After a long twisted journey, Swindon Town have finally reached an agreement with Chelsea to bring in Jody Morris’ right-hand man, Ed Brand as their new Assistant First-Team Head Coach, as confirmed by the club.
The 36-year-old coach has signed an 18-month contract with the Robins, after spending the last 15 years coaching in the talented Chelsea academy.
Brand is expected to get to work immediately and be in the dugout for today’s game against Carlisle United at the Country Ground.
If you have been in the loop Swindon’s interest in Brand is one of the worst-kept secrets out there. The Englishmen was originally meant to join Morris when he was confirmed as Town boss on January 30th, with both men in the stands to watch Swindon’s 3-3 draw against Gillingham, however, after lengthy delays, Brand has been forced to wait.
Both men have previously worked together in Chelsea’s U18 set-up in 2016, leading the team to back-back U18 Premier League titles and FA Youth Cups.
Brand has worked his way up the Academy coaching ranks, from a youth coach to his most recent position as Head Coach of the U18s. In that span, the new assistant manager oversaw a heap load of talent coaching the likes of Reece James, Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher and many more during his time in West London.
Following his appointment at Swindon, Brand said: “It’s fantastic to join such a highly regarded club with such an ambition. It’s taken a little while to everything over the line, but I’m delighted it’s all done and I can take my place in the dugout for tomorrow’s game.
“There are some really great foundations here to build on and I believe we can achieve something very special.
“I’m looking forward to working alongside Jody once again. He’s a close friend and a top coach, and I’m excited to help him implement his philosophy and take us to where we want to go.”
Writer’s View
It’s taken much longer than fans would have liked, but the appointment of Brand is finally over the line. Morris and Brand did wonders together when they previously worked at Chelsea and that in itself should be very exciting for the League Two side.
This will be Brand’s first time coaching a senior team so there may be some leaning curves, nevertheless, he’s shown in his experience he can coach a successful team.
Morris’ attraction to the job was being able to get Brand to work alongside him and after some progress in the last few weeks, there will be hoping this Swindon team can push on for a place in the playoffs.
