Sheehan still involved as Swansea appoint new head coach

Swansea City's appointment of Luke Williams as their new head coach means Alan Sheehan reverts to his role as assistant head coach with the club.

Athlone native Sheehan managed the Welsh outfit for seven games after taking over as caretaker head coach in the aftermath of Michael Duff’s departure last month.

The highlight of Sheehan's time in temporary charge of the English Championship side was a 1-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion on January 1.

The Coosan man also guided the Swans to wins over Rotherham and Preston North End (both 2-1).

They were draws with Stoke City (1-1) and Coventry City (2-2), and defeats to Middlesbrough (2-1) and Southampton (5-0). Interestingly, Sheehan was previously in the backroom team of former Southampton manager Nathan Jones when the Saints were in the English Premier League.

When confirming the appointment of Williams last week, Swansea City AFC also acknowledged the contribution of Sheehan

"The club would like to thank Alan Sheehan, who has led the Swans impressively since assuming caretaker head coach responsibilities last month, delivering a top ten performance over his seven games in charge. Alan will return to his role as assistant head coach and work alongside Luke," said a club statement.

Williams joins Swansea on a three-and-a-half year contract from Notts County, having led the Magpies to promotion to League Two last season. His assistant, Ryan Harley, and first team coach analyst George Lawtey also make the move from Meadow Lane as part of Williams’ coaching staff, and they were in charge for last Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Morecambe in the third round of the FA Cup.

Swansea are currently in 16th place of the 24 teams in the Championship and they will be aiming to move up the table under the direction of Williams.