| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Widdrington[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1971-10-01)1 October 1971 (age 54)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Newcastle upon Tyne, England[2] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Eastbourne Borough (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Wallsend Boys Club | |||
| 1987–1990 | Southampton | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1990–1996 | Southampton | 75 | (3) |
| 1991 | →Wigan Athletic (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 1996–1999 | Grimsby Town | 89 | (8) |
| 1999 | →Port Vale (loan) | 9 | (1) |
| 1999–2001 | Port Vale | 73 | (7) |
| 2001–2003 | Hartlepool United | 56 | (5) |
| 2003–2005 | Macclesfield Town | 58 | (0) |
| 2005 | Port Vale | 6 | (0) |
| 2005–2010 | Salisbury City | 46 | (2) |
| Total | 418 | (26) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2009–2010 | Salisbury City | ||
| 2011–2012 | Hemel Hempstead Town | ||
| 2012–2017 | Eastbourne Borough | ||
| 2020 | Bristol Rovers (caretaker) | ||
| 2021 | Bristol Rovers (caretaker) | ||
| 2021–2023 | King's Lynn Town | ||
| 2023–2025 | Aldershot Town | ||
| 2025– | Eastbourne Borough | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Thomas Widdrington (born 1 October 1971) is an English formerfootball player andmanager who is manager ofNational League South clubEastbourne Borough.
As amidfielder, Widdrington made 372 appearances in theEnglish Football League in a 15-year career before spending five years innon-League football. His career began atSouthampton in 1990, where he spent the first six years of his career, most of which were in thePremier League. In 1996, he moved toGrimsby Town, helping the "Mariners" to theFootball League Trophy andpromotion out of theSecond Division in1998. The next year, he moved on toPort Vale for two years. Voted the club'sPlayer of the Year in 2000, hecaptained the "Valiants" to the League Trophy in2001. Later in the year, he wastransferred toHartlepool United, helping the club to win promotion out ofLeague Two in 2002–03 before he moved on toMacclesfield Town. In 2005, his career in the Football League ended in Port Vale. He then spent 2005 to 2010 at non-LeagueSalisbury City. He enjoyed promotion four times with three clubs and lifted the Football League Trophy twice as a player.
Player-manager atSalisbury City for the 2009–10 season, he returned to the Football League atSouthend United as assistant manager but left the position in December 2010. He was appointedHemel Hempstead Town manager in October 2011 before he was put in charge atEastbourne Borough in February 2012. He left Eastbourne Borough in April 2017 and went on to work as head of recruitment atCoventry City andBristol Rovers before becomingcaretaker manager of the latter in November 2020. He returned to full-time management atKing's Lynn Town in December 2021 and took charge of Aldershot Town in April 2023. He led the club to theFA Trophy title in 2025. He left Aldershot in October and returned to take charge at Eastbourne Borough.
Born inNewcastle upon Tyne, Widdrington started his career as aSouthampton schoolboytrainee at the age of 15, having beenscouted by the man who broughtAlan Shearer to the club,Jack Hixon.[2][4] ManagerLawrie McMenemy had a Centre of Excellence atGateshead Stadium, despite the long distance between Southampton andNorth East England.[5] He signed a professionalcontract with theFirst Division club in May 1990. He enjoyed a shortloan spell atThird Division clubWigan Athletic at the start of the1991–92 season.Ian Branfoot handed him his "Saints" debut atEverton on 1 March 1992, though it was under his successor,Alan Ball, that Widdrington enjoyed regular football.[2][5]
A tough, no-nonsense midfield player, he survived some frantic managerial changes to carve out a respectablePremier League career over four years for Southampton. He did not become a regular player until the1994–95 season when he made 28 league appearances without scoring as the "Saints" finished tenth in the league. He made a further 21 appearances in the1995–96 season, scoring twice, as the "Saints" narrowly avoidedrelegation, but still reached the quarter finals of theFA Cup.[6]
He was not far short of making 100 appearances in total when, in July 1996,Grimsby Town came in with a club record offer of £300,000 – as "Saints" had yet another newmanager inGraeme Souness.[7] Widdrington decided to accept their terms and headed toBlundell Park, turning down rival approaches fromCharlton Athletic andSwindon Town as he was convinced by managerBrian Laws's sales pitch.[5]
Grimsby were a strugglingFirst Division side and Widdrington found a lot of disharmony in the dressing room, with Laws quickly departing.[5] Widdrington fell out with Laws replacement,Alan Buckley, though he still enjoyed his time at the club.[5] Grimsby suffered relegation at the end of the1996–97 campaign, although Widdrington did score a memorable goal pastSouthend United on the last day of the season. They enjoyed an immediate return in1997–98 after winningthe play-off final againstNorthampton Town 1–0. However, injury meant that he missed out on theFootball League Trophy finalvictory overAFC Bournemouth atWembley. Widdrington played his last game for the "Mariners" towards the end of the1998–99 season when he was loaned out toPort Vale for the final three months of the season.
At the end of the1998–99 season Port Vale signed Widdrington (now out of contract, andtransfer–listed) on afree transfer. He wassent off againstBury on the final day of the 1998–99 season, and he returned to action as the new clubcaptain in1999–2000 by getting sent off in the opening minute of a 4–2 defeat atBirmingham City after a dangerous tackle onPaul Furlong.[5] Supporters voted himPlayer of the Year for the1999–2000 season, as the "Valiants" suffered relegation into theSecond Division.[5]
ManagerBrian Horton appointed Widdrington asclub-captain for the2000–01 season. He played every game of the club's League Trophyrun,[8] but played no part inthe final. He made over 80 appearances atVale Park before being released at the end of the 2000–01 season.
Linked withColchester United,[9] Widdrington instead movednorth to join up withHartlepool United.[10] He was a regular for the club and earnedpromotion to theSecond Division with the club in the2002–03 season, before he was released upon its conclusion.[11]
In July 2003 he was targeted byOxford United.[12] Instead Widdrington made his next port of call atMacclesfield Town, managed by former bossBrian Horton.[13] He settled in quickly and became an indispensable player for theThird Division strugglers, acting as their captain for the2004–05 season.[14] In January 2005, Horton put him on the transfer list,[15] and Widdrington then decided to call it a day at Macclesfield and in a twist, joined former club Port Vale on a non-contract basis.[16]
Widdrington was amidfielder, but could also fill in at full-back.[7] He was tough and combative.[2]
Widdrington joinedSalisbury City in February 2005.[17] His capture from Port Vale was an integral part of the club's development under managerNick Holmes, helping the club to the highest point in its history. Over time his role became that of acoach, rather than a player.
On 8 September 2007, Widdrington was involved in atouchline incident withRushden & Diamonds bossGarry Hill.[18] The pair began arguing and Hillheadbutted Widdrington,breaking his nose.[19] Both men received fines from their clubs and Hill was also given a ten match touchline ban and a fine of £1,500.[20][21] Later that year Widdrington was suspended by the club pending an 'internal disciplinary inquiry', but was soon allowed to return to work, with a statement being released saying: "No charges have been brought against Tommy and everyone at the club looks forward to working with him towards continued success."[22] The following year Rushden banned him fromNene Park in the return fixture, despite no authorisation fromThe Football Association for the action.[23]
He took over as manager in July 2009 after Nick Holmes took the role of general manager.[24] He won theConference National Manager of the Month award in April 2010.[25] However, he left the club after they were expelled from the Conference National due to them enteringadministration.
In July 2010, Widdrington was named assistant to newSouthend United managerPaul Sturrock.[26] His employment was terminated on 15 December 2010 as Sturrock needed "a fresh impetus".[27] The club promoted from within by appointingGraham Coughlan as his replacement.
In October 2011, Widdrington was appointed as manager of strugglingSouthern League sideHemel Hempstead Town.[28] His stay was short, as he found employment at a club in a higher league mid-way throughthe season.
In February 2012, Widdrington was appointed as manager ofEastbourne Borough, taking over from long-serving managerGarry Wilson, with the remit of keeping the club in theConference South.[29] He signed bothRonnie Bull andStuart Anderson from Salisbury, and bothMarvin Hamilton andEllis Remy from Hemel Hampstead, also bringing in goalkeeperMitch Walker on loan fromBrighton & Hove Albion.[30] They ended the2011–12 season two places and two points above the drop zone, and went on to finish safely in 12th spot in2012–13. After an unbeaten start to the2013–14 season, Widdrington was named as the Conference South Manager of the Month for August.[31] The "Sports" ended the 2013–14 campaign in tenth place.
After guiding Borough to top of the table with four wins and two draws at the start of the2014–15 season he was named as Conference South Manager of the Month for the second-successive August.[32] They ended the campaign in 11th place and then finished 17th in2015–16. They won theSussex Senior Challenge Cup in 2016 after beatingWorthing 1–0 in the final atFalmer Stadium.[33] He left the club by mutual consent on 7 April 2017, leaving Borough 11th in the National League South table, 20 points clear of relegation and 18 adrift of the play-off places.[34]
Widdrington was appointed head of recruitment atCoventry City on 10 April 2017.[35] On 1 May 2018, he left Coventry City and took up a similar position atBristol Rovers.[36][37] His son, Theo, was signed up two months later.[38] With the aim of recruiting players on a low wage to try and sell on for a profit, he also brought in:Jonson Clarke-Harris,Abu Ogogo,Anssi Jaakkola,Josh Hare,Tom Davies,Mark Little andLuke Leahy.[39] Widdrington became the club'scaretaker manager following the sacking ofBen Garner on 14 November 2020, with Rovers sitting 18th in League One.[40] He oversaw a 4–3 victory overChelsea U21 in theEFL Trophy on 18 November, beforePaul Tisdale was appointed as permanent manager the following day.[41]
On 10 February 2021, Widdrington was once again installed as caretaker manager following the dismissal of Paul Tisdale.[42] He was in this position untilJoey Barton was appointed as manager 11 days later, having overseen a 3–1 victory overPortsmouth and a 2–0 defeat toGillingham.[43][44][45] Following the club's relegation toLeague Two at the end of the2020–21 season, the Director of Football role was removed from the club's board with Widdrington now taking on the role of Director in charge of outgoing loan deals and "ensuring the strategic vision is followed at all levels throughout the club".[46] As the club moved into the new season, managerJoey Barton and Widdrington had a strained relationship with Barton claiming in October 2021 that he had no relationship with Widdrington or his scouting team.[47] On 3 December 2021, Widdrington departed Bristol Rovers.[48]
On 10 December 2021, Widdrington was appointed manager ofKing's Lynn Town, who were second-from-bottom of the National League.[49] His first match in charge was the following day and saw his new side defeat bottom sideDover Athletic 2–1 thanks to a double fromJosh Barrett whom had been brought in to Bristol Rovers under Widdrington.[50] Lynn's relegation to theNational League North was confirmed in the penultimate match of the2021–22 season with a 3–3 draw withEastleigh.[51]
An impressive start to life back in the sixth tier saw Widdrington awarded the National League North Manager of the Month award for August 2022 having earned 16 points from a possible 18.[52] King's Lynn knocked League Two sideDoncaster Rovers out of the first round of the FA Cup with a 1–0 win at theEco-Power Stadium.[53] On 1 April 2023, following a 1–0 victory to keep his side second in the league, Widdrington's resignation was announced to allow him to take a new role at another club.[54] The club noted that no agreement had been reached between the two clubs or between King's Lynn Town and Widdrington.[55]
The following day to his resignation from King's Lynn Town, Widdrington was announced as the new manager of National League strugglersAldershot Town.[56] Aldershot ended the2022–23 campaign in 18th-place, five points above the relegation zone, having remained unbeaten for the final six games.[57]
On 3 November 2023, Widdrington signed new terms with Aldershot with the club in seventh place in the National League.[58] The following day, his side won 7–4 atSwindon Town in the first round of the FA Cup, becoming the firstnon-League team to score seven goals past aFootball League side in the competition.[59] On 13 December 2023, Widdrington was named National League Manager of the Month for November having picked up three wins from four.[60] Later that day, his side progressed to the FA Cup third round for the first time in eleven years, defeating League Two leadersStockport County 1–0 away from home having drawn 2–2 at home in the previous fixture.[61] They exited the competition with a 4–1 defeat at Championship sideWest Bromwich Albion with what he described as "a right good go".[62] Aldershot ended the2023–24 season with eighth place, two points outside the play-off places, having drawn toDagenham & Redbridge on the final day.[63] He was named as National League Manager of the Week on three occasions.[64][65][66]
Widdrington underwent a leave of absence from his managerial role at Aldershot Town after suffering two strokes in late November.[67] He returned to the dugout on 21 January 2025.[68] He led the club to wins overWealdstone,Chertsey Town,Boreham Wood andSittingbourne in the2024–25 FA Trophy campaign to reach the2025 FA Trophy final.[69] On 11 May, Widdrington led Aldershot out for the club's first ever visit toWembley Stadium, defeatingSpennymoor Town 3–0 to win theFA Trophy.[70] On 14 October 2025, Widdrington announced his resignation as first-team manager.[71]
On 16 October 2025, Widdrington re-joined Eastbourne Borough as manager on a long-term contract, after eight years away.[72]
Widdrington celebrated his goal forPort Vale againstBrentford on 24 October 2000 with five bottles ofBudweiser and subsequently crashed hisBMW into a set of traffic lights inHanley early the following morning.[73] He was charged with refusing to take part in police drink-driving tests and entered a Guilty plea.[74][75] He was banned from driving for 12 months and given a £500 fine.[73]
Widdrington married Candice (née Arcon), whom he met as a teenager;[76] the couple have two sons and a daughter. Their eldest sonKai is a professional dancer onStrictly Come Dancing.[77] Their younger sonTheo turned professional atPortsmouth in April 2017.[78]
On 27 November 2024, Widdrington was taken to hospital having falling ill, tests revealing that he had suffered two strokes.[67]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Southampton | 1990–91 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991–92 | First Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1992–93 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| 1993–94 | Premier League | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | |
| 1994–95 | Premier League | 28 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 0 | |
| 1995–96 | Premier League | 21 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 27 | 2 | |
| Total | 75 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 90 | 3 | ||
| Wigan Athletic (loan) | 1991–92 | Third Division | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Grimsby Town | 1996–97 | First Division | 42 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 45 | 4 |
| 1997–98 | Second Division | 21 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 30 | 3 | |
| 1998–99 | First Division | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 32 | 1 | |
| Total | 89 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 107 | 8 | ||
| Port Vale | 1998–99 | First Division | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| 1999–2000 | First Division | 38 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 5 | |
| 2000–01 | Second Division | 35 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 41 | 2 | |
| Total | 82 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 89 | 8 | ||
| Hartlepool United | 2001–02 | Third Division | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 27 | 2 |
| 2002–03 | Third Division | 32 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 3 | |
| Total | 56 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 61 | 5 | ||
| Macclesfield Town | 2003–04 | Third Division | 35 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
| 2004–05 | League Two | 23 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 0 | |
| Total | 58 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 68 | 0 | ||
| Port Vale | 2004–05 | League One | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Career total | 372 | 24 | 24 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 429 | 24 | ||
| Team | From | To | Record | Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Salisbury City | 29 July 2009 | 5 July 2010 | 54 | 26 | 7 | 21 | 048.15 | [80] |
| Hemel Hempstead Town | 5 October 2011 | 1 February 2012 | 19 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 026.32 | [81] |
| Eastbourne Borough | 1 February 2012 | 7 April 2017 | 247 | 86 | 65 | 96 | 034.82 | [82] |
| Bristol Rovers (caretaker) | 14 November 2020 | 19 November 2020 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 | [83] |
| Bristol Rovers (caretaker) | 10 February 2021 | 22 February 2021 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 050.00 | |
| King's Lynn Town | 10 December 2021 | 1 April 2023 | 73 | 30 | 22 | 21 | 041.10 | [83] |
| Aldershot Town | 2 April 2023 | 14 October 2025 | 133 | 53 | 33 | 47 | 039.85 | [83] |
| Eastbourne Borough | 16 October 2025 | present | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 028.57 | [83] |
| Total | 536 | 204 | 136 | 196 | 038.06 | — | ||
Grimsby Town
Port Vale
Hartlepool United
Salisbury City
Individual
Eastbourne Borough
Aldershot Town
Individual
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)