Celebrating with Stormzy and Maya Jama – Former Cheltenham Town player Jermaine McGlashan has first managerial success with AFC Croydon Athletic

Jermaine McGlashan has added promotion to his coaching CV, guiding AFC Croydon Athletic to play-off glory, encouraged by Stormzy and his girlfriend Maya Jama.

The former Cheltenham Town winger, who was the club’s record signing for more than a decade, has been in charge of the Rams since last October, with former Robins team-mate Chris Zebroski as his assistant.

McGlashan juggles the job with a coaching role at League Two Gillingham academy.

The 36-year-old can now look forward to Isthmian League football in 2024/25 after a 2-1 victory in the Combined Counties League play-off final against Knaphill.

“I’m really excited to finish my first season at AFC Croydon Athletic with promotion,” McGlashan told Gloucestershire Live.

“When I originally came in, I wanted to steady the ship, create a culture and be competitive.

“We’ve gone from strength to strength and really kicked on, so to do it after seven months in charge is a great feeling.”

Stormzy is part of a three-man consortium that bought Croydon Athletic last summer, along with former Crystal Palace star Wilfried Zaha.

He grew up in Croydon’s South Norwood district before becoming a superstar rapper and joined the post-match celebrations with TV presenter and radio DJ Jama.

“The ownership of the club is of course an attraction, even more so because of what it stands for,” McGlashan said.

“They are all from the Croydon area and have gone on to be successful in their own fields. They are giving back to a community and a club that means something to them.

“I wanted to be a part of that, growing up as a Croydon boy.”

High-profile owners hold regular talks with McGlashan, whose only previous managerial role was at Fleet Town, where he oversaw a successful fight against relegation.

“Working at a club with high figures probably more than anything adds outside expectations more than anything, that comes with the territory,” he said.

“But we have regular conversations internally and I’ve always felt supported from the moment I walked into the building.

“There have been ups and downs throughout the season, like any club and everyone raises their game against you because you are the cup final effectively, just because of the people behind the scenes.

“It’s something I’ve gotten used to and I’ve just made sure we hit it.”

Athletic now move into the seventh tier, which is uncharted territory for a club only founded in 2012 – the same year Cheltenham paid Aldershot Town £50,000 to sign McGlashan.

License A qualified coach looking forward to the challenge of the higher level.

“I expect the Isthmian league to be really, really competitive as the level of players every season seems to improve,” he said.

“We would borrow some of the second-year Gillingham scholars at that level, so I know it is respected in terms of developmental outcomes.

“But you look at the likes of Hayes & Yeading, which is a highly decorated club, competing at that level next season.”

McGlashan believes AFC Croydon, who play their home games at Thornton Heath’s Mayfield Stadium, can continue to thrive.

“I feel the club can continue to take off, but I think it’s important to establish themselves in the Isthmus next season,” he said.

“We cannot forget that the owners have not been here for long and we are ahead of the project.

“But I certainly feel that with the infrastructure and the plans in place, they are going to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Walton & Hersham and Dorking in terms of growing the divisions.”

McGlashan says he is benefiting greatly from the experience of working within the coaching set-up at Gillingham, where he spent two years as a player after leaving Cheltenham in 2014.

“I learned a lot in and around Gillingham,” he said. “It’s the detail and the level of training I’ve had around me from coaches experienced in the game, but also being exposed to daily contact with the Under-21s and the first team.

“It challenged my thinking in a positive way and allowed me to grow and practice it in my current environment at Croydon.”

Although still a relative novice when it comes to management, McGlashan is relishing the challenge of motivating the dressing room and building a team.

“I would describe myself as a manager who pays attention to detail,” he said. “I like my teams to play aggressively and on the front foot.

“We’re always going to have more than one way to play in terms of a direct approach or a build-up of patience.

“My teams are well organized in possession and I’m very active on the touchline – very vocal!

“I like to think I’m a people person and I’m approachable, so a good manager, although I admit there’s room for improvement here because this era of players is different to when I was playing.”

McGlashan played for Cheltenham in their play-off semi-final win over Torquay United in 2012, but was on the losing side at Wembley as Crewe went down 2-0 in the final.

He helped the Robins reach the play-offs again the following season, but they missed out in the semi-finals at Northampton Town.

He made a total of 116 appearances, scoring 14 goals, over three seasons at Whaddon Road.

“I’m still keeping an eye on Cheltenham,” he said. “It’s a bit different as the years have gone on because now I don’t know the players at all.

“But I still follow some of the supporters and watch the manager’s interviews to keep up to date with how things are going.

“It’s probably where I played my best football and an area where I matured on my feet for the first time, so I’ll always have a soft spot for Cheltenham.”