IT’S A WILD THING
A tactical tweak has put Pete Wild’s FC Halifax Town back in promotion contention
A TACTICAL tweak from manager Pete Wild has seen FC Halifax Town storm back into the promotion mix.
Since a 5-1 hammering at Stockport County on Boxing Day, which left the Shaymen with just one win in 11 league games, Wild has taken action to prevent their play-off hopes from sliding away.
“When you get a kicking like that it did force my hand to do something about it,” Wild, the National League’s January manager of the month, told The NLP. “You’re thinking we’ll come through this sticky spell but we just weren’t.
“I believe we started the season trying not to get beat and taking on teams on the break. That worked but then we weren’t ‘plucky little Halifax’ anymore. Teams changed the way they played against us and we needed to change, but I didn’t really have the personnel to play the formation we wanted. We were struggling to get people out, to get people in.
“There’s no getting away from that we’ve got one of the lowest budgets in the league, we came in nine days before the season started and the squad is what it was then, 85 per cent of it. We haven’t been able to change much. I think it would be an enormous achievement if we get into the play-offs.”
Wild has finally been able to change formation to three at the back and Halifax are now eight unbeaten in all competitions since that fateful day at Edgeley Park.
The new tactic has allowed recent arrivals Jack Redshaw and Salford City loanee Devante Rodney to support Tobi Sho-Silva in attack while proving more defensively sound.
“Our main problems were we weren’t getting enough men in their box and we were conceding too many from wide areas,” explained Wild. “This has allowed us to be a threat in both boxes. We’ve now stopped conceding from silly set pieces, touch wood.
“Fair play to the players it’s them that have gone out there and took the little things we asked them to do, the principles and implemented it. I can’t praise them enough for their attitude and application to change our fortunes.”
Burgeoning
But although he won’t admit it himself, Wild, who had two spells as caretaker manager at his boyhood club Oldham Athletic before getting the permanent role, has proved his worth in his burgeoning managerial career with his changes.
“This experience has taught me a lot at myself and coaching at the adult level,” said Wild who has a host of new ideas after attending a League Managers Association event on Wednesday where England manager Gareth Southgate and assistant Steve Holland gave a coaching masterclass on defending.
“I have to give the chairman [David Bosomworth] massive credit for letting me get on with it, he lets me run the club the way I see fit,
football-wise, and hopefully I’m proving I’ve actually got a chance at this level with what we’ve done, and long may that continue.
“It’s been a great club to learn at, make mistakes, and learn from them. I’ve got lots to learn, I’m nowhere near where I want to be but I feel like I’m at a club that’s helping my development.
“One thing I’ve learned in abundance is not to get carried away.”