Spennymoor Town appoint ex-Indian football hero as manager
Written by Joe Burton on 30th September 2026
Photo Credit: Joe Burton
Spennymoor Town have confirmed the appointment of Peter Hartley – ex-skipper of Indian side Jamshedpur – as first team manager.
The 38-year-old, who finished his playing career with multiple spells in the Far East, joins up at the Brewery Field following the resignation of Tommy Miller earlier this month.
The club currently sits second-bottom in the Enterprise National League North after one win from their opening 10 league games.
Jason Ainsley took charge in the interim period, overseeing a spell which saw the Moors lose just twice from the five games.
A product of Sunderland AFC’s academy, where he went on to play one Premier League game for the club, Hartley’s playing career included vast spells across the Football League as well as periods in Scotland and India.
The honours across his playing career include leading Motherwell to two domestic cup finals in the same season in 2017/18, whilst he also captained Jamshedpur to the Indian Super League Winner’s Shield in 2021/22 (when the club was owned by the giant Tata Steel group), before retiring with Inter Kashi.
Since retirement, Hartley has spent time coaching in Scotland with Premiership side St Mirren, during which the Paisley side won the 2025/26 Scottish League Cup, beating Celtic in the final at Hampden Park.
Joining Hartley as assistant manager is former Rotherham United defender Ryan Cresswell, who spent time managing Northern Premier League East side Matlock last season.
Cresswell made over 300 appearances in the Football League across a 15-year career, with clubs such as Bury, Southend and Northampton Town on his CV.
Spennymoor say the pair have been appointed after an extensive recruitment process, which allowed the club to consider an ‘exceptionally strong field of candidates’.
Hartley’s first game will be against Chester in the third qualifying round of the Emirates FA Cup this coming Saturday.
