Why has Jeffrey returned to Irish League management?
After three years out of the dugout, why has David Jeffrey returned to Irish Premiership management with Portadown?
It's a decision that has half left him "feeling like a child" with excitement, and half asking himself "what have I done? ". David Jeffrey will return to management with Irish Premiership club Portadown after three years out of the dugout.
The 63-year-old had superb success with Linfield, where he won 31 trophies in 17 years at Windsor Park. One League Cup in seven years followed at Ballymena United, but he departed the Sky Blues in 2023. In a big move from Portadown, he is also one of the biggest personalities in Irish League history.
Jeffrey admits he had offers to return to the sidelines before, so why does now make sense with Portadown? Portadown appoint Jeffrey as their new manager For Jeffrey, there were a number of options at play. The first one was the fact there was a club with a vacancy, something he described as a "strict condition", after the Ports parted company with Niall Currie with two games left in the season.
"I've been approached by several clubs at times who give me hypothetical situations to consider," Jeffrey told BBC Sport NI. "But in my mind there always had to be a vacancy. " Something he says that was "equally as, if not more important", was the health of his partner, Rose, who had been battling breast cancer.