Guess who the new manager of Denbigh Town’s veterans side is ?

He has managed Denbigh Town’s first team, reserves, women’s side….and now John Clayton has taken over as boss of the veterans!

This season will see Clayton complete the club set in a new role as manager of Denbigh Wanderers FC (also known affectionately as Denbigh Old Boys).

Dai Webster, another with plenty of experience in local football, will support John as his assistant.

The new appointments come after Kev James decided to step down from the Wanderers’ manager role due to work commitments, but he will remain with the squad in a playing capacity. Kev was responsible for reforming the Wanderers after they folded a few years back.

The Clayton family has a long-standing involvement with Denbigh Town. John, and his brothers Paul and Ian, all played for the club over many years.

In the late 1980’s, John became manager of Denbigh’s first team, then in the following decade took over the Reserves with the late Mike Hargraves.

The pair transformed the team’s fortunes when they took the helm in the 1993-94 campaign.

In their first season, they won promotion to the Clwyd Premier after finishing runners-up in Division One and lifted the Clwyd Cup.

Although they brought trophies and progression to the table, perhaps the greatest legacy of Clayton and Hargraves was the talent they nurtured which was to benefit the first team big style, Danny Jellicoe a typical example.

In 2008, John formed Denbigh Town Ladies FC with the help of wife Sharon, herself a former player.

Denbigh won the Betty Pickering Cup in 2013-14 and the North Wales League title in 2014-15. They also made it to the Welsh Cup semi-finals in 2015-16.

John’s sons, Jamie and John Richard, have also helped in the running of the side over the years.

Although John stepped down from the team’s management last year, he and Sharon remain on hand as advisors when needed.

Good luck John and Dai with the Wanderers.