Russ Wilcox

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Russ Wilcox
Russ Wilcox adjusting superbly to his new role as Manager- 2014-02-23 12-28.jpg
Wilcox as Scunthorpe United manager in 2014
Personal information
Full name Russell Wilcox [1]
Date of birth (1964-03-25) 25 March 1964 (age 59) [1]
Place of birth Hemsworth, England
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) [1]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
Gainsborough Trinity (manager)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1980–1981 Doncaster Rovers 1 (0)
1981–1982 Cambridge United 0 (0)
1982–1986 Frickley Athletic 129 (19)
1986–1990 Northampton Town 138 (9)
1990–1993 Hull City 100 (7)
1993–1995 Doncaster Rovers 81 (6)
1995–1997 Preston North End 62 (1)
1997–2003 Scunthorpe United 118 (4)
Total629(46)
International career
1986 England semi-pro 2 (1)
Managerial career
2004 Scunthorpe United (caretaker)
2013–2014 Scunthorpe United
2014–2015 York City
2020 Scunthorpe United
2022–2023 Farsley Celtic
2023– Gainsborough Trinity
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Russell Wilcox (born 25 March 1964) is an English former professional footballer and manager. He is currently manager of Gainsborough Trinity.

Contents

Wilcox played as a defender between 1980 and 2003 and spent the final six years of his career with Scunthorpe United which is where he began working under Brian Laws. Wilcox would act as Laws' assistant at Glanford Park from 2003 to 2006 before following him on to further jobs at Sheffield Wednesday and Burnley. The pair returned to Scunthorpe in 2012 and in November 2013 Wilcox succeeded Laws as manager of the club, taking Scunthorpe to promotion. A poor start to the following year's campaign saw Wilcox sacked from Scunthorpe and he was then recruited by York City. Another poor start to a season saw Wilcox sacked by York City in October 2015. Wilcox came back to Scunthorpe again as the caretaker manager until the end of the 2019–20 season following the dismissal of Paul Hurst.

Club career

Wilcox was born in Hemsworth, West Riding of Yorkshire. [1] He started his career with Doncaster Rovers as an apprentice, and made his first team debut aged 17 when starting the last match of their 1980–81 Fourth Division promotion winning season, a 1–1 away draw with Mansfield Town on 6 May 1981. [2] [3] His progress the following season was disrupted through injury, and he left for a brief spell with Cambridge United of the Second Division. [2] Wilcox dropped into non-League football to play for Alliance Premier League club Frickley Athletic during 1982–83. [4]

He returned to the professional game when he joined Fourth Division club Northampton Town for a £15,000 fee on 30 June 1986. [1] He later played for Hull City, Preston North End and Scunthorpe United. [5] He played the majority of his career at Scunthorpe, where he was signed by Brian Laws in 1997. [5] He eventually became player-assistant manager to Laws in 1999 after the win at Wembley Stadium in the play-off final against Leyton Orient. [5]

International career

Wilcox earned two caps and scored one goal for the England national semi-pro team, in matches against the Republic of Ireland and Wales in 1986. [6]

Coaching and managerial career

Wilcox as York City manager in 2015 Russ Wilcox 19-09-2015 1.jpg
Wilcox as York City manager in 2015

When Brian Laws was sacked in 2004, Wilcox took temporary control of the Glanford Park club for four games, until Laws was reinstated. [5] When Laws returned to the club, Wilcox reverted to his original role of assistant manager. [5] In 2006, Laws left Scunthorpe when he was appointed manager of Sheffield Wednesday, Wilcox shortly followed him to take up the assistant manager's role at Hillsborough Stadium. [7]

On 13 January 2010, he joined Premier League club Burnley as assistant manager, yet again moving to work under Brian Laws. [8] He left Burnley in December 2010. [9]

On 30 November 2011 at a fans forum, Wilcox was named as the new assistant manager of League One club AFC Bournemouth, working alongside manager Lee Bradbury. [10] On 30 October 2012 he and Laws returned to manage League One side Scunthorpe United replacing former manager Alan Knill who was sacked following a string of poor results and poor performances. [11] [12] This will be the third time he and Brian Laws have worked together at Scunthorpe.[ citation needed ] Laws was dismissed on 20 November 2013 with Wilcox taking over on a caretaker basis. [13] On 24 December 2013 Wilcox was confirmed as permanent manager of the club on a 12-month rolling contract. [14]

On 12 April 2014, Wilcox broke the record for the longest unbeaten run at the beginning of a managerial reign, with a draw against Bury being his 26th game in charge without defeat. [15] In total, Wilcox managed 28 consecutive games without defeat, with his first loss coming in the penultimate game of the season on 26 April 2014 away to Exeter City. Results elsewhere meant that Scunthorpe secured promotion on that day regardless. [16] Scunthorpe won just two of their first eleven matches back in League One, which resulted in Wilcox being sacked on 8 October 2014. [17]

A week after leaving Scunthorpe Wilcox was appointed as the new manager of League Two club York City on 15 October 2014, following the resignation of Nigel Worthington. [18] He was sacked on 26 October 2015, with York fourth-bottom of the table after a run of nine league matches without a win. [19]

After the departure of Paul Hurst in January 2020, Wilcox was appointed caretaker manager, and remained until the end of the season. [20] He was appointed manager of Farsley Celtic in February 2022. [21]

On 17 May 2023 Farsley Celtic reported that Wilcox had left his position as Manager with immediate effect. [22]

On 19 September 2023, Wilcox was appointed manager of Northern Premier League Premier Division club Gainsborough Trinity. [23]

Personal life

His son Joe Wilcox, born 1989, is a former professional footballer, [24] who was a trainee at Scunthorpe United before playing in non-League football. [25]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeague FA Cup League Cup OtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Doncaster Rovers 1980–81 [3] Fourth Division 10000010
Frickley Athletic 1982–83 [4] Alliance Premier League 170170
1983–84 [4] Alliance Premier League366366
1984–85 [4] Alliance Premier League361361
1985–86 [4] Alliance Premier League40124012
Total1291912919
Northampton Town 1986–87 [26] Fourth Division35130003 [lower-alpha 1] 0411
1987–88 [27] Third Division 46420402 [lower-alpha 1] 0544
1988–89 [28] Third Division111000000111
1989–90 [29] Third Division46350203 [lower-alpha 1] 1564
Total1389100608116210
Hull City 1990–91 [30] Second Division 31100201 [lower-alpha 2] 0341
1991–92 [31] Third Division40431302 [lower-alpha 1] 0485
1992–93 [32] Second Division29220003 [lower-alpha 3] 0342
Total10075150601168
Doncaster Rovers 1993–94 [33] Third Division402202100443
1994–95 [34] Third Division37410103 [lower-alpha 3] 0424
1995–96 [35] Third Division402161
Total816305230928
Preston North End 1995–96 [36] Third Division271111 [lower-alpha 3] 0292
1996–97 [37] Second Division35020401 [lower-alpha 3] 0420
Total621314020712
Scunthorpe United 1997–98 [38] Third Division31242303 [lower-alpha 3] 0414
1998–99 [39] Third Division28120203 [lower-alpha 4] 0351
1999–2000 [40] Second Division14000102 [lower-alpha 3] 0170
2000–01 [41] Third Division361502000431
2001–02 [42] Third Division90001000100
2002–03 [43] Third Division0000000000
Total118411290801466
Career total6294632429227171753

Managerial statistics

As of 13 January 2024
Managerial record by team and tenure
TeamFromToRecordRef.
PWDLWin %
Scunthorpe United (caretaker)25 March 200415 April 20044022000.0 [44] [45]
Scunthorpe United20 November 20138 October 201445181611040.0 [44]
York City 15 October 201426 October 201554132021024.1 [44]
Scunthorpe United (interim)29 January 202030 June 20207214028.6
Farsley Celtic 2 February 202217 May 202372202230027.8
Gainsborough Trinity 17 September 2023Present19739036.8
Total201606477029.9

Honours

As a player

Northampton Town

Preston North End

Scunthorpe United

Individual

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