Queen of the South appoint Marvin Bartley as new manager as ex-Hibs midfielder leaves Livingston

Marvin Bartley has been appointed the new manager of Queen of the South.

The 36-year-old will take up the role at Palmerston Park following the departure of Willie Gibson last month. It will be Bartley’s first managerial job since hanging up his playing boots and becoming a coach at Livingston, where he excelled under the tutelage of David Martindale.

A statement from Queen of the South read: “We are delighted to announce Marvin Bartley as our new manager. The 36-year-old former midfielder joins us from Livingston where he was assistant to David Martindale. Marvin who holds a UEFA A Licence started his career at Bournemouth under Eddie Howe who also took him to Burnley. He eventually moved north in 2015 when he joined Hibernian where he helped them win promotion and the Scottish Cup. After leaving Easter Road he joined Livingston where he took up a coaching role alongside playing, before retiring from the field last year.

Queens chairman Billy Hewitson said: “We are pleased to have Marvin on board. Following the departure of Wullie we received a positive response from a wide variety of applicants. We have taken a couple of weeks to weigh up our options and are confident that Marvin was the best candidate. He is young, starting out in management but has experience having been part of the coaching team at Livingston. We welcome him to Palmerston as we aim to push up the table.”

Bartley said: “I’m delighted to have been given the opportunity to become Queens manager. I have enjoyed being assistant at Livingston and owe David Martindale a huge debt of gratitude for the time taken to help mould my management style, but I feel the time is now right for me to make a step up and be my own boss. My experience at Livingston, coupled with the knowledge accrued playing under Eddie Howe and Sean Dyche puts me in good stead to make the most of the opportunity at Queens, which is a great club with a lot of potential. They have a strong youthful squad and with a few additions I’m confident we can climb the table. I am looking forward to the challenge and can’t wait to get started”.

Livingston said on their website: “Livingston FC can tonight announce that assistant manager Marvin Bartley has left the club to take up the vacant manager role at Queen of the South FC.

“Joining the club from Hibernian in 2019, Marvin became a stalwart of the Lions midfield, stamping his authority at the club and quickly becoming club captain into the 2020-21 season. Marv would lead the team out at Hampden in the Betfred Cup final in what would prove to be his final season as a player, calling time on his playing career at the end of that campaign to focus fully on his role as a first-team coach.

“After the departure of then assistant manager Liam Fox to Dundee United, Marvin stepped into the position as David Martindale's number 2, helping from the sidelines as the club continued to fight in the top flight of Scottish football for yet another season. Marvin will now head to Dumfries to become manager of the Palmerston side, taking charge from Monday.”

Livingston manager Martindale commented: “I have a mixture of emotions in terms of feeling both delighted for Marvin but sad that we’re losing him from the football club.

“He has been with us for four seasons now and hand on heart I can say he is genuinely a fantastic person and has a huge future in the world of football management.

“I’m losing a friend on a day-to-day basis and a huge part of what we do at Livingston, but I am delighted for him at the same time. He will always be welcome back and goes with everyone’s best wishes.”