Former Lincoln City winger Ryan Semple has been confirmed as first-team coach at Peterborough United as Robbie Savage promotes from within to build his backroom team.
Semple steps up from his position as Senior PDP Lead, having worked across the academy and first team over the past couple of seasons. The former Imps man is also working towards his UEFA Pro Licence, with the appointment marking another step in his coaching career.
He was among those alongside Savage in the dugout at the King Power Stadium last week, with that group now continuing in their roles. In confirming his coaching team, the Posh boss explained how his early experiences at the club had helped shape his decision.
“I have got such a good connection with people inside the building already. I came alone and I was thinking of bringing somebody with me, but the connection I have got already, as seen on the bench Saturday and after the game, is already so good. There are already so many good people at this club.
“I have promoted from within at all of the clubs I have been at. Trust is huge and so is people that know the club. I want to give them a pathway. So the next generation of coaches coming up will see where they started and that they were able to move up to the first team.”
Semple is one of several academy staff making the move into senior roles, with academy director Dan Robinson becoming assistant manager and Harry Hogg taking over as first-team goalkeeping coach. Former Posh striker Craig Mackail-Smith, who scored 104 goals for the club, also joins the staff as attacking coach.
“It’s the right thing to do and the chairman is onboard. It’s a great signal to the whole community that there’s pathways for staff members as well as players. I’m really happy with it as they all have Peterborough in their DNA and an alignment with the academy.”
Semple‘s name will bring back very hazy memories of a signing that never really had the opportunity to work out. He arrived from Peterborough in the summer of 2006 in what was effectively an unofficial exchange for Simon Yeo, but injuries restricted him to just four appearances, all from the substitutes’ bench.
Those outings amounted to only 107 minutes in an Imps shirt. He featured in the opening-day draw with Notts County, the 2-1 win at Torquay United and the 2-2 draw with Walsall, before making his final appearance in the 3-1 home defeat against Darlington on 18 November 2006.
Loan spells at Chester City and Rushden & Diamonds followed during his time on our books, but there was no route back into the City side. He was still around the squad when Peter Jackson took over in the autumn of 2007, before his contract was terminated in January 2008.
Semple subsequently played for several clubs familiar to Lincolnshire football followers, including Deeping Rangers, Gainsborough Trinity and Boston United. His playing career ended in 2014 when he took up a full-time role in Peterborough’s academy, beginning a coaching journey that has now taken him into Savage’s first-team staff.
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