Paul Gallagher explains decision to become new Barrow head coach in first sit down interview

Paul Gallagher explains the decision to become the new head coach of League Two club Barrow in his first sit down interview.

The 41-year-old comes in as replacement for the sacked Andy Whing, who made his feelings pretty clear on the club’s decision. See more on that HERE.

Gallagher has signed an 18-month contract, with the option for a further year, and replaces Andy Whing, who was sacked by the League Two club in early December.

He was brought in as a member of Barrow’s interim coaching team and has now been given the job after “impressing” the Bluebirds’ hierarchy.

𝘼 𝙉𝙀𝙒 𝙀𝙍𝘼 🙌

Barrow AFC are delighted to announce the appointment of Paul Gallagher as our new First team Head Coach.#WeAreBarrow

— Barrow AFC (@BarrowAFC) January 2, 2026

In his interview, he expressed gratitude and excitement for the role, highlighting his transition from a 20+ year playing career to coaching.

The short-term priority is to win games immediately, accumulate points, and end the long wait for a home win by making Holker Street a fortress.

He wants his side to be aggressive, to play front-foot football and to be hard to play against, with high work ethic and simplicity.

After assessing the squad, he said there is good players at present, but they’re low on confidence, and is tasked with building belief, professionalism, standards, and a winning culture.

As for the January window open , he ideally wants to bring in a pacey defender and a clinical goalscorer to improve ruthlessness in both boxes.

You can watch his full interview further down in the article, also touching on the club’s relationship with the fans, issuing a message to them ahead of his first game.

STATEMENT:

Barrow AFC are delighted to announce the appointment of Paul Gallagher as our new First Team Head Coach.

Gallagher puts pen to paper on an 18-month deal at The SO Legal Stadium with an option of a further year.

Also joining the new look coaching staff at Barrow AFC is John Welsh as Assistant Head Coach. Welsh leaves his role as Lead PDP Coach at Preston North End to take up the position with the Bluebirds.

CEO Iain Wood said, “Since Andy’s departure in mid-December we have undertaken an extensive process to identify the next permanent Head Coach and during this period we have spoken with multiple candidates.

“During this time, Paul Gallagher was appointed as a member of the Interim coaching team to assist Neil McDonald across the festive period and since coming into the building, we’ve been really impressed with Paul, his skillset and ideas.

“It became clear that Paul was a strong candidate for the permanent Head Coach position in his own right. The recent games against Tranmere and Salford have seen an upturn in performance levels and we believe that as Paul’s influence increases, performances will continue to improve.

“We’re aware that this appointment is significant for the club in the short and long-term, we believe Paul meets both those needs and we’re really pleased to have him join us.

“With the decision to make Paul Head Coach we felt it best to allow him to bring his own person in to assist the club moving forward.”

“We’d like to place on record our thanks to Neil McDonald for leading the team during the festive period and wish him all the best in his future endeavours.”

Born in Glasgow, Gallagher came through the ranks at Blackburn Rovers and made his competitive debut in a 2-0 win over Arsenal in March 2003. After a series of loan moves, including a first of four spells at Preston North End, Gallagher joined Leicester City and would go on to stay six years at Foxes scoring 25 goals. He then went on to make almost 200 appearances for the Lilywhites in his fourth spell, totalling 313 games with over 40 goals.

After retiring in 2021, Gallagher took up the role as First Team Coach at Preston before departing in July 2023 to join Stoke City in the same position under Alex Neil. Upon Neil’s departure from the Potters in December of that year, Gallagher took caretaker charge of the Championship side and led the team to draws against West Brom and Swansea.

Now at the Bluebirds helm, Gallagher is excited for the challenge ahead.

“First and foremost, I am very grateful and honoured to be Head Coach of Barrow. I am really excited and It is something I’m looking forward to.

“Coming in to the club was a real opportunity to get myself back on the grass and coach the players. I think I have engaged really well with the players and staff, and becoming a Head Coach is something I wanted to do and next step on my journey.

“I think we have got some really good players in the building and my job is to get the best out of them individually and as a collective.

“As a club we want to be as one, if we are going to be successful, we need everybody and that ethos is something I want to try and bring to the football club.

“I want us to be aggressive, on the front foot and the players to express themselves on the pitch. I also want us to dominate with and without the ball but also be really difficult at times to play against.

“I’m also really pleased to be able to bring John Welsh to Barrow as Assistant Head Coach.

“John is somebody I’ve worked alongside on and off the field for a long-time now and I know that that he has a lot to offer and will be a great asset to the existing Coaching staff.