Gainsborough Trinity FC CEO Matt Boles tells the person who has been impersonating Russ Wilcox to ‘get a life’ in quite the statement.
It is said that the person responsible had been getting in contact with players across the non league pyramid claiming to be Russ Wilcox.
The person also had been trying to approach players into potentially signing the club, also making wage offers.
Russ Wilcox: Club Statement.https://t.co/0TtgIHYOd0 pic.twitter.com/ZUYgxR6LOJ
— Gainsborough Trinity (@GainsTrinityFC) September 9, 2026
A statement, as posted on the club website on the 9th of September, read: “Gainsborough Trinity Football Club is aware of an individual who has been contacting a number of players across different levels of the non-league game, falsely claiming to be our First-Team Manager, Russ Wilcox. The individual concerned has purported to represent Russ and Gainsborough Trinity FC and, in some instances, has made approaches to players involving potential transfers and wage offers.
We want to make it categorically clear that these approaches have not been made by Russ Wilcox, nor have they been made on behalf of Gainsborough Trinity Football Club. We strongly condemn the actions of the individual responsible. Impersonating a football manager and making false representations to players is completely unacceptable and has the potential to cause unnecessary disruption and reputational damage to players, managers and clubs.
We would like to thank the managers and club officials who have contacted Russ directly after receiving or becoming aware of these approaches. Many have done so precisely because they know Russ, know the professional standards by which he conducts himself, and immediately recognised that this is not the manner in which he would approach or attempt to recruit a player.
The club have made both the Northern Premier League and The Football Association aware of these incidents.
Finally, to the person responsible: enough is enough. Stop impersonating our manager, stop wasting the time of players and clubs across the non-league game and, quite frankly, get a life.
Matt Boles
Chief Executive Officer
Gainsborough Trinity Football Club
The club later wrote in a post: “Watch Russ (because he definitely HAS NOT been sacked/resigned!) and the #HolyBlues at the Kal Group Stadium on the #HolyWeekend of the football calendar, as our match against Quorn FC has been moved to Good Friday.”
Russ Wilcox’s Gainsborough currently sit 8th in the Northern Premier League Premier Division, with 13 points from 8 games played.
The 62 year old previously managed the likes of Scunthorpe United, York City and Farsley Celtic.
Before that, he had a playing career, playing between 1980 and 2003, including spells with Doncaster Rovers, Cambridge United, Frickley Athletic, Northampton Town, Hull City, Preston North End and Scunthorpe United.
Senior career
1980–1981 – Doncaster Rovers
1981–1982 – Cambridge United
1982–1986 – Frickley Athletic – 129 games (19 goals)
1986–1990 – Northampton Town – 162 games (10 goals)
1990–1993 – Hull City – 116 games (8 goals)
1993–1995 – Doncaster Rovers – 92 games (8 goals)
1995–1997 – Preston North End – 71 games (2 goals)
1997–2003 – Scunthorpe United – 146 games (6 goals)
Total – 717 games (53 goals)
International
1986 – England semi-pro – 3 games (1 goal)
Managerial
2004 – Scunthorpe United (caretaker)
2013–2014 – Scunthorpe United
2014–2015 – York City
2020 – Scunthorpe United (interim)
2022–2023 – Farsley Celtic
2023– Gainsborough Trinity
Here’s how social media reacted after the Gainsborough CEO tells the person who has been impersonating Russ Wilcox to ‘get a life’…
Tom Lane: Grateful it wasn’t a resignation but society is just getting bizarre 🤷🏼♂️
Steve Andrews: Well said Matt 💪
Lorraine Hart: Wow, that’s some sick individual out there
Liam Gale: Thought he had left the club for a second then 🫣
Matt Bradbury: Did anyone else’s heart sink before clicking, assuming he had resigned?!
@will_stanser: Cheers just literally shit myself then thinking he had gone 😅 but absolute was low life’s pretending to be someone else 🙄
@CallumHawkins99: The jump scare from waking up from the op to this was next level 😅
@RossendaleWhit1: “and quite frankly, get a life” 🤣 A belting end to a statement, what at Chairman 🫡 ⬜️🟦🤝
@scox1119: What a low life
@FBLowdown: Opened the statement expecting a managerial departure. It’s not, but I wasn’t disappointed. 😳
@Dancl40: Don’t ever ever ever word a tweet like that again.
@cdonfielding: What Wait so all those Messages weren’t from him 🫣 You can’t trust anyone these days 😋
@TheScunnyLad: Russ Wilcox still available at 3/1
@Lancsiron: Wow… What a strange story…
@domhowson: This is completely bonkers. 🤯
