BACK WITH MILITARY PRECISION
‘Magic’ Martin chooses Rocks over Forces role
PAUL MARTIN had been training to join the Army Reserves – but couldn’t give up the chance to make a return to football as East Thurrock United’s new manager.
The 43-year-old had spent 15 years in charge at Romford but was unceremoniously dismissed when Glenn Tamplin, inset, took over last November.
‘Magic’ Martin, an old nickname taken from a newspaper headline during his playing days when he once scored three consecutive hat-tricks, was considering a new career until the Rocks came calling.
Long-standing boss John Coventry, who has linked up with Keith Rowland’s Aveley, had announced his intention to step down at the end of the season following 13 superb years at the helm–and his good friend has now taken over.
“We speak almost every other day about things,”
Martin told
The NLP.
“It’s going to be very hard to fill his shoes, what he’s done for that club is next to none. just happy to be back in football, it’s been tough. I’ve had some hard times and managed to get through them with my family around me. “I had always thought about going into the Army. They’ve changed the agegroups now, I was trying to work out a little bit and get myself fit to see whether I could go into the reserves. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do if I wasn’t doing football. I’ve got a lot of respect for my country and it would have been nice to serve them. But now I’ve got a chance in football again it’s something I’ve got to put on the backburner.”
Martin is one of the most well-respected managers in Non-League for the job he did at Romford, constantly battling against the odds without a budget.
Messages
He won the Essex Senior League title in 2009 and managed to maintain the club’s Step 4 status ever since.
Now Martin is looking forward to a new task at East Thurrock, who are in transition off the pitch following the sad death of popular own“I’m er Ben Bennett in December with Steve Wiseman becoming chairman.
“It’s a new challenge ahead, a new committee, I’ve got my opinions and ways of doing things and we’ll see what comes up,” added Martin. “Whether there’s money or no money, it’s not why I do it. I try to bring the youngsters through and enjoy the game. My phone hasn’t stopped in the last 24 hours or so with messages which is nice.
“I love Non-League and the friends and people involved. I’ve got a chance to move forward and it’s the first time I’ve managed a club where they’ve got a stadium of our own!”