MARK ROBINS appointed at Huddersfield Town

MARK ROBINS has finally bee appointed as the new Huddersfield Town manager.

The former Coventry City boss cited I spoke to the owner, I sought assur-ances and didn't get any assurances from the owner of Coventry.' and so his appointment came as a considered decision.

Huddersfield are battling the drop from the Championship and Robins has been installed as Simon Grayson's successor after Caretaker Mark Lillis had stabalised the Championship outfit over the last few week.

Robins has been installed on a rolling contract basis and his first game in charge will be the FA Cup 5th round tie with Premier League side Wigan at the John Smiths Stadium, televised by ESPN.

The 43 year old joins after just 5 months at Coventry and Chairman Dean Hoyle told htafc.com:-

"We`ve been through a lengthy and detailed process in appointing Mark as the Club`s new manager and we are delighted.

"As I said we would, we have taken our time in making this appointment because it is such an important one, both for our short and long term ambitions. Obviously retention our Championship status is vital, but we also needed a manager who buys into the Club`s football philosophy and structure. We believe Mark is that man.

"Mark has the knowledge, skills and attributes that the Board of Directors set out for our new manager and it is clear that he shares our vision, philosophy and values.

"He has good knowledge of the division from his previous spell with Barnsley.

"He has also shown an ability to develop young players. Indeed, his work with the FA on the Elite Player Performance Plan and his commitment to development was a big factor in his appointment.

"Mark has shown his skill in getting the most from the resources at his disposal, none more so than his recent achievements at Coventry; within five months he has pulled that side away from the League 1 relegation zone and given them a genuine chance of being involved in the promotion mix.

"Crucially for me, during our discussions Mark has shown a real work ethic and drive to succeed. Those qualities are a prerequisite to have any chance of success.

"We`re all looking forward to Mark working alongside the existing football technical staff and off the field staff at the Club. We know Mark is excited by this challenge.

"I would like to record the Club`s thanks for the professional way Coventry City dealt with this during what has been a difficult time while negotiations took place."

Robins previous experience at Rotherham, Barnsley and his feat at turning league one Coventry from relegation candidate to promotion candidates have won him the race to take over at The Terriers.

Robins boast a 52% win record during his 5 months at Coventry, and the new Town gaffer took his first training session at Town today.

Robins brings with him his First Team Coach Steve Taylor from Coventry.

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