Finding The Right Blend

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Godfish93

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How do you become a successful football manager? Is it luck, or is it skill? Or perhaps, does it take a unique blend of the two? This is my story, a tale of how I found the right blend.

I’m God Fish. I know, I know, the name is a touch odd, but I had eccentric parents. It cost me some dignity in secondary school, but it stuck. I was always a keen sports enthusiast, but it was cricket, not football that caught my attention.

It was a chance encounter with my local team, Lincoln Moorlands, which first started me into football. I lived round the corner to their “ground”, a field with a run-down hut next to it. The pub nearby served as the local polling station. It was on the election day of 2010 that I went to vote, and happened to glance over at the training session. I’d done training before with my cricket club, so I knew the basics, and quite frankly, this session wasn’t up to much. It was there and then I decided that I was going to aim to become a coach.

12 months down the line, and I was running the Lincoln Moorlands coaching sessions. Unfortunately, the club were still atrocious. It was that summer though, that Chris Moyses, club hero after their sterling cup run to the FA Cup 3rd​ qualifying round, left to join the Lincoln youth set up. That part was widely reported in the local newspaper. What wasn’t reported however was that I was to go with him. I’d been coaching for 12 months, and now I was to join Lincoln City, the biggest team in the county.

2014. Lincoln had yet again failed to get anywhere near promotion. The team of Gary Simpson and Chris Moyses had simply not worked. I was still slumming it with the youth teams, abandoned by my mentor. It was the 30th​ June, when I got a call from Bob Dorrian, the chairman of the club. To cut a long story short, I was to be placed in temporary charge for the next season, owing to a lack of finances. I’d be officially unveiled on the 6th​ July, so I was required to move quickly. Also, to buy a suit, I was expected to look smart for the first time in a very long time.

With 3 years of youth coaching under my belt, and very little in the way of managerial experience, I was thrust into the limelight. No job security, very little money, and no reputation to speak of. This was going to be a difficult experience, but one I was most looking forward to.​
 
“So where do I start?” I pondered as I walked into the ground. I wasn’t due to meet the press until tomorrow, but Dorrian had called me in for a meeting to go over a few things. I figured it would be a case of do what he tells me to. After all, I was effectively a stop-gap manager; I had to say yes to everything they wanted. Which is exactly what I did. It couldn’t have pained me more, knowing that I whole-heartedly disagreed with the majority of the conversation.

Dorrian turned to me and held nothing back.

“You are expected to get us to mid-table safety. That’s the minimum.”

I gulped nervously. We’d barely staved off relegation the season before, and I wasn’t convinced that the squad was going to be anywhere near good enough to achieve more than that this time. It occurred to me Dorrian was waiting for an answer, and I hadn’t heard any of what he had said. I nodded vigorously to suggest I was listening.

I’d just doomed myself to a paltry 14k wage budget, and 9k transfer budget.

“You fool, Fish”, I thought to myself, as the chairman moved to the next order of business. “At this rate, I’ll be gone before Christmas.”

Having arranged the niceties with the press, I was turned over to my new assistant, Grant Brown. Grant was a Lincoln legend, and to be honest, I wasn’t sure how I had the job over him. The record appearance holder with 407 appearances, the man practically lived and breathed Lincoln. We exchanged pleasantries, and got straight to business. We agreed that we definitely needed an intra-squad friendly, but that he would be taking charge for pre-season.

That was a bold move, but I felt it to be necessary. I needed to make my mark, but there would be time for that. With little in the way of a scouting network, I would be required to do the leg work, especially if I was to reach the safety of mid-table.

I left the conference room with a spring in my step. After the worries of the early morning chairman meeting, having been able to speak to a Lincoln legend re-assured me of my position. I was confident that come the start of the season, we’d be ready.​
 
8th​ July 2014

I strode onto the training pitch, and indicated to the crowd that they should form up in a huddle. That crowd was in fact my playing squad. I looked around at them as they slowly trudged towards the centre of the pitch. I’d seen these faces around, but I’d never imagined that I’d be telling them what to do. I took a deep breath, and plunged right in at the deep end.

“As you may have heard by now, I have been appointed as your manager for the upcoming season. I’ve seen a few of you around the ground during my time here, and I’ve had the pleasure of watching you play as a supporter.

However, this is no time for sentiment. Let’s face it, the club is in ruins. Under Keith Alexander, we hit 4 playoffs in a row, and now we are languishing in the Conference Premier. It’s unacceptable, it is something I would expect of Grimsby Town, not us!”

That got them laughing. Grimsby had taken 4 points from us last season, and trashed us in our own back yard, and there was an innate desire for revenge.

One of the older lads turned to me and shook my hand. Alan Power had joined us back in 2010 from Rushden & Diamonds, and had become a favourite on the terraces.

“We’re delighted to have you here, it’s about time we had a change of direction at this club”

I nodded. Power was the club captain, and I needed him on side if I was to stand any chance of uniting this group of players.

“Thanks Alan. Now, I’ve been told we need mid-table this year. Seems to me that’s an underestimation of our talent, but we’ll work with it. You guys have the skills to make that happen and possibly more, so I’m relying on you to make it happen”

The group nodded. Morale had been an issue under the old regime, and already there were signs that the positive attitude was starting to have an effect. I decided now was as good a time as any to unleash my staff on them. I was due to meet them later in the day, so hopefully they could glean some useful advice for our meeting.

In the meantime, I had a lot of home videos I needed to watch of the squad, just so I didn’t look like a complete novice in front of them.​
 
I’d just finished making my way to the halfway point of my video collection when the backroom staff walked in. One of the conditions I had initially accepted on taking the job was that I could bring my own men in to the backroom, but I was required to keep on the current staff as well, at least for the time being.

Grant was the first to speak, kicking off the meeting by discussing how we should move forward with player training. It was all going smoothly until someone suggested we play 5 at the back this season.

“Never going to happen” I interjected. John Schofield, an ex-Lincoln manager, looked up with a quizzical expression. “It’s going to be 4-2-3-1 as much as possible. We need to get the ball wide, which cost us too many times over the last few seasons.”

“We don’t have those kinds of players, Mr Fish. We’d have to bring them in if we were to do that.” That was Dean West, the U18 manager. I knew him well, and brought him into the meeting to back me up more than anything.

“Way ahead of you Deano. While you were putting the boys through their paces, I’ve done a little work myself. Seems to me we need a right and left midfielder. Just before you guys wandered in, I had a quick phone call with Robert Page over at Port Vale. Turns out, a fans favourite is available. Louis Dodds, you guys remember him, yes?”

There was a murmur of approval. During the 07/08 season, Dodds had joined Lincoln from Leicester on loan. He scored 9 in 41 that year for us, but was a hardworking individual, and immediately endeared himself to the local crowds.

Schofield spoke again.

“Still leaves us short on the other wing though. I’m assuming you have a plan for that?”

“All in good time, John” I said as I turned to face him. “First, let’s focus on having one wing sorted. I’ve set the scouts to find me wingers, let’s see what they turn up.”

That seemed to appease the veteran, and he leaned back in his chair. With no further business to attend to, I called time on the meeting, and finally left for the day. The other guys were off to the bar, or home to relax. I was off home to my video suite to finish my work. At least this time I remembered the popcorn.​
 
9th​ July 2014

I was buoyed going into the press conference by a phone call I’d received that morning. Page, the Port Vale manager, had got back to me and let me know that the terms for Dodd’s loan deal were agreeable. He did say that other clubs were interested, and that it was up to the player. He did intimate though that the player was keen to join a club that he had enjoyed a previous spell with.

I settled into the comfy leather chair with a smile on my face. The chair was my own; it was my first transfer in if you like. The previous press set up was dire, and I’d decided that if I was going to deal with the press, at least I’d do it without a crick in my back.

I’d been warned to expect questions about the board, and the fact that I was in as a temporary manager. Lo and behold, the first question was about my relationship with Dorrian.

“Listen guys, let me set one thing straight. I’m delighted to be here, and Bob and I have a superb working relationship. Our primary focus is getting this club back to where it belongs. We have the framework in place, now we have to utilise it.”

It was a barefaced lie, but it satisfied the journalists. Dorrian had mentioned to me previously that he was looking to sell the club this season, and that I should expect takeover talk. It hadn’t been officially announced to the press, but it was pretty certain that it’ll get leaked at some point over the course of this season.

After the generic questions I’d seen dozens of times in press conferences on television were asked and answered, I said my goodbyes and left. Just as I walked out the ground to start the journey home, I received a text from Bob.

“Trial Day is a go. Hopefully you find what you are looking for.”

Get in, I needed that.​
 
10th​ July

I missed the Intra-Squad friendly the previous evening, as I required in the office. Two phone calls, one to Nigel Pearson, one to Sean Dyche, lead with the possibility of two midfielders, Jak McCourt and Cameron Howieson, joining the club on loan.

I caught up with Grant before training to get some feedback on the match the previous night. He informed me that whilst it was a pretty straight forward win, there were areas that could be improved. The fact that the first team had conceded was concerning enough, but they let too many shots go against them. I made a note to drill the defenders on going in hard and fast on the strikers; closing them down before they did damage.

View attachment 266234

Before I left the ground that day, I stopped by Martin Muggleton’s office. I was sincerely hoping that my chief scout had some potential defenders for me, as with Miller and Diagne out with pre-existing injuries, I was running out fast.

“I really hope you’ve got something I like”, I said as I poked my head around the door. Martin looked up, smiled, and grabbed a stack of papers.

“I think this may suit you”, he grinned. He passed me 3 files. They were headed James Hurst, Jeremy Walker and Joe Anderson. I knew of Anderson, he was ex-Lincoln. Hurst was an ex-Baggie, but was now kicking around in the lower leagues, whilst Walker was a new one on me.

I looked at Martin, waiting for him to speak.

“What do you think?” He looked pleased with himself. In reality, I was pleased; they looked like three decent players. However, they weren’t centre backs.

“I’ll have a proper look. Any centre backs, I needed them most?”

“Oh…” Martin tailed off. The smile had gone, and from the look on his face, I guessed he’d forgotten. “I kinda forgot, I got too wrapped up in these guys”

I wasn’t impressed. One word crossed my mind. Sacking. I decided that was the best course of action, I couldn’t afford a shoddy scouting team.

“Look Martin, I appreciate your efforts, but I’m going to have to let you go. I needed centre backs, you got me full backs. I can’t have that poor standard of work in my team. Should you need a reference, I’ll give you one, but your time at Lincoln is over.”

He took one look at me, and walked out the room. I figured that wouldn’t be the last I heard of that.​
 
11th​ July

Trial Day. This was going to be a long one. I was already in a bad mood by the time I reached the ground. I’d received an email from Paul Montgomery, rejecting my Chief Scout offer to join Grimsby. I was seething, more so that I’d lost a target to a rival. My bad mood was then made worse by the second email I read, this time from Dorrian. Apart from the inevitable anger at me sacking my chief scout, he’d refused to allow me more coaches.

“****”, I swore and kicked the gate as I walked past it. I knew he’d done it out of spite. I’d approached Nolan Kealey and Joe Corrigan with a view to them joining my backroom staff, but that looked in danger. I decided to go for broke, and instructed Grant to inform David Preece, the aging pro, that I no longer needed his services. I can imagine that went well. I went and stood with John Schofield, who was to lead the trial day with Grant out on scouting duties for me down south.

“How we looking?”

“Not bad, but not great either I’m afraid” Schofield replied. “Couple of players you may want to look at, but I’m not promising much.” He pointed to one of the strikers doing shooting practice.

“That is Adam Nkusu, I’d keep a close eye on him today.” As he said that, Nkusu slipped, and landed ungainly in a heap on the floor. I raised an eyebrow.

“That was bad timing” Schofield backtracked. “He’s been very good so far, apparently garnering interest both here and in France”

I pondered for a moment. I hadn’t really considered that I would need a striker, but I wasn’t going to complain with one available.

“I’ll keep an eye on him from up there”, I said as I gestured towards the stand. “I’ll catch you after the game, I’ve got calls to make”

We shook hands, and I wandered off in the vague direction of the stand.

In the end, the game wasn’t bad. A 3-3 draw, in which Nkusu put in a late leveller. I jotted down on my notepad to ring his agent in the morning and get to work. I’d got Tomlinson and Burrow, but at 20 years old, Nkusu could put in a shift as well if we needed him. Provided he stayed on his feet this time at least.

View attachment 266215​
 
I met Nkusu and his agent in a small café by the Brayford. It was a pleasant little area, very scenic, and I knew that it would be a suitable location for the task in hand. I saw the two approach, and stood.

“Greeting guys, it’s good to meet with you.” I’d gone for the full charm offensive. This was partly down to wanting to secure a signing, because I’d received a call for Port Vale this morning. It was a short call, informing me Dodds wouldn’t be joining after all.

“I saw the goal you scored yesterday in the friendly, I’m impressed”, I continued. “Based on what I saw, and from what my coaches were telling me, we feel that you would settle in well at the club if you want to join us.” Adam’s face looked positively radiant, but his agent got straight down to business.

“I appreciate the interest, so we’ll put this in simple terms. We won’t move from 1.1k basic wage, with bonuses. We have other interest, so we don’t have to wait around for you”. He was in a forceful mood, but fortunately, I knew this was coming. I’d been prepared to offer higher, so I could live with his offer.

After some minor haggling over a yearly wage increase, Adam spoke. His English wasn’t great, but having spent a small amount of time down the road at Forest, he’d picked a couple of things up.

“I’d like to erm, thank you for your interest.” He paused for a moment while he looked for the right words. His agent read the situation and stepped in.

“What Adam is trying to say is that we find the offer very agreeable, but we’d like a couple of days to consider it.” After a quick translation, Adam nodded. We shook hands, finished our coffees, and went our separate ways.

View attachment 266213

As I headed down the high street, back towards the office, I sent a text to Grant.

“Keep me informed re: Tonbridge game, I’m off to find us a new scout”

I needed that scout badly, or we were going to be in big trouble. The staff were stretched thin as it was, and we still needed more players. I sighed. Things were not quite going to plan.​
 
The text said 4-1 Tonbridge. I wasn’t in the office that day, but I was fuming. For their sakes, it was probably best I wasn’t there. I sent back the following:

“Drill them to within an inch of their life. Make it clear that will never happen again. Also, take the defenders out of full session, they’ll be working on co-ordination, communication, and how to tackle. They’ll be doing that until they’ve remembered how to play football”

View attachment 266207

It was long winded, but necessary. I rand my hand through my hair and turned back to my laptop. The reason I wasn’t in the office is that I was on my way to sign the contract off with Joe Corrigan, my new keeping coach. He was based in Manchester, but for a coach of his quality, I could make some small sacrifices. There weren’t many clubs that could boast an ex-England keeper in their ranks.

View attachment 266206

I looked at my laptop screen. Still nothing from Nkusu, and a brief note from Leicester telling me McCourt wasn’t joining. I’d not expected much from that deal, so I deleted the email, and got on with the next job: scout hunting.
I'd finally settled on John Milton and George Rooney. Both were getting on in years, but I figured that age equalled experience. More importantly, I hoped age equalled contacts, and that I may finally get some players in.​
 
Enjoy this, similar to the Alpha Romeo Methaphor by Enrico Pucci with the detail and storytelling. Really enjoying this.
 
Yeah mate, your writing style is brilliant! Very immersive & entertaining. Enrico finally has some competition ;)
 
Lippo255 said:
Yeah mate, your writing style is brilliant! Very immersive & entertaining. Enrico finally has some competition ;)
Click to expand...

I think Enrico has the advantage of sample size, 160 odd pages over his two stories! But this is a very impressive start for sure, loving it!
 
PatrickLFC said:
I think Enrico has the advantage of sample size, 160 odd pages over his two stories! But this is a very impressive start for sure, loving it!
Click to expand...

Wasn't saying its there yet just that I'm enjoying his style just as much. Don't think anyone will ever match the masterpiece that is the Alfa stories tbh
 
The last couple of days had been fairly hectic. First up was the signing of scouts Milton and Rooney. With a decent scouting team behind me, I was slightly more confident. They’d also directed me towards a couple of centre backs that I may want to look at, namely Jonathan Fortune and Mark Arber.

More important though, was the event that took place yesterday. Nkusu finally rang to confirm that he would be joining us. To say I was delighted was an understatement. We knew he was probably playing a level below where he should be, but we were confident it would turn out well for us.

View attachment 266127

With a friendly against Colchester coming up, I’d been applying the pressure in training. They were two leagues above us, and we needed a good performance if we were to get anything this time. I wouldn’t be there though; I was off to the England Trial Day. I wasn’t holding out much hope, but the last trials day worked for me, so I was hoping for 2nd​ time lucky.​
 
Fantastic read mate. Love the detail you put in without over doing it to keep us hooked. Look forward to more. :)
 
As I travelled back from Potters Bar, I reflected on the day’s business. The game itself had been pretty entertaining, with 5 goals for me to watch. I was more focused on the contracts I’d offered out though. I’d had time to catch a couple of the players before they left.

James Rowe was an ex-Tranmere centre midfielder. He’d spent time at Reading in his youth as well. I only found that after though. I’d offered him a contract on the basis that he had run the show from the centre of the park. It was a dominant performance from the 22 year old, and I’d envisaged him taking control in the centre alongside Power if I could get him.

The second fellow is a Colombian by the name of Esteban Lopez. He’d spent time at Newcastle before, and had English nationality, so work permits weren’t going to be an issue. I wasn’t the first to get to him though. A couple of people had tried to speak to his agent during the game, and as I approached, I recognised the Millwall assistant, David Livermore, leaving with a smile on his face. We nodded to each other as he walked past.
We had a quick discussion, and I handed him the offer I was prepared to give. I was told he’d pass the offer on, and I’d hear back in the next few days.

Getting off the train at Lincoln, I texted Schofield. I’d sent him down to the other match, while Grant prepared the squad for the friendly the next day.

“Anything of note? Still need a centre back!”

My phone buzzed almost immediately.

“2 players, have dispatched scouts. Battipiedi and Tumwa. Will get you details ASAP”

I texted back my thanks, and smiled. Seems like we were two for two on trials days. Hopefully that luck carries through into the start of the season.​
 
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