defeating Brackley Town 3-0 at Wetherby Road.
Some 3,000 fans packed into Wetherby Road to witness the historic event.
Weaver credits much of the club's success in those days to the laying of a 3G pitch, which came shortly after his father, Irving Weaver, took over the club in 2011.
The move helped them to progress, he says, and meant the club was not held back by postponements or issues with the pitch.
Weaver's biggest achievement came in 2020 when he took Harrogate Town into the English Football League for the first time in the club’s 101 year history.
A 3-1 win over Notts County at Wembley in the National League play-off final on a hot August day in the midst of the covid pandemic secured League Two status.
However, it was bittersweet for Town supporters as the game was played behind closed doors due to coronavirus restrictions.
Simon Weaver and Irving Weaver, chairman of Harrogate Town, at Wembley after the play-off final win in 2020. Picture: Harrogate Town.
These days, Weaver is preparing for a fifth season in the EFL.
Far from going to buy new footballs himself, as he did in his first days as manager, he is now surrounded by a team of coaches and armed with a head of recruitment, Lloyd Kerry, who is tasked with helping him build a side fit for League Two.
Pre-season was spent in Rothwell in Leeds, though Irving Weaver has previously said a dedicated training facility is “top of the agenda” for the future.
The past few years has seen the club try to grow through stadium redevelopment, such as a new away stand, refreshment kiosks and corporate facilities.
This year’s pre-season schedule has seen the likes of Leeds United and Sheffield United come to play at Wetherby Road, which Weaver said was an attempt to bring a higher calibre of football to the town as well as a physical challenge for the players.
‘Less gung-ho’
Harrogate have had an impressive four seasons in League Two. Last season was the club's highest finish in its history with a record points total of 63.
Weaver says there was a “leap in standard” going into the EFL and that Town have had to tweak their style of play in recent years.
Town are less “gung-ho” now, he says, and look after the ball better.
We just had to tweak it a little bit and make sure we sure we had more control of the ball.
I think we keep the ball now for longer periods and better.
This pre-season has focussed on how the players can build on controlling the game.
Sessions have focussed on moving the ball through the lines of defence quicker. Weaver wants more goals from his side in order to move up the table.
We want to score more goals. We’re about 11 or 12 short of where we need to be to be up there in a higher position for all the good football that we play.
‘One more promotion’
Building on a record season would be some achievement for Weaver and his staff.
Three recruits in Stephen Duke-McKenna, Zico Asare and Ellis Taylor have arrived so far to help propel that push up the league.
Weaver says the aim of the season is to improve upon last year’s record campaign. He has spoken to his players about what it would take to get to the higher end of the league, including in the play-offs.
One of the aims of the 2024/25 season is to improve the club’s home record.
We aim as high as possible to start with. If we fall just short, we might get in the play offs and just short of that we would be aiming higher than last season.
Last season was a good achievement because the away record was superb. If we improve the home record, then we should be sat as a well established football league club aiming towards the higher end of the league.
When asked whether he feels the club has a ceiling in terms of ambition, Weaver said:
I hope not. I think realistically we have to try and get a full crowd every week and every time we play at home. We have to be good enough for that to get people in.
As for his ambitions over the next five to 10 years, Weaver wants at least one more promotion.
I haven’t aimed for the next five years. But in terms of the next few, it’s to really stretch myself and those around me in order to get that one more promotion.
That is a massive ambition of mine to get a third promotion with the club.
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