DICKS’ ALL SET FOR A RETURN
WITH a nickname like “The Terminator”, you would have thought Julian Dicks would be a perfect fit for the blood and thunder of Non-League – but the archetypal defensive hardman is looking for a place to call home.
After leaving Watford alongside ex-West Ham United teammate Slaven Bilic last season, Dicks is seeking to go it alone in management – and he certainly isn’t shying away from a challenge, wherever that may be. “I made a name for myself as a player, reaching the very highest level. Now I want to prove that I can do it in the dugout too,” the 55-year-old told The NLP.
“The last few months have been a pretty frustrating experience in truth. I’ve been putting my name in the hat, going to interviews and being told contrasting things. “Some chairmen tell me I’ve got too much experience to be managing at their level, others say I don’t have enough, I can’t win!
“It’s funny, I retired from playing because of injury when I was young and I had absolutely no intention of going into coaching. I was bitter at having to pack it in at such an early age and took my aggression out on the game for a bit. But football’s my life, it’s all I’ve ever known. I’d be lost without it.”
Disillusionment
Dicks’ most recent footballing venture – an ill-fated tenure as assistant at notorious coach churners Watford – left a bitter taste in the mouth, breeding a sense of disillusionment with the sport’s higher levels.
He lasted less than six months at Vicarage Road before being controversially shown the door alongside Bilic, despite the Hornets sitting just four points adrift of the Championship play-off places.
“I guess we knew what we were getting ourselves into, it was a risk,” admitted the no-nonsense former Birmingham City, West Ham, Liverpool and England U21 full-back.
“I was coaching youth players in America at the time, and I got a call out of the blue from Slaven asking for me to go in with him at Watford.
“He’s someone I have a real bond with, and we felt we had unfinished business after leaving West Brom, so you can’t say no to those opportunities.
“You’re always looking over your shoulder, worried about getting the sack. We did a lot of good there, but it wasn’t to be.
“A lot of things in the higher levels shock me. You have players who find training a chore. I used to bloody love it. It’s the greatest job in the world but some elite players nowadays just mope about.
“That’s why I find Non-League so great. People are playing out of passion. They may work an office job in the day, be shattered but still wear their heart on their sleeve. Every game or session is a true battle with blood and guts, completely unique. Fantastic.”
After earning his Non-League stripes with Grays Athletic in 2009, Dicks took over at Heybridge Swifts, and led the Essex side to promotion in Isthmian Division One North following a momentous winning run which took them from the depths of the relegation zone to the giddy heights of the play-offs.
A return to Swifts in 2021 didn’t quite go to plan but his enthusiasm remains undiminished.
“I look back on that first stint with Heybridge with such pride,” Dicks added. “The lads really bought into what I was trying to do. They were battlers who were willing to put their body on the line for the cause.
Pedigree
“It was an amazing time. The only frustration was that we never got the promotion due to the league restructure that year. Those boys really deserved to go up – wherever I go next, I want to replicate the spirit we had there.”
Dicks established himself as a cult hero on the terraces in two spells at Upton Park, earning himself a fearsome reputation among opposition players and referees alike.
It’s fair to say his time in east London wasn’t without a fair share of drama – be it on-field brawls or managerial run-ins – but for Dicks it’s all part of a unique footballing story, which he hopes has a few more chapters left to run yet.
“I can’t wait for a new challenge and I’m as hungry as ever.” he concluded. “I’ve got pedigree. I’ve coached in the Premier League and the Championship. I want to lay down some foundations now and show people what I’m all about.
“Playing football was the best thing in the world. Coaching is the closest you can come to it so it’s something I want to do for a long time.
“Let’s see where the next journey takes me!”