Management return for Portsmouth's forgotten £3m signing who never played a match
The centre-half was signed from Watford for £3m in September 2009 by Paul Hart
He ranks as one of the strangest transfers in Pompey history.
Now forgotten Fratton Park signing Mike Williamson has resurrected his managerial career after a 17-month absence.
The 42-year-old has taken over as head coach at National League North side South Shields, following the departure of Ian Watson.
Watson left for Rochdale earlier this month, with Williamson subsequently relinquishing his role of director of performance and culture at the club to make his managerial comeback.
The former centre-half’s last job in management was at Carlisle, where he was dismissed in February 2025 with the club cut adrift at the foot of League Two.
He was later first-team coach under Russell Martin at Rangers, an ill-fated spell which lasted three months before ending in October 2025.
Now he has taken over the reins at South Shields, who lost 2-0 in the National League North play-off final to Kidderminster last month.
£3m recruit from Watford in September 2009
For Pompey fans, however, Williamson will forever be synonymous with a curious period in the club’s history when he failed to make a single appearance as a player.
While in the Premier League, Blues boss Paul Hart recruited the defender from Watford in a £3m deal in September 2009.
However, just five months later he was bafflingly sold to Newcastle, where he made 170 appearances over six years and was crowned Player of the Year in 2013-14.
Although named on Pompey’s bench nine times, including on seven occasions in the Premier League, Williams never featured for them competitively.
The ex-Wycombe man wasn’t even included in three Carling Cup squads when the team was being rotated and fringe players offered rare opportunities.
Even a change of manager, with Avram Grant replacing Hart in November 2009, failed to boost his first-team chances with the struggling Premier League side.
Instead, Marc Wilson, Younes Kaboul, Tal Ben Haim and Aaron Mokoena were the preferred options in the centre of defence.
Flourished at Newcastle
Williamson was eventually sold to then-Championship side Newcastle in January 2010 for an undisclosed fee - and they were a Premier League club by the season’s end.
Ironically, as Championship champions, they replaced Pompey in the top flight, with Williamson then establishing himself as a first-team regular at that level.
He would later turn out for Wolves and Oxford United, before dropping into non-league in August 2018 with Gateshead.
Now, following managerial spells with Gateshead, MK Dons and Carlisle, he has taken on the job at South Shields.
‘His leadership qualities, knowledge of the game, and understanding of what we are trying to achieve made him the outstanding candidate for the role.
‘We are excited to see him lead the team into this next chapter and wish him every success.’