NEIL TOOTH: A NEW INTERVIEW WITH HEDNESFORD TOWN'S MANAGER...

An Interview With Hednesford Town's Manager NEIL TOOTH... 

NEIL IN FAMILY MOOD...

Neil was born and raised in Smethwick, meaning he is a West Brom fan... This makes me smile because whilst in Verona last week, a waiter told me he supported Juventus and Chelsea but he had a liking for WBA... My mouth must have dropped open and all I could think of to say, was: "Why?"

I asked Neil which teams he had played for and also managed in his long career:

"I played for M&B, Sandwell Borough, Rushall Olympic, Atherstone, Blackheath Electrodrive, Bolehall Swifts, Rossington Main and Hatfield Main.

PLAYING DAYS...

I have since coached or managed at  Retford United, Sutton Coldfield Town and am currently the latest boss at Hednesford Town."

I first came across Neil when he was at Retford in 2008-09, my first non-league season and I remarked in a never before seen article: 

'Both squads were warming up and Stocksbridge Park Steels, including JAMIE VARDY of course looked eager to prepare for the fray but Retford appeared to be less organised. Coach Neil Tooth was profane, if purposeful, leading the motley and cursing crew in a series of knee and heel lifts, followed by piggy-backs. Fortunately, robust brick shithouse striker Mick Godber was probably still straining to tie his bootlaces at this time and his unsuspecting colleagues were therefore not subjected to bulk cement landing heavily upon their slender frames. The Badgers had certainly created a great deal of noise and sputum during their warm-up, accompanied by the strained scraping sound of a snoring sow with sinusitis as the projectiles were loaded into the throat for flobbing...

Godber then jogged onfield and found the lifting of heels and thighs just a little demanding and simply, well, kind of, jogged, I guess… Then he stopped and used his ‘assistant’ role to ‘discuss’ and therefore didn't have to be physical, avoiding the embarrassment of piggyback partner demolition. Coach Tooth’s next direct and technical preparation was bellowed loudly and entitled: "Have a stretch and let’s get the f*****' balls out..."

The bloke sitting next to me was a Steels fan and he later yelled out: 
"He’s a bleeding arsehole, isn’t he, that ref?" 
then aimed his next comment at Retford Coach Tooth, "Sit down you dumpling..."  
Unwise, I reckoned at the time...' 

AT RETFORD...

When asked which periods of his playing and managerial careers he would consider his most successful, Neil reckoned:

"Well, my playing career was stop/start if I'm honest as I struggled with injuries. My coaching/managing career has been much more successful. At Retford we were very successful, winning 3 league titles and numerous cups. As assistant at Sutton we won the Birmingham Senior Cup and then as manager I led the side to promotion to the Northern Premier League.

 I was always happy playing  football at whatever level, as you can't beat it. I enjoy managing but it doesn't have the same buzz as playing and I still have the occasional run out for my local over 35s. It sounds cringeworthy but being appointed manager of such a big club as Hednesford has got to be up there... I've not stopped smiling since my appointment..."

OK, so Neil plays for an over 35s team? Surely it's the over 60s by now, mate? 

Anyway, I asked him whether there were any coaches or managers that he had actually learned valuable advice from and if so, who they were and what things he had learned:

"I've learned from every manager or coach I've worked with as everyone is different and it's not always the good things you pick up. One of the biggest things I have learned was when I was still playing. I was on the bench a fair amount of the time at one club and the manager never told me the reason why I wasn't playing and it always stuck with me that if I didn't know why I wasn't playing, how could I improve and what did I need to do to get picked? Because of that I always tell my players why they are not starting. They might not always want to hear it and they hardly ever agree but at least they know my reasons." 

 Coaches and managers are different in my opinion.
 A good coach should be able to be proactive and reactive and not regimental. Every player has different ways of absorbing information; some like to be told, some like to be shown and some both, so a good coach should be able to incorporate all of these ideals. If a player is not engaged in a session it can have a snowball effect on the rest  of the squad.

A good manager needs to be able to juggle a multitude of jobs  and link everything and everyone at the football club. You can't do this job at half-measure as it consumes you and if you are not fully committed to it then you won't get the results. The ability to listen, think on your feet and communicate are also vital." 

When asked what qualities he looked for in his players, perhaps strength, fitness, size, skills, individuality or pace, Neil responded:

"A mixture of all of those really. Managers  know the league and we all have our own ideas of what we think is needed to be a success. You can have the best players and pay the most money but if your dressing room is not a good environment you will fail. A lot depends on how you want to set up and that's why you see some teams that are just big, fit and strong.

Attitude is a big factor with me and players have to be joining my squads for the right reasons. If the first question they ask is about money rather than ambition, then they are not for me."

2008-09 WITH THE BADGERS OF RETFORD UNITED...

I asked Neil which players, both team-mates and opponents had impressed him during his playing career and more importantly during his managerial experiences:

"I think when you work with players that have come from the pro' game they tend to have very high standards and I like that especially if it can give the dressing room more professionalism. I've been lucky to have worked with some very good ex-pros like Peter Duffield, Michael Simpkins, Ryan Ford, Darryl Taylor, Justin Richards and Luke Rogers, and all of them impressed me by the way they carried themselves both on and off the pitch.

I've been blessed with some very good players in my teams but I think the squad which won promotion with Sutton Coldfield Town would have to be my best so far. We were never in anyone's list of teams that could get promoted and we just went about our business.

In January we had basically thrown any chance we had away, meaning we had to win 8 of our remaining games to even stand a chance of getting into the play-offs. We won 8, drew 1 and lost 1... We then went away to Newcastle Town in the play-off semi-final and won 3-1, then beat Leek Town 2-0 at their place in the final, having previously lost to them 3 times that season with an aggregate score of 11-1 against... "

I asked Neil what he thought were his strengths and weaknesses as a manager:

"My strength I'd like to think is my man management and my ability to adapt. My weakness is also one of my strengths in my opinion and that is being very loyal... 

That is changing though as now I can't afford to be so loyal with players who are not performing, for I have been too lenient in the past. Players will always find clubs but that's not the case with managers and 6 months out of the game has meant a lot of reflection about things I'd do differently." 

Asked about any controversial incidents from his career that he could tell me about, Neil must have smiled when he recalled:

"I once got sent off at Grantham for kicking the ball at the referee. I didn't, I was just trying to get the game started quickly and the ball hit the ref' when I kicked it on. He was adamant that I had aimed for him and I told him he had obviously never seen me play, as passing was not one of my strongest points..."

 Neil named Sir Alex Ferguson as a top manager for what he had achieved and being able to reinvent his side when needed. As for his favourite player: 

"Gazza was my favourite player of all time but I also loved to watch Paul Ince play. I'll be honest, I don't really enjoy watching football on the TV unless its a big game because it's kind of like a busman's holiday."

I wondered whether it was because Neil is an Albyun fan that he doesn't enjoy watching football, nor sees 'big games' but he will correct me on that point, no doubt... 

"Peter Duffield is someone I speak to every day and his advice has really helped me but without the support of my family then I would not be able to commit the time needed to being a manager. My staff have also had a massive impact on my career and of course you need very good players to have any sort of success and I've had plenty of those... 

Hopefully I'll be at Hednesford for the long haul and with that I hope there will be trophies won. There is no point being involved if you don't have ambitions but I don't have a burning desire to work in the Football League. I have learned from the way my tenure ended at Sutton that you don't really have much control of your future and if someone decides your time is up there is not much you can do about it, regardless of how much success you have had or even considering the job you have done."

Amusing incidents, Neil?

"There are numerous stories but not many that you could print. The dressing room can be a dark place for crazy goings on.

One of the funniest incidents happened to me though  when I was at Retford United and we played against Garforth Town who were being managed by the controversial Simon Clifford. We were in a tight game and it was 1-1 at half-time but in the second-half a woman stood next to our dugout and whenever we tried to shout out any instructions, she would let off an air-horn.

It was mad and we ended up having to pretend to say something, then stop, then go again; it was crazy. We won the game regardless and when we were walking off the pitch I asked Simon about it and he said "Oh yeah, that's my wife.

It was actually one of his weird and wonderful ideas..."  

Thanks Neil, your time and effort has been really appreciated...

All the very best at Hednesford Town, where my 'relative' and current Staybridge Celtic manager Steve Burr once played...