Manager Jason Blunt has signed a contract extension to stay in charge of Wakefield AFC.placeholder image
Manager Jason Blunt has signed a contract extension to stay in charge of Wakefield AFC.
Wakefield AFC manager Jason Blunt has signed a contract extension to stay at the club until at least the end of the 2026-27 season.
Since joining the Falcons the former Leeds United player has quickly made an impact and successfully raised standards and the professionalism the club was looking for.
He is building a squad focused on local players committed to training while playing good football and winning games in the NCE Division One where the team is currently sitting in fourth place.
After their poor start to the season it will be a tough ask to achieve automatic promotion, but Wakefield are in the play-off places and are confident of staying there under Blunt.
Chairman Gui Decca said: “Working with Jason has been a pleasure. He has high standards for himself and the players and it shows.
"He is always thinking about football, looking for solutions with a positive attitude – exactly what the club needs.
"Extending his agreement was an easy decision.”
Blunt said: “Since arriving I’ve been really impressed by the fanbase and the passion around the club.
"I have also enjoyed the full support from the board from day one and believe this agreement brings stability crucial for the club’s continued growth.
"I am excited by what we can achieve together as we build for a strong and successful future.”
The manager announcement followed an autumn update to fans where the Falcons outlined their strategy for long-term stability and sustainable growth.
It may not include playing at Featherstone Rovers’ Millennium Stadium beyond this season or this month with the rugby league club’s current financial struggles making a future deal difficult to arrange.
The Wakefield board explained: "Our agreement with Featherstone Rovers runs through the end of this season. We’ve been grateful to the staff at Featherstone for their accommodation and for being welcomed back by the community. We were previously negotiating an extension with Paddy (Handley) and Martin (Vickers), but both have now left the club so conversations had to start from zero.
"We’ve had a couple meetings with Mark Campbell, who has returned to Featherstone after being there previously, to discuss the path forward.
"Featherstone’s financial situation is serious at the moment, and putting bluntly, they cannot honour the current agreement as is, which causes a massive issue for us.
"We understand the situation they’re in and recognise they’re not doing this to create difficulties for us – they’re dealing with significant challenges of their own and are fighting for survival.
“That said, we also struggle financially. The club operates on weekly funding from the board to cover salaries and keep things running – there is not even one week where we don’t have to inject capital into the club. We’re not in a position where we can renegotiate and pay more.
"There’s a real possibility we may need to finish this season at another location. We are trying to find alternatives with Mark while talking to other clubs and local organisations about alternatives.”
On the prospect of longer term facilities at the proposed Brook Farm development, the club added: “After months of working with the council and our planning consultant, the council has indicated that our project can be approved under Section 73 to build at Brook Farm using the existing sporting facility permission if changes are made to the original proposal.
"In order to qualify under Section 73, the scope will be reduced from our original ask – starting only with a pavilion, parking lot, and one football pitch. This approach allows us to get something built and operational quicker and cheaper, then work gradually over the years with the council, planning department, and community to expand if there’s funding, need and opportunity.
"We are now submitting a request for formal approval of our altered plans and we’re hopeful we’ll have something official by the end of the year.
"This is what we’ve been working toward. Over the past four years a lot was done to first save and then stabilise the club but we need other sources of revenue as it is not logical to sustain the current business model.
"The main source of revenue for clubs at our level are food and bar, junior and adult teams and pitch rental. We have none of that but Brook Farm would be a start to gives us that foundation.”
Wakefield have added 19-year-old versatile defender Finlay Gledhill to their squad. He has previously been at the Bradford City Academy, Chesterfield FC Academy and more recently Doncaster City where he played under manager Blunt.
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