Ben Garner has recruited a “technically-minded” coach who shares his philosophy in the form of Jack Mesure.
The Bristol Rovers boss’ new assistant was announced on Friday, joining from Chelsea’s highly regarded academy.
He was headhunted by the Blues in 2018 after spending 10 years climbing the ranks at Crystal Palace, following the same path Garner did en route the Gas job.
And after earning his stripes in academy football, the 32-year-old has made the step to the senior game and he has been tipped for success.
To get an insight into Mesure’s career and credentials, Bristol Live spoke to Matt Woosnam – The Athletic’s Crystal Palace reporter.
Garner and Mesure seem to have known each other for a long time. Did they have a close relationship when working together at Palace?
The pair were very close at Palace and worked together regularly with different age groups. Mesure was often Garner’s assistant, and helped with the Oasis Academy Shirley Park scheme which was designed to give maximum contact time with minimal disruption to players’ progression.
It appears he is treading a similar path to Garner. Can you give an idea of his progression through the ranks at Palace?
Mesure began his coaching career at Sutton United where he was under-8 coach and then progressed to Reserve team manager.
From there he joined Palace and took the same progressive route through the academy. He eventually became under-16 manager before assisting at under-18s and latterly under-23 level for a brief period before Chelsea signed him.
Mesure is obviously highly rated, with Chelsea headhunting him from Palace. What are his best qualities?
According to one former Palace academy player who was coached by Mesure, he "is a great young coach, the sessions he put on were always the ones the players loved. They were very technical and he was a popular member of the club.”
What were his achievements at Palace that caught the eye of Chelsea?
There were no specific achievements but seemingly the way he managed his players, his technical coaching drills and attention to detail impressed.
How would you describe Mesure’s football philosophy and coaching style? Is he hands-on and in a similar mould to Garner?
Mesure is a technically-minded coach who prioritises possession and likes his players to be comfortable on the ball, good passers and capable of getting forward quickly.
He and Garner share a very similar outlook on the way they believe the game should be played and that is probably partly why they are good friends.
This is a move which should help Garner to implement the style of play he wants at Bristol Rovers.
Has he always been tipped to take a prominent role in first-team football?
Garner has always spoken highly of him, and there probably was a feeling that a role in the senior set-up was likely, but it is perhaps the faith and friendship that the pair have with each other and the similar outlook that prompted his emergence into the first-team set-up.
It was always likely the pair would link up again.
