Simon Parker appointed Women's Head Coach

The 39-year-old joins the club after a two year spell in charge of Blackburn Rovers in the second tier, but his arrival marks a homecoming for a coach with roots in Southampton across his career.

A decade ago, Parker worked in the Saints Foundation focusing on youth inclusion, before his journey as a Head Coach began nearby at Southampton Women’s FC in the FA Women’s National League.

During his first season with the Sirens, he guided them to a league title and league cup double, and ended his two-and-a-half-year spell with an impressive 89%-win rate.

Parker’s first taste of life in the second tier came in 2019 as Assistant Coach with Lewes; he was then named Head Coach a year later and earned the club’s highest-ever Championship finish in the 2020/21 campaign.

Simon Parker arrives at Staplewood. (Photos: Matt Watson)

Following that record-breaking season, Parker headed to Europe and joined Portuguese side SC Uniāo Torreense, who lost only once in their regular season and finished strongly to remain in the Campeonato Nacional de Futebol Feminino South Serie.

A return to England - and the second tier - followed, when he was appointed as Blackburn Rovers’ Head Coach.

His debut in Lancashire saw a much-improved 6th-place finish for Rovers, who had battled relegation the season before, and the most recent campaign ended in a late survival on the pitch before the club’s withdrawal from the league.

After arriving for his next challenge, Simon Parker said:

“This is a club that means quite a lot to me, I’m local to the area, a club that my family supports, my friends support, so it means a lot to have the opportunity to be here and it’s a great project. I’m really excited to get started.

“For me this is a higher level in everything that surrounds the club, so it’s also an opportunity for me to show I can do more - I’m looking forward to expanding on that and showing there’s a different side to me.

“I’m really excited to meet [the fans], one of the big parts of Southampton, they’re massive. You get good, good crowds which is really needed in a competitive league like this.

“Hopefully, regardless of everything else, we want them to be proud of what they see and the effort that’s put in, that’s what we want to give them.”

Director of Women’s Football Marieanne Spacey-Cale added: “We’re delighted to welcome Simon to the club as our new Head Coach.

“He is a passionate coach who has plenty of experience already in his career, and we’re looking forward to seeing what he can build on here at Southampton.”