Whether clearing the decks to allow the Class of ‘92 to flourish, hiring young coaches or selling Roy Keane in 2005, the Scot was never afraid to twist on a winning hand.
It is, says Paul Chow, a trait shared by Ian Chandler, the legendary Whitley Bay manager whose unique hat-trick of FA Vase wins may never be matched.
“I spent seven years playing for Chan,” says the striker, who scored 270 goals for the Tyneside club, four of them in those Wembley finals.
“But it’s only now that I appreciate how good he was at improving the team. When I joined in 2007, they’d just won the Northern League. But he signed me, brought Paul Robinson in, and we ended up being two really successful players.
“The following year we got to the semi-finals of the Vase, and you’re thinking ‘If we can just keep this team together…’. But he brought in Leon Ryan and Craig McFarlane and we won it.
“Every year was like that – a couple of changes that changed the dynamic and made us better.
“People would leave and you’d think to yourself, ‘He shouldn’t be moved on’. But the person who came in would invariably help the balance of the team. Chan could always see the bigger picture. Without that, I don’t think we’d have won those three Vases.
“It helped that he probably had his pick of players at that level with Whitley doing so well. But you still have to pick the right ones, and he did.”
Chandler’s eye for talent is perhaps no surprise given that he possessed a considerable amount himself.
Denne historien er fra June 21, 2020-utgaven av The Non-League Football Paper.
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Denne historien er fra June 21, 2020-utgaven av The Non-League Football Paper.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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CRAIG'S BOOSTS
MANAGERIAL stalwart Craig Edwards is back in charge of Barking – 23 years after he left!
LENNIE GETS THE LOVE
VETERAN caretaker chief Lennie Lawrence says he is “excited” to be handed the reins at Hartlepool United permanently – just a few weeks before his 77th birthday!
MOTORS FEELS LIKE HOLMES!
WHEN he was younger, Danny Holmes played video games that simulated being a football manager.
REES HITS FAB FOUR AS TOWN ROMP IT
RICARDO REES struck four times to help Merthyr Town maintain their spot at the top of the table with a dominant home win against play-off chasing Havant & Waterlooville.
DULWICH DISPLAY DELIGHTS COACHES
GOALS from Danny Mills, Luke Wanadio and Lorenzo’s stoppage-time finish fired Dulwich Hamlet to a comfortable win over fellow play-off hopefuls Potters Bar Town, though the scoreline doesn’t tell the full story.
ANCHORS A RAPID
ASHTON UNITED hit two goals in two minutes to come from behind to win at Stockton Town.
SEAGULLS KEEP THE HEAT ON ROMANS
BATH City were made to pay for their mistakes by high-flying Weston-super-Mare.
CLINICAL COLEMAN KEEN AS MUSTARD
CIAN COLEMAN’S hat-trick lifted Buxton to their highest league position of the season as they became the latest side to frustrate Scunthorpe.
KEV SEES RED IN REE PANT!
SOUTHEND United boss Kevin Maher hit out at referee Abigail Byrne following his side’s defeat to Yeovil Town at Roots Hall.
MARVEL MATTY DENIES MOORS
BOTH managers insisted their teams deserved more after Altrincham came from behind to steal a point in a six-goal thriller at Solihull Moors.