DEALING IN FACTS AND NOT FICTION
HOW hard is it being out of work? It kills you, and I’m not being over the top there.
It really does get you down. It’s over a year since I resigned from Hyde. We’d just won the Conference North but me and my assistant Martyn Booty couldn’t agree a new contract with the chairman.
Since then, we’ve probably applied for half a dozen jobs and not got a single one. I think we got quite close to Telford and Southport.
We went over and met the people, but were unsuccessful. It’s been very, very frustrating to say the least. It’s hard enough for me to cope, but I’m also worrying about Martyn. He was in the game for 20 years as a pro. He’s different class and he just wants to get out there and coach.
Me, I’ve been managing for 18 years and I’ve never been out of work. It’s extremely difficult. But we stay confident, we believe in our ability and we know that we’ll make a success of it when we do get back in.
Naturally, people ask ‘Do you regret leaving Hyde?’ But I can honestly say no because it was a matter of principle. A good whack of people warned me. They said ‘be careful, it could take a long time to get back in’. But we felt strongly about what happened so we left.
For people in our position, just getting an interview is hard. Every job has 40 or 50 applicants with lots of big names in the running.
Recently, you’ve had a lot of ex-pros who are realising they need to start at a lower level. Look at Alan Wright, who got the Southport job.
He’s a great guy and we don’t begrudge him but that’s what we’re up against. Ultimately though, I’d like to think our record speaks for itself.
We took sides to the Vase semi-finals, took Curzon to the second round of the FA Cup. It was the furthest an Evo-Stik side had ever been and we were 90 minutes away from playing Coventry.
We won the Conference North with Hyde, a club who’d never played Conference Premier in their history. Those things are facts, not fiction. They are there for everyone to see. So we’ll see.
I remember reading an article with Gary Mills where he spoke about his time at Grantham. He won promotion then left pretty much instantly in very similar circumstances to us.
He didn’t get back in and had to take a job lower down the Pyramid to prove himself all over again. Maybe that’s what we’ll have to do.
After all, Gary went on to do a wonderful job at York, winning the FA Trophy and promotion to the Football League. Now he’s out of work too – it’s a crazy business!
NEW BOYS WILL DO JUST FINE
WILL Halifax and Chester struggle in the top flight next year? No chance. I’d be very surprised if the pair of them don’t finish at least mid table.
I’m a good friend of Neil Young at Chester and Neil Aspin at Halifax, so it was great to see them take their sides to the Conference.
We speak fairly often and I knew what they were going through because I’d been in their shoes 12 months previous. Neil has lost quite a lot of players but he’s turning that around.
They’re both good judges in the transfer market and I can’t see either of them struggling, They’re massive football cubs with great support and I’m sure they’ve got plans in place to be knocking at the top of that league in the next few years.
It’s definitely a realistic target. As for who will follow them, there are some big names in Conference North. Telford are a massive club and they’ve got a terrific manager in Liam Watson, a class act who has more than proved himself at this level. They’ll have a decent budget, good support, a great stadium.
And it may sound boring, but I expect Stockport to be in there. Again it’s a big club with massive support if things go their way. And Ian Bogie is another manager who knows what he’s doing.
It may be predictable but I don’t think you can look beyond those two. Anyone who finishes above them will be unlucky not to go up.
TIME FOR GEMS TO GET THE CHANCE TO SHINE
GREAT to see Sunderland signing Duncan Watmore from Altrincham. Now let’s see a few more big clubs follow suit because the Non-League game is full of diamonds.
These lads aren’t obsessed with massive money. They just want a chance to prove themselves. Give them that and they’ll grasp it with both hands.
Take Steve Wigley (the former Southampton manager), who I know really well. He grew up in the same town as me and played for Curzon Ashton.
In those days they must have been Step 7 and he was working as a civil servant for the council. Then Brian Clough
signed him for Nottingham Forest in 1981, at a time when they had loads of big star names.
On his first day, he ran out to warm up. After a couple of laps, all the old pros were grumbling, moaning about doing this run or that drill.
And Steve’s there thinking ‘Bloody hell, I could be sitting in an office pushing paper around – this is great’. He couldn’t work out what they were moaning about.
But that’s the attitude you get with lads from this level. They know working life is hard, that clocking in to do manual labour is no fun. So when they have to turn up at 10 o’clock and somebody has already put their kit out and cleaned their boots, they appreciate it.
That’s why the likes of Steve Davis at Crewe actively look in Non-League football. He sent me his son Harry a few years ago because he’s a great believer that this is where players grow up.
This academy stuff, it’s like Strictly Come Dancing. We’ll pass it then you can pass and it’ll all look very nice. Proper men’s football is tough. It breeds hunger and desire. That’s what these big clubs could get if they take a chance.
ANTONI IS THE ONE TO WATCH
WATCH out for Antoni Sarcevic in the Conference next year. The Chester midfielder is a top, top player who should be a class act at that level.
I’m friends with Steve Davis at Crewe and I remember when he took Sarcevic there in 2010. He was still a young boy then and it was maybe a bit early. Like lots of players, he wasn’t able to make the transition at such a young age.
But I know they always thought a lot of him. Now he’s come back out of it and he’s come on strong. He’s a great technical footballer and he could easily play in the League. I know he’s under contract there but there’s been a lot of interest.
Talking of young prospects, Dan Gardner at Halifax is a top, top player. He played at Droylsden for a number of years and I always watched him. He’s got a great range of passing and plenty of goals in him.
Since the publication of this column, Sarcevic has made a return to the Football League, joining League Two side Fleetwood Town for an undisclosed fee.
Whoever takes gary lowe and boots on as manager &assistant will win there league . Simple as that. Ive worked with them so l no. Get them in and watch them work. You wont regret it.