Saints Academy...for managers

[david in sweden]

Lots is written ...very regularly by contributors talking about how we " lose " Academy players to other sides, and then become successful. The main reasons that lads leave are (1) they really aren't good enough at that age - some develop later and (2) at last count... we're still only allowed to use 11 players at any one time, and you can't keep everyone .

However, in anticipation of Charltons game I noted that thier manager Phil Parkinson (Saints junior 1985-88) is YET ANOTHER former Saints youth player. (The Academy is a 21st century creation).

Paul Tisdale is currently holding the reigns at Exeter and quite a number of others have taken up managerial jobs at different levels, after having started their careers, or at least having played a significant part of it with Saints.

Former schoolboy Lawrie Sanchez (1974-78) also got to be manager of N.I. and Dennis Wise had been around a bit recently as manager at Leeds and Newcastle.

 

Of course, some people will say we shouldn't have let them go and so on, but the list maybe a little longer than you might think. Anyone willing to contribute other names of past juniors, (or even seniors) who made it to the managers office.?

Edited 8 April, 2010 by david in sweden

[Crab Lungs]

David Hughes, temporarily at Eastleigh. Shame he got injured as he promised to be an awesome midfielder.

 

Ummm.... Dennis Wise?

[BGF]

Tony Knapp, Iceland national football team manager 1974-1977 & 1984-1985.

Edited 8 April, 2010 by BGF
Additional dates

[Crab Lungs]

I'm sure Christer Warren had a pop somewhere local, non-league, Dorset way too...

[Danbert]

David Hughes, temporarily at Eastleigh. Shame he got injured as he promised to be an awesome midfielder.

 

Ummm.... Dennis Wise?

 

Dennis Wise was on our books as a youth team player.

[krissyboy31]

Ian Baird and Martin Foyle.

[buctootim]

Nick Holmes, Ian Dowie. TBH though, if you look at the sheer number of junior and senior players who have passed through Saints over the years, its surprising more dont surface.

[krissyboy31]

Nick Holmes, Ian Dowie. TBH though, if you look at the sheer number of junior and senior players who have passed through Saints over the years, its surprising more dont surface.

 

If the criteria is Academy players/Apprentices, then Holmes would qualify but not Dowie. Shearer of course had a brief encounter with management last season, so he would count.

[gogo_saint]

Alan Shearer!

[Give it to Ron]

Sir Alf ..... ok may have been slightly too old for the academy ;-)

[krissyboy31]

John Sillett. Saints career a little before my time but remember the Cov Cup Final win as if it were yesterday.

[Paul Chuckle]

David Hughes, temporarily at Eastleigh. Shame he got injured as he promised to be an awesome midfielder.

 

Ummm.... Dennis Wise?

 

David Hughes such a waste

 

Paul Tisdale ex youth doing ok manager wise

[saintquin]

I know Tommy Widdrington (at Salisbury with Nick Holmes) started at Wigan but, I don't know at what age he joind Saints

[derry]

Alan Knill at Bury, Steve Davis asst man at Bolton.

[Redondo Saint]

Does being a bar manager count?

 

We had loads of them!

[SarniaSaint]

Anyone on here remember Ted Bates?

[Badger]

Anyone on here remember Ted Bates?

 

As a manager,yes.

 

Doubt many will remember him as a player though,especially on here.

[westofshannonsaint]

Jeff Kenna had a good first season in management with Galway Utd. Followed by a pretty poor season with St. Patricks' Athletic.

[oxfordshire_saint]

Tim Flowers has been caretaker manager at a couple of clubs.

[70's Mike]

Tim Flowers has been caretaker manager at a couple of clubs.

 

at Hull with Steve Wigley helping Dowie

[oxfordshire_saint]

at Hull with Steve Wigley helping Dowie

 

Yeah, he tends to follow Dowie about, was with him at Cov and QPR too.

[Badger]

Tim Flowers has been caretaker manager at a couple of clubs.

 

GK coach at Chelt for a while too.

[Psycrow]

Jeff Kenna had a good first season in management with Galway Utd.

 

And you couldn't even call what he ran that club on a shoestring

[ozzmeister]

Carlton Palmer at Stockport (I think) obviously not a youth. Dodd, was Matt Sven ever assistant manager with us?

[oxfordshire_saint]

Neil Maddison's been knocking around at Darlington for a while now, always get the caretaker job when they sack a manager, think he's a youth coach there by trade though.

[david in sweden]

As a manager,yes.

 

Doubt many will remember him as a player though,especially on here.

 

well of course, that WAS a long time ago..but getting back to the original topic..yes quite a lot of former players have ventured into coaching and management. I did consider that some of our former Academy lads who didn't make the cut at 19, made their way up through non League and lower league teams and eventually got the most unenviable job in football ..namely managing a " not-so-successful " team.

As for them ...they may have learned a lot from the coaches they had at SFC, whilst the journeyman players cum coach-manager have probably picked up a lot more along the way. The real success stories are those who are good tacticians and have players that are " coachable ". Many of the leading managers did not play at the highest level, and few were ever international players of note.

 

Although there are some successes... in general...good players do not make good managers. Ian Dowie is on his third ...? fourth club ? at Hull and doesn't look too promising just now and his main claim to fame was getting C. Palace in the play-offs some years back but apart from that ... not much to write home about. Others may get some success but will eventually lose their jobs when they have to sell their best player(s) to survive and the team never recovers and is relegated.

Tough life, but good to see that there are those who at least try.

[LeBenali]

I'm sure Christer Warren had a pop somewhere local, non-league, Dorset way too...

 

Think it may have been Wimborne.

[Junior Mullet]

Was ****erill ever a youth player? If so he managed Woking.