McCANN BACK IN THE MAD HOUSE!
GARY McCann says Billericay Town are a club worth diving back into the managerial madness for – and he wants to lead the Blues’ push for Step 2.
Former Hendon boss McCann has been out of the dug-out since his departure from Hampton & Richmond Borough in January.
The break has allowed time for reflection but now he’s ready to take up the mantle at the Isthmian Premier Blues, who parted company with Dan Brown in midweek.
And McCann is enjoying being back in the pressure cooker already. “I didn’t realise how mad I was until I stepped out of it and I was less mad,” he joked to The NLP.
“You’re so deeply entrenched in everything you do when you’re a manager. You never switch off. My wife will tell me I’m at home, but I’m not at home – you’re sitting there thinking about your next game, your next session, your next signing, next injury, next problem. It’s constant.
“I had a sulk for the first two weeks, like most managers do when they feel they’ve been harshly treated, but then it became self-improving and self-reflection mode.
“You don’t tend to do that while you’re in the job. It’s so full on you don’t get that period of reflection. That period out has been invaluable.
“I am not shy to say, I didn’t feel there were any jobs out there to grab hold of me and give me the desire to get back amongst it.
“I’ve worked with minimal resources at both football clubs. I went from one level to the next but it was putting out the same fires and not being able to afford the targets you want, trying to juggle and duck and dive.
“This job presented itself to me out of the blue but once I’d met the owners on two separate occasions and experienced their drive and ambition for progression.
“They’re not just trying to be a community club like these other clubs who are out there well-wishing – this is a club that has a Level 3 women’s team, a disability team, a ridiculous amount of kids in the youth setup. It’s all aligned. All the boxes are ticked.”
McCann has already watched back highlights of all of Billericay’s games this season and is gearing up for a summer of preparation.
“What I’ve got to do is change the mindsets of everyone associated with the football club and anyone we recruit that we want to be in this division as little time as possible,” McCann said.
“We’re looking to be a Step 2 side this time next year. That’s the challenge for us all.”