Date: Mon 23 Jan 2023

By Steve Whitney

Vine Returns to Hartley Wintney as Manager

Rowan Vine has been revealed as the third manager of Pitching In Southern League Premier Division South club Hartley Wintney this season.

Vine will be joined by Shane Hollamby as his assistant.

Basingstoke-born, 40-year-old Vine joined The Row as a player in October 2017 and made a huge impact on the side.

In a well-travelled career as a player, the forward started out as a youngster with Portsmouth and Southampton before returning to Pompey and earning a professional contract in 2000.

He made his debut for Portsmouth in December 2000 but was loaned out to the likes of Brentford, Colchester United and Luton Town – all three being season-long loans, totalling over 120 games and 25 goals.

He made the move to Luton a more permanent one in July 2005 for a fee of around £250,000 having made 13 appearances for Pompey.

His goals and assists had helped the Hatters to the League One title in 2004/05 before he signed for Birmingham City for £2.5m in 2006/07, the season of their promotion to the Premiership, having added 57 games and 22 goals to his Luton tally.

He went on loan to Queens Park Rangers in October 2007 and played 18 games and scored 4 goals before making the loan move a more permanent one in January 2008 for a £1m fee.

However, he suffered a double leg fracture in April 2008 and was sent out on loan with the likes of Hull City, Brentford again, MK Dons, Exeter City and Gillingham before being allowed to leave QPR at the end of the 2011/12 season after 51 appearances and 5 goals.

Her moved `north of the border` to have spells with St Johnstone, Hibernian and Greenock Morton before returning to England in 2015 when he joined Vanarama National League South outfit Welling United.

Short stints with Havant & Waterlooville, Gosport Borough, home-town Basingstoke Town, Southall and Hayes & Yeading United followed before he joined Hartley Wintney.

Following a four-month spell with The Row, Vine left in March 2018 to return to Gosport to become a member of a management team.

Borough were bottom of the league at the time, but they survived, taking it to the last game of the season after a nail-biting end to their campaign.

He returned to playing with Wessex Leaguers Alresford Town, back at Hartley Wintney again in 2018/19, Southall again, Moneyfields and Tadley Calleva before joining National League South side Hemel Hempstead Town on their coaching staff in the summer of 2020.

Shane Hollamby is no stranger to Hartley Wintney supporters.

The 35-year-old defender re-joined The Row from Basingstoke Town, following their relegation to the Southern Division One South at the end of the 2018/19 season.

A centre-half by trade, he signed for Basingstoke in August 2017 after five years with Hartley Wintney culminating in promotion from the Combined Counties League to the Southern League in 2016/17.

He was with Thatcham Town before signing for the Row.

Kevin O’Brien

Hartley Wintney Web Site

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