Kyle remains as Bowyer searches for back-room staff

Blackpools first team coach Richie KyleBlackpools first team coach Richie Kyle
Blackpools first team coach Richie Kyle
Blackpool will allow Gary Bowyer to bring his own coaching staff to Bloomfield Road, although Richie Kyle will remain.

The club were left with just Kyle on their staff after keeper coach Steve Banks, kit-man Russ Byrne-Frazer and chief scout Peter Glover all followed Neil McDonald out of the door following relegation three weeks ago.

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And after Bowyer’s appointment on Wednesday, the former Blackburn man will now look at who will follow him into Bloomfield Road.

It is thought Terry McPhillips, the former Halifax and Crewe striker who was Bowyer’s right-hand man at Rovers, will be high on his list, with talks already under way with the club’s targets.

It’s understood Bowyer is more than happy to work alongside Kyle, who was promoted to first team coach last season under McDonald after impressing with his work for the club’s academy.

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And Bowyer revealed the coach is someone he is familiar with. “I know Richie, he was in the Blackburn academy coaching set-up when I was there, and I know Ciaran Donnely (Pool’s head of youth) too who was in that system.

“It’s good to come into a place where there’s one or two familiar faces who I know.”

Meanwhile, it’s been reported MK Dons assistant manager Richie Barker was one of the unnamed people interviewed for the Blackpool job. Barker has been Karl Robinson’s right hand man at Dons since April 2014 after previous managerial spells at Portsmouth, Crawley Town and Bury.

He, along with Keith Southern, Micky Mellon, Dave Jones and Gary Brabin were all beaten to the job by Bowyer.