Martin Drury has never been one to chase the manager's job. Yet here he stands, in charge of the club that shaped his childhood, plotting a way out of League One for Huddersfield Town.
The straight-talking coach spent most of his career in the shadows, building expertise across some of Europe's biggest stages. A brief spell managing Bradford Park Avenue in the National League North during 2015-16 came early in his post-playing days, but he quickly retreated into the background. Over the following decade, he accumulated coaching experience at Boston United, Bradford City, Manchester United, West Brom and Valencia—a journey that would eventually lead him back to his roots.
An interim appointment in March 2026 became permanent when Huddersfield handed him a two-year contract in May. Now, as the new season unfolds, Drury reflects on the winding path that brought him here.
Six months in Spanish football's spotlight
Drury's route to LaLiga began at Bradford, where he crossed paths with Carlos Corberan while the Spaniard was working at Leeds. When Corberan moved to West Brom in August 2024, he brought Drury in as an individual coach. The two discovered an immediate alignment.
When I first met Carlos, I felt we connected from a work ethic perspective and we were very much aligned in how we saw life and earning everything you get in life through work. On the football side, we were very much aligned on what we believed in and what we truly believed we could do with players. I think we have some similar characteristics, despite being from different cultures.
That partnership took an unexpected turn on Christmas Eve 2024 when Corberan accepted the Valencia job. Drury followed within days as his assistant, abandoning a Championship play-off push to tackle the fight for LaLiga survival.
The introduction to Spanish football's elite came swiftly. On January 3 2025, Valencia led Real Madrid at the Mestalla until the 85th minute, when Luka Modric equalised and Jude Bellingham struck in the 96th minute to seal a 2-1 defeat. Yet the experience proved transformative.
I remember prepping for that game and thinking this was the type of environment I wanted to be in, to go up against players like Kylian Mbappe, Bellingham, Modric. To play them again at the back end of the season and win 2-1 - in the last minute, in the Bernabeu - was naturally the highlight and the connection between us and the fans there was something so, so special.
Valencia's campaign became a study in resilience. The club arrived at the bottom of the table but climbed toward European contention by season's end, picking up crucial points against the continent's biggest names.
We suffered in both of the games against Barcelona, but to see the quality of player at that level in the flesh and to prep for those games against some of the best managers in the world, the best players in the world, on a weekly basis, was something I loved. When we arrived, the club were rock bottom of the league and to finish so close to Europe by the end of the season, having picked up some points against giants was pretty special.
The Brentford chapter closes quickly
Drury's Spanish sojourn ended when Brentford came calling in July 2025. Keith Andrews, the new head coach, appointed him as one of his assistant first-team coaches. The Premier League opportunity seemed ideal—until it wasn't.
After just three league games, Drury departed. Brentford's director of football Phil Giles released a measured statement:
Martin has played an important role in setting us up for the season ahead.
Drury's own assessment was equally diplomatic but revealing.
It's an amazing club with brilliant people and I don't think you can do anything but respect what they do. They're outstanding from top to bottom. Keith has done an unbelievable job and I really enjoyed it there. Sometimes in football, you just have to assess whether it's the one for you and whether you're the right one for the club. The conversations I had there were really open and honest, but I look at them from afar and I'm so happy with how they went last season. I genuinely think they'll be even stronger this season because Keith is a top manager, they've got a really good group of players and the club is run impeccably well from top to bottom.
Finding his way home
The unexpected exit from west London left Drury facing an unfamiliar situation: time away from football. He relocated north to be closer to family, experiencing his first extended break in over a decade.
I moved back up north to be close to my family and it was the first time in 12 years I'd spent a little bit of time outside of football… which I absolutely despised!
Yet the pause proved valuable. Drury reconnected with people he had lost touch with and reassessed his ambitions. When opportunities arose, he turned them down, sensing he needed more time to reflect. Then came the call from Liam Manning.
I was really fortunate to get a call from Liam Manning, who asked me to come into Huddersfield with him. I'd known Liam a little while before that and Huddersfield's close to my heart, so I was looking forward to coming in and looking to build something special.
Drury joined as assistant manager in January 2026. When Manning took compassionate leave in late March—following the tragic death of his newborn son Theo in October 2024—Drury stepped up alongside Jon Stead to lead the team. In seven games, they won twice and drew four times, ultimately missing the League One play-offs by eight points.
The club's board saw enough. On May 27, Drury received a permanent contract, identified as the
outstandingcandidate to take the club forward.
Building something special
Despite never seeking the manager's role, Drury embraced it with conviction when the moment arrived.
I love coaching, I love being on the grass, I love working with players - but I'm pretty driven and when I really believe in something, I can feel very strongly about it. In the back of my mind I thought, at some point, if I feel so strongly about a certain way of working, a culture and an environment that I want to create, maybe I was going to have to do this from the front. That wasn't something I was concentrating on, but you can never be too surprised in football. When the opportunity became apparent, the decision was really clear for me.
The summer transfer window allowed Drury to reshape his squad. New arrivals have begun to gel, though integration takes time. Forward Samson Tovide joined from Colchester United on a three-year deal, though according to reports, Drury indicated the new signing was not yet ready to feature as he built his fitness.
When there was a little bit of turbulence towards the end of the season, I never felt it was a real challenging environment to work in or difficult people to work with. I felt there were a lot of people who wanted the best for the club. The fact we've now had one window and we've been able to address some areas of the group we wanted to try and strengthen, I think the players who were here last season have probably appreciated the work that's gone on because it's going to help them. There's some connection building in the group; that's going to take some more time, as it always does when you bring in new players. But it's a real humble group of men where, every day, the environment is driven by development, with a real winning edge and a competitive focus on it.
Early season results have tested his resolve. According to reports from late September, Huddersfield fell to a 2-1 defeat away at Bromley despite dominating possession. Drury described himself as
disappointed and frustratedthat his side had not converted their superiority into victory. The statistics told a stark story: Huddersfield managed 18 shots with eight on target and 38 touches in the opposition box, while Bromley scored twice from just five shots, three on target.
Injury troubles have compounded the challenge. Captain Ryan Ledson suffered an elbow injury in a draw at Mansfield and, according to club updates, was expected to miss four to six weeks. Midfielder Marcus McGuane faces an even longer absence after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury in training, ruling him out for the entire season.
Yet Drury's vision remains clear. He wants his team to embody the spirit of northern football—grit, commitment and relentless effort.
When I'm standing on the side of the pitch, I want to see a team that represents Huddersfield. I want to see players running and giving absolutely everything. Being a northern lad myself, I know what these northern fans want. If we do that, I have genuine belief that, because of the players and staff we have, success will be achieved.
What comes next
Huddersfield travel to Burton Albion on October 3 2026 in their next League One fixture, looking to bounce back from the Bromley setback and build momentum toward promotion.
