TV TURN-OFF AND A TITLE, DOWSE IS A GOL-DEN GUY!
Telly debut had to be abandoned when interviewer couldn’t understand his accent...
HE’S the genial Geordie who brought glory to Thames-side – all while baffling the natives with his machine-gun patter!
Whether at Walton & Hersham, Kingstonian or, most recently, Hampton & Richmond, Alan Dowson guarantees two things as a manager – promotion and incomprehensible interviews.
Here, the 46-year-old former Millwall and Bradford defender tells us which mega-permed hatchet man was his most terrifying opponent, which striker represents his best bit of business and why last season’s Ryman Premier title with Hampton was the sweetest moment of his career.
Best of all, this interview was conducted by a fellow Geordie. We shouldn’t face the same problems as poor old Sky TV did!
FIRST CLUB
As a player, it was Millwall under George Graham then John Docherty, a little Scotsman who is probably my biggest influence as a manager. I learned so much from him.
In management, it was Walton & Hersham. I’d been a player there for ten years when Terry Back walked out in October 2004.
At the time, my knee was starting to give way a bit. I’d had an operation and was starting to do a bit of coaching in the background, so management was on my mind.
Staying in the game was all I wanted. I never took an exam at school. I’m thick as two short planks at everything else you can think of!
I’ve always said I would never backstab my way into any job, but I’d said to the chairman ‘Look, if anything does happen with Terry, I’d like to be considered’.
He gave me a chance and it was perfect timing. My first training session, we had only six players, so I basically got to build my own side. But we went on a 13match winning streak and actually ended up winning promotion. It was a fantastic time.
BEST SIGNING
This goes right back to my first season at Walton, when we were chasing AFC Wimbledon at the top of Ryman Division One.
Like I say, we’d gone on that 13game streak, but we were really struggling to score goals. We had something like 17 1-0 wins and it was obvious we needed someone to push us over the line.
So, with 14 games to go, I signed a lad called Paul Harkness from Farnborough. I’d played with Paul and knew he was decent, but it was still a gamble so late in the season.
He was excellent. He scored 14 goals in 14 games, including a hat-trick in a 4-0 win against Wimbledon. It’s the best piece of business I’ve ever done.
BEST TEAM-MATE
Teddy Sheringham at Millwall. No doubt.You could see straight away he was destined for greatness.
Everyone knows Ted wasn’t the quickest, but he had a great touch and an unbelievable football brain. That was his real strength. He saw things and anticipated them four or five seconds quicker than everybody else. He had strong opinions and got great respect because he demanded high standards from everyone, even in training. And he had stacks of confidence. Even at a young age, you got the impression he knew he’d play at the highest level. It’s no surprise he went on to do great things with England and Manchester United.
FIRST PROMOTION
As above.Walton & Hersham in 2005.We finished runners-up to Wimbledon having come from absolutely nowhere.We sealed it with a 4-1 win over Horsham with two games to go.
At the time, you naively think it’ll last forever. It was my first season as a manager and I thought I was the next Jose Mourinho and that every season would be the same.
In reality, even the best managers can count their promotions on one hand. It’s only when you lose a few games that you learn what management really is.
FUNNIEST PLAYER
Paul Proudlock. I played with him at Gateshead and he later went on to manage. He was absolutely crackers.
He couldn’t give a monkeys about anything. Even when he played, he never had a serious moment. Everything was a joke to him.
I remember once when we played Stalybridge.We were scraping a 1-0 and the manager put Proudy on to tighten things up.
He immediately got sent off but, back in the dressing room, he tried to convince everybody it was all down to him.
That was him. He just laughed his way through life and you couldn’t lose your temper with him because you were
laughing too. I remember Colin Richarde son theold Gateshead manager who unfortunately passed away last year, saying to me that his first signing would always be Paul Proudlock. Even if he wasn’t in the team, the atmosphere he created was fantastic.
EST INCIDENT
This joke was on me, unfortunately. Back in 2004-05, when we beat Wimble don 4-0, Sky asked me to do an interview, the first time I’d ever been on TV The guy asked a question and I started talking away. Thirty seconds later, I realised the interviewer and the cameraman were just staring at me, completely clueless.
I’ve got a really strong Geordie accent and I speak very quickly at the best of times. But, because we’d just won 4-0 and I was all excited, I must have been going 100 miles an hour.
Eventually, the interviewer said ‘Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude, but I didn’t understand a single word you said.We can’t use it.’
In the end, we had to get Paul Harkness out. So, instead of getting my big head on Sky, I had to let Paul nick my big moment!
BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT
It has to be what I’ve done with Hampton & Richmond this last 18 months. When I took over in October 2014, we were bottom of the Ryman Premier.
We always felt we’d keep them up, but it was a hard, hard battle.
So, to turn things round and win the championship 12 months later is a something I’m very proud of.
LOWEST MOMENT
Coming out of professional football at 27. I’d had a dodgy knee since I was 16, then I developed arthritis in my foot. I was at Darlington at the time, but I was missing a lot of training sessions and constantly playing through pain.
There eventually came a time when the specialist said ‘Look, your knee isn’t great, your ankle isn’t great, and you’ve also got a broken bone in your foot’.
I ended up being out injured for three months and, by then, I didn’t have a contract. I had no choice but to go part-time with Gateshead.
That was tough because I loved everything about full-time football – training, playing, the overnight stops. As a manager, I can never understand when these young kids moan about training because I’d do anything to be in their position.
TOUGHEST PLACE TO GO
Millwall. I was playing for them and even I could see that the old Den was the last place you’d want to play in your life. It was a horrible, dark place, as rough and intimidating as you like. I loved my time playing there, but I would have hated to play against us. I think any old pro from that era will know what I’m talking about.
TOUGHEST OPPONENT
Terry Hurlock, who I trained against at Millwall. He was a legend down there. Terry had this huge perm and shoulders that were wider than I am tall. You just used to look at him and think ‘Bloody hell, I’m not messing with that’. I liked a tackle in my time, but I saw people literally bounce off Terry. He’d spend 90 minutes roaming the pitch, trying to kick anybody he could. And the worst thing was, he trained how he played. He didn’t think twice about kicking you all over the place, but you wouldn’t dare square up or do it back. You had people like Vinnie Jones and Mick Harford, but nobody scared me like Terry. He was a great player, a good bloke – and the hardest man I’ve ever met in football.
FAVOURITE PLACE TO GO
I went to Manchester United with Bradford in 1992. It’s obviously a special place to go. But, being a Sunderland fan, I have to say Roker Park. I went there with Millwall and made sure I scored at both ends in the warm-up!
AMBITION
As a player, I always wanted to play as high as I could. As a manager, I’m exactly the same. I’d love to be full-time again. My dream is to manage in the Football League, though I know that is shared by thousands of other managers like me. There are so many talented people out there and so few jobs to go round. All I can do is keep working hard with Hampton & Richmond, take them as high as I can and see where it gets me. I’m really happy here and I genuinely love the club.