BAILLIE BACK IN BUSINESS!
THOMAS BAILLIE had been enjoying Saturdays watching Corrie or going for a coffee – now he couldn’t be happier he took up the Stratford Town challenge.
Baillie decided to take time out after guiding Kettering Town to the Southern League Central at a canter in 2014.
Despite fielding offers from other clubs he chose to stay enjoying life away from the dugout.
But when his children Steffan and Saffron went to University, it was suddenly a quieter house and he decided to scratch the itch again.
Baillie took over Town in September and since then they’ve lost just one Southern Premier Central game and are now on a club record FA Trophy run.
Mike Taylor’s 94th-minute winner took them past South Shields and they will now face National League high-flyers AFC Fylde in the first round.
And Baillie is pleased Stratford were so convincing to get him in back in.
“I’m very pleased now,” Baillie, who has also coached at Norwich City, told The NLP. “I was very unsure for a number of reasons. I’m quite happy with my life away from football, I’ve got a good job and career away from football and the longer you’re out of things the harder it is to come back.
“I was enjoying myself sitting on a Saturday afternoon watching Corrie omnibuses or going out for coffees rather than standing in the freezing cold! Or worrying about if we don’t score in the next couple of minutes we’ve got to go to Newcastle Tuesday night – which it was last week!
“I’m glad I’m back, massively, and I can’t praise the board at the club enough. They spent a lot of time convincing me and they’ve let me get on with it. Like I say, it was hard because I’ve got a comfortable life away from football and when you lose you wonder if you need the hassle!
Worthwhile
“But games like Saturday make it worthwhile. I’ve come in to a very good group of players. There’s no superstars in there, they’re an honest group, a nice group, and between the players and the board they’ve made it all worthwhile after a few years of wondering if I’d ever do it again.”
In a Step 3 league where some clubs can call upon healthy budgets, Baillie likes the vibe his squad – with an average age of under 24 – has.
“The thing we’ve got with our squad at the moment is they’re playing because they want to be there,” Baillie, who praised the quality of South Shields, said. “When you look around and see what some other teams have to offer, they’re playing for the club because they enjoy the surroundings.
“They’re playing because it’s a nice place to be, a very nice club and games like Saturday are great days for this club.
Baillie says Fylde will be a great occasion – but they’re not going for the day out.
“We’ve set club history in the amount of games unbeaten and now this is the best Trophy run in their history – so the first 16 games haven’t been bad!” Baillie added.
“Fylde are a great side. We’ve got to enjoy the occasion but we’re not going to go there to roll over either. Of course, we’re massively underdogs and they’re flying high in the Conference Prem. But we’re not there to make up numbers either, we’re going to try and win.
“It’s a task, but that’s what these cups are all about, the underdog sometimes winning. There’s been plenty of examples over the years.
“We’ll prepare right. We know we’re in for an exceptionally tough game – we hope they are too.”