CADBURY HEROES
Lee and Jim choc full of ideas to give Saints sweet success
With a coaching duo who used to work together at Cadbury, maybe it was inevitable that St Mirren would eventually taste success.
Jim Goodwin and Lee Sharp have had to graft for ever ything they’ve got in football.
At Alloa Athletic, where they first met four-and-a-half years ago, that involved work ing outside the game as well.
The Buddies are now reaping the rewards of the relationship and chemistry built from their time working closely ever y day in sales development for the famous chocolate firm.
With a Betfred Cup semi-final berth already booked after wins over Aberdeen and Rangers, they’ve also impressed in the Premiership. Goodwin is quickly establishing him self a s an a stute gaffer, w ith ma nmanagement skills complementing his clear tactical nous.
But while Sharp goes largely unnoticed in the background, his influence shouldn’t be under estimated. The former Dumbarton, Dundee, Clyde and Stranraer full-back rarely does interviews, with Goodwin the club’s figurehead.
But it’s their work together from Recreation Park to Paisley that has been key to their progression.
Sharp was convinced about Goodwin’s coaching credentials the firs t t im e he l i s t e n e d to h i s i de a s on t h e game and jumped at the chance to take on a job outside of his comfort zone. They’ve barely looked back since and Sharp told MailSport: “I was a coach at Alloa under Jack Ross and Jim was one of the guys he signed. We got on right away.
“He was one of the older statesmen in the group and when Jack moved on, Jim got the job, which was great.
“Than k f u l l y h e a s k e d me to s t ay w i t h him and help. ThenactuallyI got him a job with me at Cadbury.
“I’d been working there for a few years and I got him in. We ended up in the sales development.
“So we were working together all day then at night with Alloa.
“I think that tells you about Jim, in terms of his values and work ethic. “Like a lot of us, he wasn’t lucky enough to stay at the top end of the game for a length of time to make big money, s o w hen h e w e nt p a r t - t ime a t A l lo a , h e had to get a job and move into the real world.
“Thegood thing about Cadbury was that it was field based so you were out and about.
“But because he was in my team, we’d speak every day and we’d have team meetings. It was hard at work not to talk about football!
“However, it was a good job and I’d like l to think I helped him when he first started s there.”
Goodwin was successful at Alloa, w inning them promotion to the Championship C in 2018.
A year later he replaced Oran Kearney K as St Mirren boss and he has now n built a side capable of challeng ing in i the top half of the Premiership.
As a player, he had an unfair r reputation as a destroyer who, at times, lacked l discipline on the pitch.
But as a manager, Goodwin is far more m measured.
Thetactical game-plan he devised to defeat d Rangers in the Betfred Cup recently r was inventive and hugely effective. e
Sharp said: “I got a sense right away that t Jim would be a good manager. “When he took over at Alloa we were b both on the same page in terms of how w we wanted to do things.
“H e ’ s ve r y g o o d a t w h a t h e do e s , ve r y t thorough and methodical.
“We talk all the time and bounce off each e other. It’s difficultto explain – but it just works for us.
“Jim’s the manager so he makes the decisions d but he va lues my input. “I see all sides to Jim, especially when w he tries to join in the g games at training! “Listen, he’s a straight u up guy. “He has his beliefs in te terms of how he wants h is team to play. “For the Rangers victory, v he had a plan on o how t o win the game g and the players executed e it. “We do our homework and a ana lysis and for a club l ike St M Mirren, we have to findany advantage w we can.
“If that means being meticulous, so b be it. We must use ever y tool at our d isposal, to win any way we can.
“Some of the tactical stuff we did ag against Rangers sounds simple. But if it was that simple, other teams would have done it.”
Sharp’s experience at all levels of the game makes him a n i n v a l u a b l e m e m ber o f G o od w i n ’ s backroom team.
As a player, he wasn’t a product of any academy system but still made the grade as a professional. He hopes the lessons he learned on that journey – as well as being a father and former youth coach – will help him to n u rtur e St Mi r ren’s t a l e nte d c r op o f youngsters. y
Sharp said: “I’ve seen all sides of the game. g I played for Possil YM up until I was w 19 before going pro.
“I speak to my boy now who’s with Clyde C Under-19s.
“I wind him up by say ing they don’t k now how lucky they are now.
“He gets lifted and laid every where, dropped d offand picked up.
“At 16, I had to get a bus from Broomhill B to Charing Cross then another one o to Saracen Street in Possil. I had to walk w through there to get to training.
“I saw everything on that street some s nights!
“So I appreciate what I’ve got. There’s no rush for young players now, I say that to my boy. It’s just about playing and enjoying it. The opportunities w ill come.
“I tr y to pass that on to the you ng players at St Mirren. It’s not about educating them, it’s about speaking to them about the game and life in general. “We’ve got a good young squad at St Mirren, boys in the middle of the park at good ages.
“Between Cammy MacPherson at 21, Et han Erhahon at 19, Jake Doyle-Hayes is 21, Jamie McGrath 24.
“It’s exciting for the club and great for us, us in terms of how myself and Jim want the th team to play.”
If tacti agai cal nst stuff was Rang that ers othe simp rs le, woul d done