Marc Skinner leaves Manchester United Women after half a decade

Danny Jones Danny Jones Marc Skinner leaves Man United by mutual agreement

Manchester United Women’s team boss Marc Skinner has officially left the club after half a decade at the helm ahead of the upcoming WSL season.

Spending five fairly fluctuating years in charge of the women’s Red Devils side, to put it mildly, the 43-year-old departs after having led MUWFC to their only ‘major trophy’ in the modern era with their FA Cup win back in May 2024.

He only signed a new two-year deal last summer, with an option to extend by a further 12 months, but a reported ‘breakdown in relationships’ looks to have cut that commitment short.

Man United announced the news on Monday, 3 August, and it’s safe to say that not everyone is in agreement over his contract being terminated.

Reports have claimed that Skinner had been pushing for more backing when it came to recruitment, especially with so many teams levelling up and spending a significant amount in the Women’s Super League – and that’s just in this transfer window alone.

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Conversely, a good chunk of the former Birmingham City and Orlando Pride manager’s tenure involved saying goodbye to big and/or key players who have served various important terms at the team, including Alessia Russo, Katie Zelem, Hannah Blundell, Leah Galton, Millie Turner and Lucia Garcia.

Meanwhile, under INEOS, United have brought in very limited reinforcements in recent times, and the divisive ownership have been heavily criticised for their treatment of the women’s squad and facilities.

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As The Athletic journalist Carl Anka put it on X, it feels like “All change at the club”, adding that “you could feel Skinner was getting frustrated over the relative lack of investment in the team.

Joining the countless reactions online, one user said, “Thanks for the memories but it was time to move on”, while another even went so far as to add, “The best decision done ever.”

That being said, and protest banners at Leigh Sports Village aside, there are seemingly just as many that have come to his defence…

Issuing a passionate response in the comments under the official United post confirming the parting of ways, another supporter wrote: “Fans may have seen so many things wrong with him. But he was an incredible guy, THANK YOU for everything, Marc.

“You gave me so many memories supporting this great club, gave me so much of your time. Made me feel like me again. I will support you always in your next steps.”

So he clearly has had some detractors of late, but there are still plenty of people who have remained behind even during difficult times; whether or not claims of him offering his resignation or counter arguments that he was ‘eventually going to be sacked’ come out in the wash, only time will tell.

How would you assess his time at the club, Reds?

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Featured Images — Katie Chan (via Wikimedia Commons)/MUTV (screenshot via YouTube)

Kendal Calling turns 21 in fine form with a brilliant bunch of headliners – and that was just the start…

Danny Jones Danny Jones Kendal Calling festival review 20206

Oh, what a long weekend we had at Kendal Calling 2026, our fourth consecutive visit to the beloved festival proclaimed as ‘the favourite’ by many across the North West, and forever ‘the best’ if you hail from in and around Cumbria.

Now 21 editions into its run, the Penrith party down in Lowther Deer Park has gone from being a cult classic among natives in and around the Lake District a couple of decades ago, to one celebrated all over – and for good reason.

Apart from delivering stellar lineups year in, year out, it’s also one of the most family-friendly festivals you’ll ever come across.

But having said that, they still know how to kick a party into gear when the sun sets…

Kendal Calling Review | 2026

Starting strong and looking as stunning as ever

With The Kooks, The Cribs, Manchester up-and-comers Spangled, Oldham’s very own Tim Burgess, and many more opening up the party on Thursday night, they hit the ground running early doors.

Speaking of the turf, the wider arena was nice and dry this year, with punters only being treated to very short showery intervals, and most overnight.

Having the perfect conditions obviously helps, but we will say that Kendal Calling remains one of the brave few that powers in through regardless of the weather.

Nevertheless, we didn’t have to worry about it for KC2026, and maybe it’s just recency bias, but the entire festival site somehow looked prettier than ever, especially soaked in all that sun.

The dappled rays coming through trees over in the ‘Lost Eden’ definitely made the Woodlands stage as special as we’ve ever seen it – including those magical neon nights – and we even got to chat with Yorkshire lass Ellur ahead of her spellbinding set out in the forest.

Still surprising people more than two decades in

Lots caught us by surprise this year, such as Dutch indie pop group Son Mieux (our new obsession, by the way), as well as Fletchr Fletchr, who we now believe really need to be seen live to truly appreciate every aspect of their huge potential.

And then there was rising Sunderland star Tom A. Smith (again, over in the Woodlands), who joked he was “never there” after filling in on short notice at the same festival he first played when he was 12.

Fair to say he’s come some way since then, and you won’t find many more electric performers from this very confident, talented and still very young man.

But nothing more so than the surprise acoustic set starring the legendary Pete Doherty ahead of The Libertines’ main stage slot later that day, which we had to sprint across the fields to just about catch after hearing about. We had to climb up the side of a window to get the view of those that beat us there.

Not often you get treated to stuff like this.

Why the locals love it

This year, we also thought we’d go around and ask those who know it best just what makes it so special, and more importantly, what keeps them coming back. Here’s what they had to say:

“I’ve been five times over 11 years. I’m Cumbrian-born but based in Manchester, so there’s always the pull to travel back home for it, and I’d definitely come more if I could. First memory that pops into mind is seeing The Vaccines when they were just getting big, and now over a decade on I got to see them on the main stage all these years and albums later – really full circle.

“One of the best parts about it is just how much there is on; back when I first started coming, they still were spotlighting local bands like Colt 45, but they just so happened to be on the same bill as Snoop Dog – and now I’ve seen everyone from Tom Jones and the Sugarhill Gang to The Darkness and now Biffy.

“Despite the festival growing in size and in terms of the acts that flock to it now, it still feels like one that looks after smaller names; it’s still got that wholesome, all-ages feel, and can be enjoyed for lots more than the music. I’ve definitely grown a new appreciation for everything it has to offer as I’ve gotten older.”

Nick, 32, from Dearham
The Lathums
Biffy Clyro
Red Rum Club
Deaf Havana, and SO many more…
Credit: Audio North

We also asked another seasoned veteran of the annual summer fest how they’d sum it up in as few words as possible, to which they responded: “Nature, variety and (at times) questionable weather.”

Once again, we’ve definitely had wetter ones in the past – it is the North of England after all – but the music gods were smiling down on us all weekend long, and that extra dose of vitamin D definitely helped keep us going.

More personal highlights include closing headliners Wolf Alice, as well as Circa Waves and Groove Armada on the final night, as we somehow managed to catch a bit of all three, not to mention Deaf Havana, who drew their loyal crowd of passionate fans and gave us one of the best sets of the whole weekend.

And then, of course, there was ‘Biffy… F***ing… Clyroooo’. The Manc arm of the Audio North team were lucky enough to catch the Scottish gods at their huge headline gig at Co-op Live, but BOY did jumping around in a sea of people from all over as confetti, streamers, fireworks, and literal fire hit even harder.

With Kendal, Tramlines, Parklife, Beat-Herder, and Neighbourhood Weekender all under our belt already this year, we feel truly blessed to be in what is undoubtedly one of the best periods for live music festivals we’ve known; you can check out some of our other reviews down below.

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Other than that, all we have left to say is thank you to Hanglands and the KC crew as always for having us along, and we’ll catch you in the fields the same time next year. Over and out.

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Featured Images — The Manc Group

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