Ex-Southampton First Team Coach Martin to lead Brighton’s U18s

Carl Martin has been appointed as Head Coach of Brighton's Under-18 team.

Martin spent just over seven years at Southampton after joining them in January 2019 and was involved in some innovations introduced by the club.

He worked firstly as a Game Coach with the Under-18s. His role was to prepare and manage the team for matches while a separate Individual Coach would focus on players’ development. Under Martin’s leadership, the Saints won the Premier League South title in 2022. 

That summer he was promoted to the first team set-up under Ralph Hasenhuttl as an in-possession specialist. The club’s Director of Football at the time, Matt Crocker, had introduced specialist coaching at both Academy and senior level, although the roles were scrapped when Sport Republic took over the club.

Martin went on to stay as First Team Coach under the Saints’ next five bosses – Nathan Jones, Ruben Selles, Russell Martin, Ivan Juric and Will Still. He left the club when Still was sacked in November.

Before joining Southampton he spent four-and-a-half years at Watford – most of which was as Professional Development Coach – and he also played for Wealdstone, Crewe and Macclesfield.

On joining Brighton, Martin said: “It’s a fantastic opportunity at a club who have an outstanding reputation for developing young players. I am thankful to the club for the trust they’re putting in me.”

Martin’s twin brother Callum is Professional Development Phase Assistant Coach for the Under-18s at Southampton, having joined the club last summer.

TGG Members: Brighton staff profiles