Manager’s pride,
MICHAEL Duff reflected on his greatest achievement in football as Cheltenham Town lifted the League Two championship trophy on Saturday.
The 4-1 win over Harrogate at the Jonny Rocks Stadium sealed the deal for Duff’s side as they finished on 82 points, two clear of nearest challengers Cambridge United.
Harrogate took the lead through Jack Muldoon in the seventh minute but Cheltenham responded emphatically, with their goals coming from Liam Sercombe, Sam Smith, Alfie May and Callum Wright.
“I think it’s starting to sink in now, what they’ve actually done.” said Duff.
“People might try to do it down this year, but it’s been a two-year promotion, our budget, we’ve not talked about the budget, but people should be aware of it.
“Having their legs cut from underneath us last year with the play-offs and having to respond to that.
“Having to integrate players when you can’t do a pre-season, in terms of taking them away, team bonding days. That was a difficult task in itself.
“People like Sercs (Liam Sercombe), Willo (Andy Williams) and Blairy (Matty Blair), they’ve come in and at the start of the season they have to walk in the changing room and walk about in their kit, not allowed to socialise.
“So that’s been difficult and people won’t understand.
“Pitches have been poor, condensed season, no crowds, so it’s been an unbelievable achievement.
“Rounding it off the way we did, we could have scored seven or eight.
“It is a brilliant achievement, I’m really proud. The lads have made history. We’ve talked about it for six weeks: there are lots of pictures of me and Russ (Milton, assistant manager) around the ground when we had blacker hair and were a lot slimmer.
“Get them down, put pictures of these lads up. It’s an incredible achievement.”
Duff said it was his greatest personal achievement - but was keen to pass the credit on to his players.
“It isn’t about me, but as a personal experience, 100 per cent it’s my best achievement.
“I’ve been lucky to have different sorts of promotions at different levels, but to be the leader of the group, I’d never call it my team as it’s the club’s team, the supporters’ team and the board’s team.
“Obviously, I have to stand at the front of it, but I am incredibly proud.
“It won’t sink in. I will enjoy it. Emotionally it’s draining.
“My wife and my kids have had to put up with all sorts, as they have done since they’ve known me!
“I’ve had unbelievable support my whole life, my mum and dad, my brother (Shane), the in-laws.
“I’ve been incredibly lucky to have the support to enable me to do what I want to do.
“It’s a selfish world at times: Christmas, New Year, days off aren’t days off any more.
“I have to do this and that and they give me the support to be able to do it, so I have to give thanks to them as well.”
The Robins boss also looked back on his decision to leave his role at Burnley Under-23s to take the job at Chelten- ham - and also said his predecessor Gary Johnson deserves some of the credit.
Johnson signed the likes of Ben Tozer, Conor Thomas, Sean Long, Chris Hussey, Will Boyle and Charlie Raglan - key men this season.
Duff said: “I didn’t think we could win promotion and that’s not me looking for credit.
“I believed I could improve players, thought I could give the club an identity, I have an affiliation with the club.
“From a personal point of view, I thought well if I can do that and people notice, I might be able to move on from there, if I do things right and we play half decent football.
“Once last season happens you start to think we might be onto something here.
“It happened pretty much after the Arsenal game and then we managed to recruit.
“But a lot of the players were here, so Gary (Johnson), deserves a lot of credit.
“I don’t know if he’d have made them better or not, but this is not about me.
“There are so many people who deserve credit. I am the one who has to stand and talk to you lot, but I am so appreciative of so many people: my family, the board for the opportunity, Gary for bringing decent players in before I got here.
“They weren’t doing particularly well, but they are good players.
“I am lucky, grateful and ultimately I never want to be that bloke who says “I could have done that”.
“I don’t think I’ve made it 130 or 140 games in, one promotion is great. I am still only in League One, but there is a lot of hard work and I’ll be as driven as ever.
“Whenever I do anything, I will always give it my best. That’s what I want to keep trying.
“I am pleased I did it now, definitely. “It’s been two years’ hard work. All the lads will get a medal, starters or not starters.
“They’ll all get a medal because they’ve all been part of it, in or out of the team, they all have a part to play.
“You have a part to play, whether you are in the team or not but the only people that matter at any one moment is the 11 on the pitch and they have been absolutely amazing.”
It is a brilliant achievement, I’m really proud. The lads have made history
Michael Duff