Hartley recruit Vine in a bid to climb

By Jon Couch

HARTLEY Wintney have turned to former Luton Town and Portsmouth striker Rowan Vine in a bid to retain their Step 3 status.

The Southern Premier South strugglers brought the 40-year-old former fans favourite back to the Memorial Ground following the departure of Ian Selley and assistant, Mick Bennett, this week.

Local boy Vine joined the Row as a player in October 2017 and used his mexperience to full affect having previously turned out for a host of clubs including Brentford, QPR, Colchester United and St Johnstone.

He left the club in March 2018 to become a member of a management team that took the helm at another of his former clubs, Gosport Borough, who were bottom of the league at the time. Gosport survived, taking it to the last game of the season after a nail-biting end to their campaign.

NEW ROLE: Rowan Vine

Vine will be assisted in the dugout by Hartley legend Shane Hollamby.

Selley, the former Arsenal midfielder, lasted just two months at the Row having taken over from Ross Weatherstone and Tyrone Newton in November.

But the former sandhurst Town and Chertsey Town boss couldn’t arrest the club’s slide into the relegation places.

Director of football and former boss Anthony Millerick said of his departure: “Working alongside Ian to bring in players, I saw first-hand how hard both Ian and Mick worked behind the scenes to make this work.

“Coming in at a delicate time, and after a really positive start, things went against them at crucial times, which killed any chance of much needed momentum to pull us away from danger.

“Both are great football people and I thank them for their efforts and wish them the very best of luck at their next club, when that comes about.”