My Lambs axe came too soon, says boss Andy Morrell

By Matt Badcock
Andy Morrell felt Tamworth were on their way out of a bad patch – but says he’s keeping an open mind for his next challenge after he left the Lambs.
The 43-year-old was axed after nearly four years in charge following a run of two wins in 12 games that leaves them mid-table in the National League North.
Morrell felt they could still push for the top seven but concedes that not replacing top scorer Reece Styche, who joined Darlington in November, didn’t aid their cause.
The club say they are not welcoming ­applications just yet, with assistant Mike Fowler in charge for now.
“It’s a bit frustrating more than anything, I’m disappointed, but that’s football I suppose,” Morrell told The NLP.
“We were in a position in the league for the past couple of months that wasn’t good enough. But I felt we’d been through our bad patch and were coming out the other end of it. It wasn’t to be.
“Really it depends on how you look at it – is your glass half-full or half-empty. If it’s half-empty you look down and say you’re five points off relegation and, if you’re half-full, seven points off the play-offs.
“Our last game against York we were great, we just didn’t take the chances that came along. That’s been my biggest problem, really, I sold ­Stychey to Darlington and we were never able to replace him really. At this time of year it costs a lot of money and it’s very ­difficult to do that.”
The former Wrexham boss oversaw big changes at The Lamb as the club moved to a 3G surface and is proud of his work.
“The club’s completely changed from where it was – 18 first-team players to now 250 under the club banner, a real pathway for players,” Morrell said.
“We created the Academy, the 21s and the scholars – now, for me, it’s a thriving place. It was just first-team results in the past couple of months that haven’t gone to plan.”
And he’s already looking forward to his next chapter.
“I’m pretty open,” Morrell said. “I’d been offered to play this weekend! But I think I’ll spend a little bit of time with my family because it doesn’t happen very often.”
 
*This article originally featured in The @NonLeaguePaper which is available every Sunday and Monday