WE WOULD KOP IT FROM ALDO!
WHO inspires the inspirations in the ever-changing world of football? Which traits stand the test of time?
In the latest of our series we pick the brains of Hartlepool United boss Dave Challinor.
He became a hero on the Wirral as underdogs Tranmere Rovers reached the 2000 League Cup final and he has been back to Wembley twice as a manager, winning the FA Trophy but missing out on a place in the Football League with AFC Fylde.
Despite going so close to a fourth promotion in eight glorious years, he was sacked in October before Pools swiftly swooped for his services.
WHO WAS YOUR GAFFER AND WHY? GREATEST
You take bits from everyone but I would say the manager who I got on with and helped me the most was Graham Barrow at Bury.
It was a time when I was thinking about what to do after my playing career, I had a lot of responsibility there and that helped me in so many ways.
In terms of success it would have to be John Aldridge at Tranmere.
WHAT IS YOUR TOP MEMORY OF PLAYING FOR GRAHAM OR JOHN?
Aldo had come from being a player at the very top level. All of a sudden he was managing Tranmere and the players couldn’t do what they did at Liverpool.
He would shout and scream. Sometimes things happen in dressing rooms that tend to stay in there, fallouts with players and the like, and I remember he had a bit of a dig at one of the senior lads at Port Vale.
I think we were two down and Aldo wasn’t too happy. The lad didn’t react too well, so much so he said that’s me and headed for the shower. As a young player you sit there and it is so surreal, thinking ‘I’m not sure what’s happening here’.
There were some feisty battles with Sam Allardyce and Bolton, those two certainly didn’t get on. I don’t know why.
The clubs seemed to stumble across each other quite a lot, culminating in the League Cup semi-final when we beat them and went to Wembley.
There are plenty more with Aldo, kicking skips and leaving his toes in a bit of a mess, teacups being thrown.
The tea was not great because we wore suits, certainly for home games.
Your white shirt would be covered, not the look you wanted if you were going out after a game!
HOW HAVE THEY INFLUENCED YOUR STYLE OF MANAGEMENT?
Graham is very old school. He had been at Chester for a long time under Harry McNally who was legendary for some of his antics.
As a player I was used to being motivated by managers who were pretty stern. That was how the majority did things in those days, there wasn’t a huge amount of man management.
Graham would be very involved in games and still saw it from a player’s perspective so he would get frustrated with things. Aldo was similar and so was I when I went into management.
I found the first 18 months as a manager really tough in terms of my expectations, especially after coming out of the full-time game. It was not about the results because
I knew we could win games with what we had, it was more the individuals.
Some will say demands can never be too high but I wasn’t accepting of the little mistakes. When I look back it was ridiculous but you play the game from the sidelines and head and kick every ball. As you become more experienced, you recognise what you’re looking to get from the group.
Even in my time in management things have moved on because the game does. Even at National League level you have to manage players differently whether or not you agree with that.
Players from my era were certainly made of different stuff in terms of their requirements and expectations, things have moved on and you are tested in different ways.
There are different characters and people from different backgrounds. You need to find out more detail about what is going on with a player, there are lots more issues in modern-day life whereas 1015 years ago it would be a case of there’s nothing wrong with you, get on with it.
Whether that sets you up any better down the line is a matter for debate but things have certainly evolved and if you are pushing yourself as a manager, you need to adapt to it.
GRAHAM IS STILL IN THE GAME BUT HOW WOULD JOHN’S STYLE OF MANAGEMENT FIT TODAY?
When Aldo left Tranmere I didn’t think he could go back in.
He had an unbelievable playing career and in my opinion – and this isn’t from him – I think he felt slightly obliged to take the job as a legend of the club.
It was probably different to what he expected. Once he came out and went into the media you could hear his passion, he is a massive Liverpool fan and that comes across in his work.
Any manager from that era would need to adapt to what people’s expectations are and what you find within dressing rooms now but Aldo always adapted as a player and I am sure if he got back involved he would do that again.
ANY OTHER INFLUENCES?
When I first went into Tranmere I had a few injuries. A lot of it was down to going from no training to full-time at the age of 18.
I got to know Les Parry really well. He was physio at Tranmere and went on to manage the club, he was involved on the medical side at Man United and now deals with the loans so he has had a broad career.
From the start I really enjoyed the football environment. A lot of people come away from it and want to do something different but for me it was always about trying to stay in.
I did coaching badges and a physiotherapy degree and that came from Les’s influence.
I still have that as a backup. I love coaching and managing and hopefully it will continue for a long time but having as many strings to your bow as possible is massively important and Les played a big part in that, particularly at the start of my career.