John Coleman was appointed manager of Rochdale on January 24, 2012.

Coleman joined The Dale from Accrington where he was in charge since 1999, taking them from the Northern Premier League First Division back into the Football League and reaching the League Two play-offs in 2010/11.

At the time of his departure, Coleman was the third longest serving manager in English football and was the longest servant in the Football League. Remarkably, he also had the unique record of improving their league finish every season (apart from one when he maintained the position) after he took charge in 99.

Coleman's successes started by winning the Northern Premier League Division One in 1999/00 and the Northern Premier League in 2002/03. He was then voted The Conference Manager of the season after leading Stanley to the league title in 2005/06.

After gaining promotion to the Football League in 2006, Coleman helped to establish the side in League Two.

In 2010/11, he guided the club to play-offs (their highest ever finish), where they narrowly missed on a place in the final to eventual winners Stevenage.

He is Stanley’s longest serving manager in their history as well as their most successful ever boss as during the time with the club has won three Championships and five cup competitions.

Before Accrington, Coleman was player-manager at Ashton United where his side narrowly missed out on promotion, but the side did win the First Division Cup twice.

As a player, Coleman played for Kirby Town, Burscough, Marine, Southport, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Rhyl, Morecambe and Lancaster, scoring over 500 goals during his career.

His honours as a player include England Semi-Pro caps and several Player of the Year awards.