In this week of Champions League joy for some and crushing disappointment for others, of Gary Neville taking charge of Valencia for the first time, and of Garry Monk losing his job at Swansea, I’d like to talk Burton, Newport and Carlisle.
Not everything should be about the Premier League and the Champions League.
Let’s start with Burton who lost their manager Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in the past week to QPR. They currently sit top of League One. If you go back 15 years they weren’t even in the Conference (now the National League in case their sponsors are reading and get picky).
The progression of the club has been startling, including a move to a new stadium, sensible investment of funds including a windfall from drawing Manchester United in the FA Cup in 2006, and an ability to spot potential in young managers and – more importantly – give them a chance.
Chairman Ben Robinson, has employed Nigel Clough, Paul Peschisolido, Gary Rowett and Hasselbaink. Only Peschisolido was dismissed. The others all impressed at the club and when the so-called bigger boys came calling were always allowed to move on. Clough to Derby, Rowett to Birmingham and now Hasselbaink to QPR. The club has never stood in their way which is admirable.
Robinson was at the first FA Cup draw I conducted last November, when there was speculation that Rowett would move on. I’ve known many Premier League clubs pull staff out of shows as soon as rumours swirl about a manager’s future – indeed, it has happened to me this week – but Robinson calmly and sensibly dealt with the question I asked about Rowett’s future.
A calm and sensible man who runs his club, it would appear, in a calm and sensible way and allows his managers to progress. A club that goes under the radar nationally, but that could soon be in the Championship. And that deserves a lot more noise although they are probably happy with how it is at the moment.
One of the best things about doing the FA Cup draw, apart from constantly being compared to Graham Kelly, is the chance to talk to people in the thick of it in the Football League and Non-League. The majority aren’t in it to make money, they are in it for the love of the game and the love of the club.
Talking to a Newport County AFC director he was reminiscing about seeing the club, in their former guise, in the 3rd round in 1986 against Sunderland. This is the first time they had been in the 3rd round since then. I doubt many Premier League board members could recall fixtures from nearly 30 years ago.
The director and his colleagues were proudly wearing their Newport ties, having resurrected the club and brought it back into the League. There was also a nervous anticipation as there is from every smaller club at the draw because they know that if the balls come out right it could change their financial lives and help the local community as well.
And Carlisle United have shown us the value of local football clubs in the heart of the community. The players and the staff have been helping their local communities in the wake of the terrible floods in Cumbria and the devastating scenes that we have all witnessed.
Captain Danny Grainger is from the area and understands the difficulties people are facing. On 5live he said: “Whether it’s getting water out of houses, moving furniture, just tidying up, anything, we’ll help.”
I have no idea whether Grainger and his teammates want recognition but they should get it and I am sure they would all prefer better and happier ways to show how a football club and a community can connect.
The first team players helping out with the clean up in Carlisle today #cufc #community #staystrong pic.twitter.com/Y7JKAaG0E4
— Amy Nixon (@amynixon93) December 8, 2015
There are countless other examples of well-run, community-orientated clubs up and down the country but these three stood out to me in a week where the trials and tribulations of the Premier League behemoth have dominated.
But next time we sweep up the whole of football together and talk about the ills of the modern game, we should just take a pause and remember there are a whole lot of people doing a whole lot of good in the sport as well.
