Gary Johnson says it was a “no-brainer” to extend his stay at Torquay United.
Appointed in September last year, the former Yeovil, Bristol City and Cheltenham Town boss took the Gulls from mid-table to the National League South title – the club's first championship in 92 years.
Johnson, 63, oversaw a complete upturn in results and won promotion back to the National League by ten points, breaking multiple club records in the process, including: Biggest FA Cup win (7-0 v Lymington), most consecutive league wins (10), most league games unbeaten (16), most goals (93), best Goal Difference (+52), most league wins (27), fewest league defeats (8), most points (88) and quickest goal (10 seconds, Kalala v St Albans – away).
“I'm delighted that we could get this sorted pretty quickly and in time for the new season,” said Torquay United CEO George Edwards. “Last season was an exciting journey, becoming Champions with three games to go from the position the club was in, is an exceptional achievement and we can now look forward to achieving our ambition of League 2 football and beyond.”
Johnson added: “It was a no-brainer for me. I really have enjoyed my time here. I just thought it was a natural thing to do because I've got no thoughts of going anywhere, doing anything else, because I've enjoyed what's been happening to the football club, and I'm pleased to be a part of it.”
“I've seen lots of improvements – the training ground looks fantastic at the moment. When I brought in the new players they were impressed with our facilities. The work that people have done to improve the club, and tidy it up, has been tremendous.
“It's credit to George, it's credit to Mel Hayman, and obviously Clarke, because there is finance that you don't always actually see that is going into the football club. We've got to get an improvement as much as we can off the field, and we've got to get an improvement as much as we can on the field. I like working with people that see it that way as well.
“Once you get the momentum forward, that's the time to really push on, keep it going. I think we've got the right people on our ‘bus'.”
