Matthew Gray (born 16 September 1981) is an English professional

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 who is the head coach of the

National League South The National League South, officially Vanarama National League South, is a professional Association football league in England. National League South is the second division of the National League (English football), National Leagues and step ...

club Eastbourne Borough.

Playing career

A youth product of

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

and

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

, Gray had an unassuming senior career in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

. He began his senior career at Barnet, with stints at Hayes, and Havant & Waterlooville where he was appointed the captain. He ended his playing career at 25, due to various injuries.

Coaching career

Sutton United

After retiring as a footballer, Gray began coaching. His first stints were as the assistant manager at

Eastleigh Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the United Kingdom 2011 census, 2011 census. The town ...

. He was also the assistant with

EFL League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...

clubs

Aldershot Town Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spr ...

and

Crawley Town Crawley Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crawley, West Sussex, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1896 as Crawley Foo ...

. In December 2018, he was appointed as one of the coaches at

Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional association football club from Sutton, South London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Sutton started out playing in junior, ...

. On 22 April 2019, the long-term Sutton United manager Paul Doswell stepped down. Matt Gray was appointed interim manager for the last matchday that season in the

alongside

Ian Baird Ian James Baird (born 1 April 1964) is an English former professional footballer whose most notable spells were as a Leeds United player. During his first period at the club he spent a season as captain. He won a player of the year award in h ...

, and Micky Stephens. On 1 May 2019, he was formally appointed as the manager for the team. In the 2020–21 season, his second with Sutton United, Gray led the team to promotion into the

English 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 ...

for the first time in their 123-year history. He was named the National League manager of the year for the 2020–21 season. In their first League Two season, Sutton finished 8th, missing out on the play-offs by one point, but also reaching the 2022 EFL Trophy final at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

, losing 4–2 after extra time against

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional association football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. The team plays in EFL League One, the third tier of English football, after suffering relegation fr ...

. Sutton finished 14th at the end of the 2022–23 season. The following season, on 19 December 2023, Gray was sacked from his role, with the club six points from safety following an 8–0 defeat at

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton ...

Eastbourne Borough

On 23 May 2025, Gray was appointed head coach of

side Eastbourne Borough.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Manager

Sutton United *

: 2020–21 *

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Motors, Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football, football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and ...

runner-up: 2021–22 Individual *

National League Manager of the Year In Major League Baseball, the Manager of the Year Award is an honor given annually since 1983 to two outstanding managers, one each in the American League (AL) and the National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), ...

: 2020–21

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Matt 1981 births Living people Footballers from London English men's footballers English football managers National League (English football) players National League (English football) managers English Football League managers Men's association football defenders Barnet F.C. players Hayes F.C. players Havant & Waterlooville F.C. players Aldershot Town F.C. non-playing staff Crawley Town F.C. non-playing staff Sutton United F.C. managers Eastbourne Borough F.C. managers 21st-century English sportsmen English football coaches