Pic: Tony Fowles
By Nick Lough
WHEN Dino Maamria pulled off his driveway on November 21 with two job offers on the table he didn’t honestly know which football club’s doorstep he would be turning up on later that afternoon.
What was to be his first leading role for seven years, Maamria had to make a decision between Southport and FC Halifax with both clubs angling for his signature.
A tough call to make for the 43-year-old, who was looking to build his own management career off the back of the move; so much so he didn’t know which offer he was going to accept on the day.
“I ended up having the choice of both jobs on the same day,” Maamria told The NLP. “I had my stuff packed in my car and I wasn’t sure whether I was going up the A1 or across on the M6!
“I think my previous relationship with the chairman and the directors made me realise they would give me a good platform to work and help build a team for the future.
“That’s what attracted me that way, whereas with Halifax it’s still a big club with a bigger budget but the Southport chairman persuaded me to take the job here.”
A former Sandgrounders striker after two playing spells with the Merseyside club, Maamria left Stevenage in May having acted as Graham Westley’s assistant at Preston, sandwiched between two stints at the Boro.
After Westley took the reins at League One outfit Peterborough United, Maamria believed it was a case of now or never if he was to pursue the option of becoming a manager in his own right.
Ambition
“The gaffer (Westley) knew about my ambition and desire to go into management, and that I would take this window of being out of a job to look into it,” says Maamria.
“We spoke at the weekend and if I need any help with things like players, I’m sure Peterborough will be there to help me.”
With Southport picking up three wins from their first four matches under Maamria, the job is everything he thought it would be as he lifted the Port out of the relegation zone for the first time this season.
“It’s what I expected it to be – difficult, hectic, but I wouldn’t swap it for the world,” adds the Tunisian.
“I’ve had a great response from all of the players; we’ve had three wins with one unfortunate late loss at Eastleigh, but we learn from it and move forward.
“It’s not the power I’m interested in, it’s building a team. I’m at the very bottom of the ladder but it’s a positive start so far and hopefully we can go on to bigger and better things.”
