Bristol Rovers boss confirms shock move to Mansfield Town and will take charge against Cobblers

The 45-year-old Irishman, who spent 10 years in various roles at the Memorial Stadium, leaves Rovers fourth in Sky Bet League One and will be in the Mansfield dugout for Saturday's League Two game against the Cobblers.

Coughlan has taken the decision to step down a division to spend more time with his family at his home in Sheffield. He signed a two-and-a-half-year deal as Rovers boss in January 2019, after an initial spell in caretaker charge.

Following confirmation of his appointment, Coughlan said: “This is a massive opportunity and a massive chance for me. The main attraction was the ambition of the chairman (John Radford).

“How he spoke, the ambition he was displaying, the facilities at the club, it was a tremendous and huge opportunity to take on a football club and try to get them promoted.

“I’ve gone across to the training ground and I think the facilities are better than a lot of Championship clubs’ facilities – they are very impressive.

“The opportunity to manage a club like Mansfield Town, with the ambition at this football club, the facilities, and of course to be able to be at home with my wife and kids, was an absolute mammoth attraction.

“I’ve been living in this part of the country for the best part of 20 years and it’s an honest, hard-working area – that’s what I am and that’s the background I’ve come from.

“That’s all we drummed into the players at Bristol Rovers. If you’re not honest and you’re not hard-working, you won’t have any place at this football club. We will be honest, we will be hard-working and we will wear that jersey with pride. That’s all I ask of the players.”