Rick Holden says keeping FC Isle of Man in the North West Counties Premier Division ranks among the hardest jobs in his 30-year coaching career.
Holden took over with the club in a relegation battle and admits the challenge was far greater than he anticipated.
“It quickly dawned on me how naive they were in terms of some things,” Holden said. “Training was a mess. Tuesday night at 9 o’clock or 9.30 or something daft, and then on a Wednesday down at Castletown at six.”
The manager overhauled the schedule and embraced an attacking philosophy to allow the side to play its way to safety.
“We just got training to be fun and attacking. Play some heavy metal football,” he said. “If you want to escape relegation, you can’t operate defensively because the opposition will have you. You’ve got to push them back.”
Toll
The relentless travel and fixture list, which with 46 games was the biggest league in the non-league system, took a heavy toll.
“It is the toughest gig I’ve had in my football management time, which is about 30 years,” he said.
Looking ahead to league restructuring, Holden backed the reduction from 46 games down to 38. “That format is the biggest outside the football league. It was too long.”
He added: “I’m very proud of it. Job done.”