BELL’S SO KEEN TO CHIME IN WITH HIS EFL RIVALS
EFL managers are all desperate for three points on a Saturday afternoon – and their antics on the touchline often prove it. Bosses will point and gesticulate at their players, share verbals with their counterparts and give the fourth official a load of earache in the quest for victory.
But once the final whistle goes, the madness usually quickly subsides whether it be a win, loss or draw. There is a managerial fraternity, much like the goalkeepers’ union. They all know what it feels like to be on the wrong end of results and suffer the wrath of directors and fans.
Rookie Crewe boss Lee Bell is in his first full season at the helm and he’s doing just fine so far, leading the Railwaymen to fifth in League Two heading into the weekend and putting them very much in the fight for automatic promotion.
But the 41-year-old, who won two promotions with Alex as a player, is still grateful to those who are happy to share a bit of managerial wisdom post-match.
“Pitting your wits against managers who have been doing the job a lot longer is great,” he told The FLP. “It’s nice to talk and have a conversation with them after the game – some have been brilliant.
“Nigel Adkins (Tranmere) has been brilliant twice - he doesn’t duck away from questions. Neil Harris (then Gillingham, now Cambridge) was brilliant with me last year. We played Gillingham and both teams were having a difficult spell.
“He could see I was getting frustrated and took his time to talk to me afterwards. He asked me what I was thinking and gave me some advice about dealing with the group. This season
he was really good, too, and we exchange messages.
“It’s also the managers I’ve played for, like Nigel Clough (Mansfield) at Burton. I was only young at the time and he was the perfect fit as a manager for me – I warmed to him. We have stayed close ever since.”
Ironically, they are now both after the same thing – promotion from League Two.
“We drew 2-2 at our place in the first game of the season and they were excellent,” admitted Bell, whose side came from 2-0 down to grab a point. “We played them again last month and won 1-0. After that game we had a good conversation – speaking about how our families are and talking about players.
Foundations
“Of course, some managers don’t want to engage, which I understand, but he – and many others - still give me their time.”
One thing’s for sure – Bell has made a big impression in the hotseat since taking the reins from Alex Morris, who swapped roles to become his assistant, at the back end of 2022. A mid-table finish last term laid solid foundations and Crewe have built on those this season to put themselves in the promotion push against a host of clubs with bigger fanbases and resources.
Bell had an inkling right from pre-season that the Railwaymen would be in the hunt this time around.
“The recruitment was excellent,” explained Bell, who has signed keeper Keiren Westwood, 39, on a short-term deal after Tom Booth, 19, suffered a punctured lung against Tranmere last week.
“As pre-season was going along, we had some good games against decent opposition and I was thinking ‘we could be alright here’. Without going overboard, I felt that we were going to be better than last year, which was the aim.
“There are some massive clubs in this league, but I thought we could be somewhere near.
“Early on in the season we were conceding goals and coming back to get results, and I think it helped give the team spirit and belief.
“We have some really good players and it’s a real pleasure to work with the whole squad. Our dressing room is probably our main strength – they bounce back from setbacks.”
Bell is clearly relishing the journey as he takes his first steps in management – and family life helps him to take a breather from a job that can become all-encompassing if you let it.
“I spoke a lot to managers I’ve played for and they told me it’s about being present when you are at home, being there in mind,” he said. “I have two children and we are out nearly every night doing something with them.
“As a husband and dad, I make sure I have time for them and then I switch into manager mode when I need to. Luckily I’m able to do it quite easily.
Focused
“When I was a player I was also able to go home and switch off. People think I’m lucky to be able to do that. It makes it easier when you’re winning games!”
So is there time to enjoy being in the thick of a promotion tussle. “I promised myself when I got the job that I would enjoy it as much as possible, but when you are doing it you haven’t got much time to think about that,” he said. “You are focused on what you can do to help the players and staff, what went wrong in the last game and the day-to-day stuff.
“A lot of managers think I’m strange because I love the matches – I look forward to them and can’t wait for the next one to come. I’m also lucky in that I’ve got a really good staff – my assistant manager, Ryan (Dicker), has been brilliant.”
Having achieved two promotions with Crewe in his playing days – from Division Two (third tier) in 2002-03 and from League Two in 2011-12 – Bell has the chance to make it a special hat-trick by repeating the trick as manager.
“Everyone knows what the club means to me,” added Bell, who also served Mansfield and Macclesfield in his playing days. “However, I have to take the emotional attachment out of it and stay focused on what we have got to do. We want to bring success to the football club for everyone involved.
“On a personal level, I want to be more successful as a manager than I was as a player.”