David Mark Penney (born 17 August 1964) is an English

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

and former player. Born in

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...

, Penney entered professional football at the relatively late age of 21. He had been working as a

bricklayer A bricklayer, which is related to but different from a mason, is a craftsperson and tradesperson who lays bricks to construct brickwork. The terms also refer to personnel who use blocks to construct blockwork walls and other forms of maso ...

and playing for nothing at Pontefract Collieries for five years before he was spotted by Derby County scout Ron Jukes, who recommended him to manager Arthur Cox. He was offered a contract at the then Third Division club and they climbed two divisions before he left for

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...

for £175,000. He then went on to Wales, where he played for Swansea City and Cardiff City, latterly signing for

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...

in 1998. He played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

Managerial career

In 2002 Penney retired to pursue a career in management and he remained at Doncaster, taking the managerial job on a full-time basis. After a well-placed finish in his first season, Penney guided Doncaster back into the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

with victory in the 2003 play-off final. Their stay in Division Three wasn't long though as he managed Doncaster to the Division Three title. During a further two seasons of cementing Doncaster's place in League One Penney famously masterminded victories over

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

sides

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

and

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

, and nearly overcame

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

in the League Cup quarter-finals before finally being beaten in a penalty shootout. Penney left Rovers on 30 August 2006 as he felt he had taken the club as far as he could. He was appointed manager of

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

on 30 October 2006. He returned to

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

with Darlington for a

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...

tie on 9 January 2007, Doncaster winning the game 2–0, and Penney received a hero's reception from the home fans at the new Keepmoat Stadium. Penney was appointed manager at

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 EFL League Two, 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the Eng ...

on 30 April 2009. He left on 6 May 2010, through mutual consent, with falling attendances one of the reasons why Penney was relieved of duty. On 10 January 2011, Penney was appointed as manager of League One club Bristol Rovers. His tenure in charge of the west country club did not last long however, as he was sacked less than two months later having lost nine of his 13 games in charge. His last game was a 2–0 defeat against Dagenham and Redbridge. Following receiving the sack from Bristol Rovers, Stuart Campbell was put in charge for the game against Tranmere, in which a Chris Lines goal sealed a 1–0 win. While at the Memorial Stadium, he only recorded two wins, against

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

and

, and also recorded a 6–1 defeat away to

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

. He was reported as being furious after being overlooked for the

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "the Mariners", the club was f ...

managerial job when Rob Scott and Paul Hurst were appointed on 22 March 2011. As of 13 May 2013, he is reported to be interested in a coaching role at Southend United, as newly appointed manager Phil Brown seeks to improve the quality of back-room staff at the club. He was hired as an assistant coach, leaving the position in June 2015. In September 2016, Penney was once again hired as an assistant manager, this time for

Guiseley Guiseley ( ) is an area in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated south of Otley and Menston and is now a north-west ...

. Together with manager Adam Lockwood, Penney was fired on 30 August 2017. On 1 October 2017, York City hired Penney as a sporting director. On 11 August 2022, York City announced that Penney had left the club by mutual consent with immediate effect.

Managerial statistics

:''As of 5 March 2011''

Honours

As a player

Derby County *

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier ...

: 1986–87 Swansea City *

Welsh Cup The FAW Welsh Cup (), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most prestigious of the cup competitions ...

: 1991 *West Wales Senior Cup: 1991, 1995 Cardiff City *FAW Invitation Cup runner-up: 1998

As a manager

Doncaster Rovers *

Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 Football League, 1920–21 and again from 1958–59 Football League, 1958 until 1991–92 Football League, 1992. When the FA Premier League ...

: 2003–04 *

Football Conference The National League of English Football Clubs is a professional Association football, football league in England that consists of 72 teams, divided equally between the National League (division), National League North and National League South ...

play-offs:

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

Individual *

Manager of the Month: August 2002, October 2002 * Football League One Manager of the Month: November 2005

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Penney, David 1964 births Living people Footballers from Wakefield English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Pontefract Collieries F.C. players Derby County F.C. players Oxford United F.C. players Swansea City A.F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Doncaster Rovers F.C. players English Football League players English football managers Doncaster Rovers F.C. managers Darlington F.C. managers Oldham Athletic A.F.C. managers Bristol Rovers F.C. managers English Football League managers British bricklayers Southend United F.C. non-playing staff York City F.C. directors and chairmen