Blarney

Meet the Squad The Front Line Aaron Jarvis is a star at this level. Lewis Collins is also a very nice player and is only 22-years old. Beyond that... not much. Middle-Men We have pretty good depth in the middle. McGavin, Lapslie, Hall are all competent. Martin and Donnellan can play in the middle as well but may be more suited on the edges of the defensive line. Dawson and Stobbs are nice depth to have. Defensive Line As we said Martin and Donnellan look to be best suited on the defensive line and will most likely play there. Otherwise we're pretty weak here. Moxey is okay for this level but there's just nothing past him. This is a concern. The Keepers Halstead is fine for this level but definitely not a long-term solution. Review/Final Thoughts Aaron Jarvis up front should be all the offense we need.... and we may need a lot because right now our defense doesn't look great. Our keeper may be fine, hopefully... but there's not much in front of him. Thankfully our midfield is relatively deep and that might help. I don't look to have the depth to play the formation I wanted, it looks more like I'll have to do something along the lines of a 4-4-2 with Jarvis and Collins up front. Or I may move one of those center-mids back to a defensive-mid spot to help out with defense and use a 4-1-3-2 formation. I think that might be the best plan. Regardless, without looking at the other squads I still think we have enough here to compete -- if not win the whole thing.

Training Camp Starts Britton meets the squad Alright, first and foremost let me start by saying that I know you all have a lot of questions and concerns. I would as well if I were standing where you are. But I'd like to think that I'd also have the wherewithal to step back for a second and not pre-judge but listen and make a decision based on what I see and hear and not what I thought beforehand. So I ask that of all of you. As of right now there is no going back. Whether you think this is a joke or just don't care or aren't quite sure what to make of it, we are here together now. We have a job to do. You all want to play football and I want to teach it. Hopefully together we can learn what makes us all tick and how to be the best we can be on both sides. I want to help you become better players and I want you to help me learn to become the manager that you need me to be. So going forward we're stuck together... and each and every one of you can make your own decision on whether you want to make the best of it or you don't. I, for one, hope you all do. I can't tell you how excited I am for this opportunity. I can't tell you how excited I am for each and every one of you. We have an opportunity to do something here. And I'm not talking about dreams of making it to the Premier League or anything like that. I'm talking about turning this club around. I'm talking about making a difference in this community. I'm talking about making these supporters... the Yellow Army... proud again. *looks around and looks every player in their eyes* Football is community. To me it's that simple. You wouldn't be here if it wasn't for this town and these supporters. And that goes the same for every place this game is played. Doesn't matter if it's London or Manchester, New York City or Berlin, Paris or Shanghai. It's community. It's people. You play for the love of the game and they watch you and pay their hard-earned money because of their passion for the game. So we're going to pay that back by busting our behinds every time we take that pitch. We may not always be the best out there... but we're never going to be under-prepared. We're never going to be lazy. We're never going to be complacent. And we're never going to take anything we do for granted. This is a game, boys. A game you are paid to play. Millions and millions of kids out there dream of going out and doing what you're doing and you get to do it. So never take it for granted. Be the best you can be... at all times. I'm here to help you. So let's give eachother a chance. That's all I'm asking.

Welcome to Torquay United Enjoy your stay Finances: Okay (not really) -- Transfer Budget: Non-existent -- Wage Budget: thin We'll work with it. I'm not overly concerned about the money right now. We really need to increase these numbers, especially with our hardcore fan base. Blah blah blah... do what we tell you. Fine. Required automatic promotion is a little harsh but we should probably be the best club in the league... one would think. I only have a one year contract so I need to make it happen this season.

Torquay Talk Reaction to the Britton O'Byrne press conference We'll say this, Britton talks a good game. He met the laughter of all the Ted Lasso references head on. He stared down any criticism and offered up a good argument as to the fact that Torquay United hasn't exactly been a quality club of late so why not some American taking charge. We're not sure we buy it yet, but we can't say the guy didn't impress. But words are words and actions are quite different. The guy talks a big game but managing one might be outside his abilities at this time. But as to the point he made... Gary Johnson - who has been doing this forever - wasn't doing anything with the club at all. The supporters are angry. We'd probably be angry no matter who they hired until proven otherwise. We're not saying we're sold.... and we're not even saying we're not going to continue to question it. But we will admit that maybe he deserves a day or two to prove he can do it... or he can't. The fact is we'll be there supporting the club no matter what. They could put Mickey Mouse in charge and although we'd question it, we'd still fly the Yellow flag. We'd still be there supporting our players. We'd still rather Clarke Osborne took a long walk off a short pier... but as Britton said, he doesn't control that. So maybe let's not put all our frustration on him......... yet.

Let's talk about Torquay United Torquay United History Torquay United was formed in 1899 and joined the East Devon League in 1900. In 1907 they joined the Torquay and District League and in 1909 they became champions of that league. They merged with Ellacombe in 1910 and formed Torquay Town and joined the Plymouth and Devon League. The next season they won that league. In 1921 they merged with Babbacombe and became Torquay United once again. They were admitted to the Western League that year. After one season they joined the Southern League, becoming Champions of the Western Sector in the 1926/27 season. The next year they were elected into the Football League. The next 25 seasons were spent in the Third Division South where they managed to finish above 10th place just 5 times. In the 1958 season they managed only a 23rd place finish and when the Football League underwent a restructing the next year TUFC was placed in the newly created Division Four. They manged to spend just 2 seasons in Division Four before earning promotion to Division Three.... but unfortunately only spent 2 seasons there before being relegated back to Division Four. The next 29 seasons were spent between Division Four (23 seasons) and Division Three (6 seasons)... so not exactly a good mix. The 1990/91 season marked the start of maybe their best playing time on the pitch. They earned promotion back to Division Three after that season and spent the next 13 years straight there. Unfortunately they were a real Jeckyll and Hyde club. Once year they'd finish near the top, only to follow that season up with a bottom half finish. Then they'd finish in the middle... back to the upper half... and back to the bottom half. They just weren't consistent. They did manage 2 playoff appearances in their first 12 seasons but lost both times in the playoffs. Their best finish came during the 2003/04 season where they finished in 3rd place and found themselves in the newly formed League One for the 2004 season.... which lasted 1 year before being relegated to League Two. And that lasted 2 seasons before relegation came calling again and Torquay found themselves outside the Football League and in Tier 5. Luckily that only lasted 2 seasons before earning promotion back to League Two... which lasted 5 seasons before being booted once more. That was after the 2013/14 season. It is now the 2023/24 season. That makes this the 10th season outside the Football League... 2 of those spent in Tier 6 - including the forthcoming season. In total since their election to the Football League in 1927, Torquay have played 34 seasons in the 3rd tier of English Football, 42 seasons in the 4th tier, 10 seasons in the 5th tier and now 2 in the 6th tier. They have never played above Tier 3... ever. And almost half of their history has been spent in Tier 4 or below. And as far as silverware goes... nope. They have been runners-up in the League Trophy one time back in the 1988/99 season and runners-up in the FA Trophy one time back in 2008. They've never been out of the 4th round of the FA Cup.... a round they've only reached 7 times in their history. That's it. The Yellow Army deserves better. Plainmoor Plainmoor has been home to Torquay United since 1921. It has undergone many renovations and now has a capacity of 6500. There have been multiple talks by the last couple of owners of TUFC to build a new stadium or possibly even relocate the team but as of yet nothing has come to fruitiion. Really for being so old and honestly with TUFC not necessarily being the greatest club ever while lingering down in the lower levels of English football.... this is a seriously beautiful stadium. Saying that...... they could probably use a new one. Eventually.

A Geographical Lesson To the left of your screen you'll see North America which consists of the United States and Canada. South of that is Central America and then South America - not shown on the map. Oftentimes people from the United States say they're from America which is technically correct but incorrect at the same time. America is not the United States of America... as it can mean North, South or Central America. You're welcome. When you look across the Atlantic ocean - sometimes referenced as "the pond" you'll find Europe with Africa to the South. How far is New York to London, you ask? 3,459 miles... or about a 7 hour flight give or take. Los Angeles to London? 5,437 miles... or around a 14 hour flight. This is Europe. By land mass the United States is over twice as big as Europe. Not pictured is part of Russia which is technically considered Europe or European Russia because honestly we think it's silly that Russia is divided into 2 continents. Honestly it should be it's own darned continent it's so large. This is the United Kingdom - which consists of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Republic of Ireland is the larger Southern portion of Ireland. This is Devon, which is a "ceremonial" county in South-West England. Plymouth and Exeter are the 2 biggest settlements in the area. And this is Torquay. It's a coastal town about 34 miles South of Exeter and 53 miles to the East of Plymouth. A view of the harbor and the English Riviera Wheel. And from the sea. It honestly is a gorgeous little town. Unfortunately like a lot of small towns - even resort towns - behind the scenes things aren't absolutely perfect. Many businesses have left or closed shop, including a couple of their bigger employers. Unemployment is rising and so is the crime rate. The travel industry is still king here and there are enough businesses open, including some incredible shopping to be found to keep tourists interested. But the town could definitely use a kick right now, something to give it a lift. Maybe we can find something to do just that.

Britton Meets the Press Ian Castle (Press Secretary): "Hello ladies and gentlemen. Well we certainly have a packed house today with members of the press and some key supporters that were invited. We'll be starting shortly. Clarke Osborne will make the introductions and then Britton O'Byrne will speak and you'll have an opportunity for a few questions. Please try to stay on topic for today if you can, this is about a new direction for the club and we'd like to keep it positive." Clarke Osborne and Britton O'Byrne enter the room. "Ladies and gentlemen the Chairman of Torquay United, Clarke Osborne." Clarke Osborne (Chairman): "Hello everyone. As you know I'm not exactly the best at these meetings which is why I generally leave day-to-day up to George Edwards - my Chief Executive Officer - but today is special. Today is a turning point for the club. Today we turn from the past and we look to the future. When I purchased Torquay United 7 years ago I had a plan to build this club. We wanted to build a nice new stadium, event center and commercial facility. It was to be a destination for supporters. Those plans haven't come to fruition and our play on the pitch hasn't been good enough. We want to thank Gary Johnson for everything he did while in charge of the Gulls but it was time to turn the page and go in a different direction. So today we want to introduce Britton O'Byrne as our new manager. Britton is a young, bright, energetic individual with the right ideas and the passion to take this club where we've wanted it to go for the past 7 years. This day is about him so I don't want to take up much time, I want him to speak and after listening to him and asking your questions I'm sure you'll see exactly what I did after talking to him myself. So here's Britton." Britton O'Byrne (playing the part of Ted Lasso): *smiles warmly* "Hello everyone; media, supporters and those here to make Ted Lasso references." There were a couple of low murmurs in the crowd. "So now that we got that out of the way, I want you all to know that I don't think any of this is actually a joke, but the references won't be avoided so I might as well just hit them head on. I know what's being said, I can hear and I can read so I figured it's just best to get it out of the way as soon as possible." Unidentified person in the room: *cough* "W@nker!" *cough* Some low laughs from others filled the room. Britton O'Byrne: "Fair enough. I assumed that was coming. So here it is. I'm an American and I'm going to be taking over at Torquay United. A real life Ted Lasso. Except I've played this game. I know this game. No, I haven't managed, nor have I even coached. I don't have that experience and it's experience that I probably should have... especially for a Football League team." *pauses for effect* "Oh wait, Torquay isn't in the Football League... in fact they're not even in the 5th tier. They're in the National League South... the 6th tier of the English Football Pyramid. They're basically one step away from being pretty much irrelevant... if they're not already." *pauses again* "Am I making you mad? I'm talking to the supporters now. Am I saying something that's wrong? Have I got it all backward? Is Torquay heading in the right direction? Are your dreams of getting back into the Football League being realized or even on your horizon at the moment?" *pauses yet again* "No? I didn't think so. So be mad. You should be. I have been, because guess what... I'm a supporter also. My great-grandmother was from Torquay. Her father, my great-great-grandfather, was Albert Hutchinson... a Torquay legend. Now that has no bearing on whether I'm qualified to be a manager or not, I'm not saying it to suggest otherwise... but it goes to show that my heart is with this town and with this club. I have been visiting Torquay since I was a kid, first with my grammy - it's what I called her, no judgement - and then with my grandfather and dad. I've been here a dozen times. That doesn't make me one of you but it also doesn't make me a complete outsider. I know the town. I know the passion of the Yellow Army. I know that you go out there every single match and you support this club with blood, sweat and tears no matter what level of football they're playing. And I know that right now you're all not happy. So this is what I ask. Laugh all you want, make your references, have fun with it.... but do not think - let me say that again - do not think that I am not here to try and make it better. I'll take questions now." There was an actual pause in the room. Jason Whitmore (Torquay Herald Express): Hello, Ted Lasso.... sorry, Britton." Britton: "I'll accept it." Jason Whitmore: *laughs* "Well at least you seem to have a sense of humor. I'm Jason Whitmore from the Torquay Herald Express. I'll give you one thing, that was a pretty decent introduction. I almost feel bad having to do this now as you do seem to have at least the passion for the job and for the town. But a lot of people have that passion for both and would be immensely more qualified for the job. So I have to ask, with apologies up front, what in the world makes you think you can do this with zero experience?" Britton: "So we're going to play hardball off the bat? Excellent. I like the more direct approach. Ummm, I don't know is the answer. Here's the thing, you're going to get the truth from me and sometimes people don't want the truth. They want it all shiny and perfect and make-believe. So even when they say - give me the truth - it ain't what they want at all. That happens a lot in sports. I'm supposed to sit here and give you exactly the answer you want... cliches and all. I'm supposed to tell you that I'm absolutely, positively, without-a-doubt in the world ready for this and have no concerns whatsoever. Don't believe it. Don't believe it from anybody. So that's the truth... part one of it at least. Part two is that it doesn't matter if I have doubts or concerns. Put pretty much anybody in this situation and they're a robot if they don't. Doubts and concerns don't mean you can't do something, it just means you're human. It's sort of like fear. You hear people say they're not afraid of anything and generally that's a lie. But being afraid of something doens't mean you can't do it, it just makes you more aware. It makes you more in the moment." *pauses* "This has been a really long answer to your question so let me shorten it up and make it simple for you to print. I have absolutely no idea if I can do this because I haven't done it. You can print that. You can also print. Just because I don't know that I can... doesn't mean I don't believe I can. There is a difference. It also doesn't mean that I won't give absolutely everything I have to do it." Unidentified person in the room: "W@anker!" There were actually a few groans mixed in with the laughs this time. Roger Dearling (Torbay Weekly): "Roger Dearling, Torbay Weekly." Britton: "Good to meet you, Roger. How can I help?" Roger: "So forgive the history lesson but supporters will be curious. You are 22-years old. You played football - soccer as it's called in America - for Stanford University. You graduated with a degree in sports science. You came over here for a vacation after you graduated and met Clarke Osborne in a bar by chance and through just a conversation managed to become the new gaffer for an English football club. You Americans sure do like your fantasy stories. Should we refer to this as the Ryan Reynolds effect?" Britton: "Ryan Reynolds is Canadian.... point of fact. And also the owner of Wrexham... not the manager. But I'll answer whatever question there was implied in your history lesson. That was pretty accurate. I am just 22, there's no way around that. I did play football for Stanford University - which by the way is a pretty good university to play for and to learn the game, for what that matters. I did graduate with my degree in sports science, again for what that matters... which I guess would be more than not having one. I did come here for vacation after graduating... if I remember correctly I think I told Clarke I was here to contemplate things, figure out my next career move. That worked out strangely. And yes after a conversation... well two really... I was offered the manager position with Torquay. It does seem like a fantasy story so I'll allow that. In fact I am sort of still wrapping my head around it." Roger: "All that being said, what's next? Have you had a chance to meet the players? Do you have a strategy? What can the supporters expect?" Britton: "That's a lot of questions, let's see how good my memory is. What's next is we get to work. I have not had a chance to meet all the players as they're on break. I have met a couple and it's been good, mostly. Yes I have a strategy... we are going to control the tempo of the game and we're going to play forward, meaning we're going to attack and try to put our opposition on their heels. As far as what the supporters can expect beyond that? 100% effort from everyone associated with the club from top to bottom. They deserve no less. Tanner Williams (BBC Sport): "Tanner Williams, BBC Sport. Britton, if nothing else it seems you have put some thought to this but do you truly understand what you're up against. This is a Tier 6 club that is 10 years removed from the Football League. By all reports there is no money and ownership doesn't seem to be interested in investing money. In fact the only thing we ever hear from them is that they want a new stadium - which won't happen the way things are going - and that they purchased the club as an investment... that hasn't worked out. Most supporters wanted Gary Johnson fired 2 years ago and those same would say they want Clarke Osborne gone as well. What makes you think that you can turn any of this around and prove to the supporters that the right decision was made here? To be perfectly honest - since you seem to want it that way - this really does seem more a Ted Lasso thing than you might realize. There are those, many actually, that seem to think that your hiring is just another step toward tearing this club apart. Do you have a response?" Britton: "Well my response would be how did that turn out for the fictional AFC Richmond? I mean if we're going to keep making the references... then at least let's go all the way with them." Tanner: "Fair enough, but that doesn't really answer the question." Britton: "No, it didn't so here's the rest. There's not a single manager in this game except for maybe at the top that can control anything outside of what they are put in charge of. I don't handle the money, I just deal with what I'm given. I'm told what I have to spend and I spend it the very best I can, those are my decisions to make. If we build a new stadium or don't... not my concern. If we build a new concession stand or we don't... not my concern. If there's a player I want and I ask for the money to make it happen.... either it's given to me or it's not. If it's not, I figure out how to make it work without that player. If I don't... then the supporters can question why I didn't. That's my job. And if there's one thing about me... I don't back down from tough questions or tough times. Everything out of my control is out of my control. But even if it's out of my control I'll take responsibility for the outcome." Ian Castle: "We'll take one more question today." Julie Manning (BBC Radio Devon): "Hello, Britton, Julie Manning, BBC Radio Devon. What are your aspirations at Torquay? When Ryan and Rob took over at Wrexham they said they were going all the way to the Premier League, are you expecting the same here?" Britton: "I don't know that I'm going to go out on a limb and make any promises at the moment. The words are nice and all and obviously that's what everyone wants, so absolutely our goal is to grow the club and go as high as we can. But I'm sort of a one step at a time sort of guy. Right now we're in Tier 6... so the goal is promotion this season. That's what we're working on. Beyond that, each season is a new season and new goals will be set. Let's focus on what's right there ahead of us and the rest will come." Clarke Osborne: "Britton has answered all your questions with the enthusiasm and passion and intelligence I knew he would. Anything above or beyond that has to do with the club should go through me. I will say what I've said from the time I purchased the club back in 2016. We had a vision. We wanted and sitll want a new stadium and commercial center for this town. We want it to be a spectacle for the supporters and for fans visiting Torquay. We haven't made good on those promises but our work isn't done yet. As I said before, we're turning the page now. This is a new beginning for our club. I'm excited and I hope you are as well." He looks over at Ian and motions to him. Ian Castle: "Okay everyone that's enough for today, thank you."

Surprise..... I took the job. It'd be a very short story otherwise. And the media and fans are already having a grand time with it. Social Media Clippings The#1GullsFan: This is a joke, right? We hired Ted Lasso? Will someone pinch me please, I need to wake up. LeeForTorquayFC: So it's not enough to bankrupt the club, now Osborne wants to just completely destroy it from the inside also. #TUFCforMe: So this is what they mean by saying the quiet part out loud, because now it's just obvious that Osborne is completely nuts. FrankOnFootball: 2 guys walk into a bar and one walks out a football manager....... LassoForPrimeMinister: I've never been more proud! DuncanFromTorbay: Come on lads, give him a chance! Nope, I can't even type it without laughing out loud. YellowArmyWarrior: Osborne did one thing right, he sacked that @#$#$@% Johnson.... but that's the only thing he did right. NothingMellowBoutYellow: What? Who? Why? FireGaryJohnsonNow: Guess it's time to retire this tag and change to FireBrittonOByrneNow. SlowDownAndSmellTheYellow: I'm just going to say it...... W@NKER!!! The Media Torquay Talk: We have been as hard on Clarke Osborne as anybody in the media. Even we couldn't have imagined a day like this. Clarke meets an American - by chance - at a local bar and ends up offering him a job. All Ted Lasso references aside.... this isn't funny. This is our football club and Clarke Oborne repeatedly has shown what can only be called disdain for the supporters of the club or a wilful lack of comprehension on what it takes to run a club. He has been involved in sneaky, shady dealings at other clubs and his "vision" for our own is nothing less than ridiculous. It can't be considered realistic. It's time for Clarke Osborne to step down and find someone that actually cares for this town and this club. Torbay Weekly: We don't know whether to laugh or cry or laugh and cry but we're sure there's something both funny and sad about what's going on with Torquay United. BBC Sport: Gary Johnson is out, which most supporters will applaud. In his place a young 22-year old from America (yes honestly) takes the reigns, who has no managerial or coaching experience at all. He played football though... and somehow that's supposed to make it all okay. We truly can't wait until he's introduced to the media. Really, we can't.

Out of Character Let's put some context to the story so far. Clarke Osborne has obviously just put the Gulls into Administration. Clarke Osbone to most Torquay fans is a villain. I am in no way trying to make him sound like a good guy. He was a villain to most before he even took over at Torquay due to past business dealings. His plans to build a new stadium and commercial facility was laughed at by most because his plans weren't even close to being realistic. Most people think he has been involved in some really shady dealings since taking over at Torquay. However we're going back obviously to the start of the season where he's still in charge and we'll see how it plays out in FM. The club - in game - is in financial crisis with no budget to speak of, so at least that's realistic.

After that strange conversation I had at the bar, I went back to my hotel room and closed my eyes for some much needed sleep. I awoke pretty early the next day, got up, showered and decided to grab an early breakfast and then go for a walk on the beach. The rest of the day I spent meandering around town, doing a little window shopping and grabbing a quick bite for lunch. I ended up back on the beach where we had spread grammy's and papa's ashes years ago and sat down as though looking for a little inspiration from their spirits. I sat there for a good long while just listening to the waves crashing against the sand and watching some kids playing football on the sand, while others just enjoyed the warm summer day (warm being a relative term compared to summer in America.) Eventually it was time to make my way back to the bar and see if the strange gentleman I was chatting with last night was there and what he meant by making it worth my time. When I arrived the bar was busier than it had been the night before and it took me a second to find Clarke, who was sitting in a corner booth at the back of the bar tonight. He waved me over as he saw me and I approached him and shook the hand which he had extended. "I'm glad you could make it," he offered. "Who wouldn't be tempted by an offer of making it worth my time," I laughed back. He smiled - almost a real smile compared to how he looked last night. "You said you played football in college?" "Yes, Stanford." "Any good?" "In college terms, good enough. Not good enough to make a pro team or at least stick with one. Besides I learned my real passion was more teaching. The team itself was good, at least good enough to make the NCAA Tournament 2 of the 3 years that I was a starter there. Unfortunately we were knocked out in the 3rd round both of those years so I never go the chance to play in a final. It was fun though, had a good time, learned a lot from coach." "So your ultimate goal is to manage a football team at some point?" "Ultimately, yes." "Are you wanting to stay in America or would you consider opportunities elsewhere?" This was really getting weird. I gave a small laugh. "I love football but America hasn't quite become a football country yet. We're getting there and when we do watch out... but for now it's very secondary to the other major sports. That being said let's be honest, England is the center of the football world and if there ever came an opportunity to come here and manage a club, that would be hard to pass up." He seemed to glare even more intently at me. "So Premier League or nothing?" I gave out a loud laugh at that. "I'm a long ways away from managing a Premier League club, heck I'm probably a long ways away from managing anything other than some small local college club or small town club back in the states." "Or small local club here in England?" "Way down the food chain." "Tier 6?" I gave him a strange look. "May I ask what this is all about. No offense but it's getting a little odd for a conversation between 2 strangers." He looked at me for a minute before responding. "I'm Clarke Osborne. I own Torquay United and tomorrow I'm sacking Gary Johnson and I need a new manager. I think you're the guy for the job." I laughed, like seriously laughed. "Oh that's good. Man you English and your wry sense of humor. You got me on this one." He just looked at me. "I'm quite serious." "Right, a real Ted Lasso scenario." "There are some things you should know. I purchased the club back in 2016 with some big plans for building a new stadium and commercial facility as an investment. We are sitting here 7 years later and I'm no closer to making that happen. As you said yesterday the results on the pitch have not been good either and we need a new direction. Plans were already in place to let Gary go, that has nothing to do with our chance encounter. But it's given me an opportunity to hire a new manager that I think has what it takes to lead the club in a new direction. You should also know that we're not in good shape. All the years of losing have cost me a lot of money and I'm not prepared to continue to throw money at a sinking ship. It's going to be hard work to right what's wrong here and it will have to be done on a strict budget. On top of that the players attitudes are going to have to be dealt with and you'll have to win over the supporters that feel the club isn't living up to what we should be either. This will be far from a dream job." "So.... Ted Lasso. You're seriously Clarke Osborne? This isn't a joke? You're offering me a job to manage Torquay United? Why?" "I liked everything you had to say last night. You're young, I get it, the media and the supporters are going to question it. You're going to get a lot of backlash and people won't think you're ready... and maybe you're not. You'll have to prove you are. But in terms of knowledge, in terms of desire... that's obviously there. Besides, we're in Tier 6, we're not in the Football League and we're not some big club. Who says I can't give an opportunity to a 22-year old that I think has a bright future? I own the club." This had to be a joke, right? A chance meeting with the owner of the local club and a conversation between 2 strangers leads to him offering me a job as the manager. This sounds more like some crazy Football Manager save - yes I play, great game. Or something written on tv..... that's been done. Could I actually manage Torquay United? No. Absolutely not. I'm not ready for that. Wait, I was always told to believe in myself first or nobody else would believe in me. Maybe I could. That sounds like some more Hollywood stuff. I'm 22. I just graduated. But he's right... this is Tier 6... it's not even Football League. Why couldn't a 22-year old take the reigns and lead a small club from the darkness and back to the Football League? That could be me, I could be that guy. And an opportunity to manage my grammy's hometown club.... crazy. He seemed to sense I was having a conversation with myself. "I don't need an answer tonight, but in the next day or 2 would be helpful since I am letting Gary go tomorrow and would need to start a search for my new manager if you didn't accept the job. Can you do that?" "Yes, absolutely. It's just a lot to take in Mr. Osborne." "It's Clarke." "Certainly, Clarke. Yes, I can give you an answer in the next couple of days." "Good, think about everything I said. You'll have a tight budget and a lot of work will need to be done to fix things. I think you can do it, but you have to understand the circumstances." "Absolutely. I get it." He extended his hand as he stood up. "I look forward to your response then." I took his hand and shook it. "I look forward to giving you my response." And he left as I sat there deep, deep in thought. Crazy.... this was absolutely crazy.

Really appreciate that and yes it will be continued, just been busy at work but I'll get back to it within the next day. I have a tendency to write a lot in my saves because I tend to do it as I'm taking on the persona of the manager. I also have a tendency to try to make it "realistic" inasmuch as having some back-story and tying some truth to the fantasy.

After my last semester in college and earning my degree I decided to take a little time off to find myself. Seems a weird thing to say since I had just spent 4 years in school to do just that, but it's what it was. I knew that playing football was not going to be in my cards.... and trying to find a job as a newly minted graduate with a nice shiny diploma that said I knew the sport wasn't exactly going to be easy. I was just as likely to be hired as a towel-boy by any professional club as I was anything with any meaning, but I was ready to start at the beginning and earn my way up if that's what it took. Or maybe I would just go back to Fullerton and ask for a job there, I got along well with coach. Maybe starting in college would get me the experience I needed to at least get a decent job in the pros. But I wasn't ready for either of those paths yet. I wanted one final vacation before deciding which direction to go. A little time to myself. And so I headed back to Torquay. Well sort of. I actually flew into Edinburgh first. Edinburgh is probably my 2nd favorite city in the UK and I wanted to spend a few days there resting and relaxing and seeing some sights. After that I drove South and spent a couple of days in the countryside. I eventually made it to Manchester and spent a couple of days there and then made a little detour to Wrexham...... because why not. It was worth seeing the town even if the English Football League was on their break and not playing at the time. At least I could say I saw the stadium. Eventually I continued South again and drove through Bristol then Exeter and finally got to Torquay. It was evening when I arrived and I was hungry so I stopped at The Hole In the Wall..... yes, that's actually the name of the establishment. I decided to sit at the bar since it wasn't overly busy at the time and I ordered myself something to eat and drink. There were only 2 other people sitting at the bar at the time, one older gentleman - maybe in his 60's - who looked like he was having a bad year - not just a bad day - and a woman - 30's maybe - who looked like she wanted to be left alone while she finished her drink. I smiled at both warmly when they looked up at me, the woman quickly going back to her drink as a way of letting me know she didn't want company. The older gentleman attempted a smile back - I think - but obviously was lost elsewhere in his thoughts. "All good, mate," I offered in my best English fashion with American accent. "I've had better days," he offered back. "American?" I smiled, "Yeah, don't hold it against me." I've come to learn that many in England have a love-hate relationship with Americans and honestly I can't blame them with the way some act, especially while on vacation. "What's brought you to Torquay?" "Contemplation," I replied, which earned me a curious glance. I laughed a bit. "Just finished college and am taking a bit of time off to contemplate my future." "Strange place for that. Would think London or something. How did you settle on our little town?" "Not my first time here truthfully. Actually have family here... distant. Long story. World War 2... American serviceman falls for pretty English lass... love affair... soul mates... marriage... kids... grandkids... lots of vacations back home here in Torquay. I almost consider myself a Torquayan. Is that a thing? I've never actually asked." The man gave me a strange look and I realized that I was acting very American at that point. "Short answer is I wanted to come back to where I felt the most comfortable away from home." The man gave me a little smile - again, I think - at that point. I decided to change the subject... not that the gentleman had given me any indication that he wanted to continue any conversation - but like I said..... I'm an American. "Football fan?" He shot me another weird look. "Yeah." "Torquay United, I assume? Bad season, sorry to see them drop." For those that didn't know Torquay finished the 2022/23 season in 21st place in the National League and were relegated to the National League South for the upcoming season. "Yeah. You follow Torquay?" He seemed utterly amazed. "Yeah. You could say it was a passion of my great-grandmothers. Her father actually played for the club back in the 1930's. Sort of a legend of the club actually. She was a supporter her whole life and I guess I sort of became one as well. She's where I found my passion for the game. In fact I went to college on a football scholarship and earned my degree in sports science all because of her." For some reason this seemed to earn more interest from him than anything else I had said. "So what do you think went wrong?" he asked. Strange but at least we were carrying on a conversation now. "I mean I hate to be that guy but it starts at the top. Management has failed this club. 4 seasons in the National League. I realize that the manager was in charge when they were promoted from the National League South but sports is a what have you done for me lately thing. Having a long leash is one thing, it's good to see ownership give a guy a chance to prove himself but after 4 seasons of mostly losing... one playoff appearance, I think that leash has been long enough. In fact I would have fired the manager last year. Beyond that," because I'm sure he wanted me to carry on, "the players look lost. I don't know if there's a lack of direction or disconnect from training but the play on the pitch... it's just not good. Granted they could use some better players but they have a decent core group... they just don't play well together." "And what about ownership, surely they have to take some fault in this?" "It's easy to pick on ownership. It's easy for an outsider to say that an owner should throw more money at the club and then more money and then more money... and sometimes that might be accurate. Sometimes maybe more money is needed, sometimes you just have to go out and get a player and need ownerhsip to step up and make it happen. But if there's one thing I know about these smaller clubs, there's generally just not that much money to throw around. It's symptomatic of English Football in the lower leagues. Not every owner is Ryan Reynolds and willing to lose millions... or has the financial backing to do that. That doesn't excuse ownership by any means. If they're not willing to do what's needed to at least keep their team afloat, then just let it go." "So if you were in charge of Torquay.... what changes would you make?" "That's a difficult question to answer being on the outside looking in. I have no idea their operating budget or contracts on players or valuation of players." "Just in general." It seemed I had opened a can of worms with this conversation, but I was happy to oblige, I liked talking football and it gave me something to do to pass the time while I ate. "Okay so from the outside looking in I would say again there seems to be a decent young core group of players. My first priority would be making sure they were getting the playing time they needed for their growth. To me, as a small market club, especially in the lower leagues, your first priority is youth. They typically aren't going to cost you as much to have on the club as an older player... and they have the opportunity to grow and eventually get sold for profit. You probably don't have as much opportunity with an older player to do the same thing. So play the kids. Of course that also means you have to find the kids first.... and you have to train them second. So you need good recruitment and you need adequate facilities to train in. The next thing I'm focusing on is training. My grammy always told me that everything that happened during a game started with training. It's very difficult to play a good game if you haven't had good training. So that's second. And third, I'm focusing on attack. I know there are 2 phases to the game... attacking and defending... and both may be equally important, but attacking is the most important. You can defend all day long and shut every opponent out but if you don't score all you're getting is a point. So while I'm not saying that defending is unimportant... you have to be able to attack. And with that attack comes preparation from your training and fitness from your training. It all comes together." "How old are you? You said you just finished college?" "22." "And you're looking for a job?" "That's the plan. I'm thinking either seeing what I can find with some MLS club or associate back in the states or maybe starting my career in college - probably with Stanford where I went to school." "What are you wanting to do? Manage or work in the backroom?" "At this point whatever I'm offered," I laughed in reply. "I'm 22. I'm not exacty picky at this point. I mean at some point I think I'd like to try my hand at managing but maybe something to do with analytics or coaching wouldn't be a bad start." "How long are you in town?" Odd question. "I'll be here a few days." "Want to meet back here tomorrow night? I'll make it worth your time." Even more odd, but I was intrigued. "Yeah I can make that happen. Have to eat anyway." "What's your name? I'm Clarke," he reached out his hand. "Britton," I replied. "Good to meet you, Britton. I'll see you here same time tomorrow." "Nice to meet you as well, Clarke. I'll be here."

I think I first fell in love with Torquay when I was 11-years old. I had visited the town twice before, once when I was 6 and then again at 8-years old. But seeing it at 11 was a game changer for me. I think I appreciated the charm, the beauty, the beach more at that time than I had before when I was "younger." That was also the last time I visited with my great-grandma... who passed away just 3 months later. Grammy (don't laugh, it's what I called her) was from Torquay, born and raised. She was a nurse during WW2 and was stationed at Torquay caring for those that were evacuated from London during the terrible bombings there. My great-grandpa (papa) was in the American military and had come to Torquay before the invasion of Normandy along with several thousand of his best friends. As the story goes they met and fell in love before he left to go fight in Normandy... only to return after the war was over and rekindle their relationship. They ended up moving back to California - where papa was from - and eventually they were married. England and Torquay were still deep in grammy's heart though and her and papa made annual trips back to her home to visit family and friends. These visits turned into a family affair when they had kids and then grandchildren and eventually great-grandchildren. The last visit with her was especially tough on my grandpa and dad. Grammy was very sick and she knew that she didn't have much time left but they made the pilgrimage back to Torquay because she wanted to see the town and the English coast one last time. Papa had already passed away a year before so it was just grammy, grandpa, dad and myself that went this time. Grammy brought papa's ashes with her and she had grandpa spread them out on the sand on the beach where they had met back in 1944. It was obviously a pretty mellow affair, mostly just time spent on the beach and driving around the town and the coast and her saying goodbye. The rest of the time her and I spent a lot of time talking about her life there when she was younger and her meeting papa and the all the things she loved about her old home. We had had these talks before obviously but I think I paid more attention this time than before, including to the surroundings. Where my family lived in Los Angeles was beautiful and we were close to the beach but it was nothing like the beauty here in Torquay. There was a serenity here, a peace, a quiet... it was easy to see why grammy loved coming back here. Things here definitely moved at a much... much slower pace than back home. Gramps (my grandpa), my dad and I made another trip back to Torquay the year after grammy passed away and spread her ashes on the same beach that we had spread papa's the year before. On that trip we decided to do something else that grammy loved. We took in a football match... the first "professional" one I had ever attended. I played back home. A lot of kids did back home. Summer leagues, school... it was just another sport to play to pass the time. Grammy had a passion for the sport though. She talked about it a lot. Her father had played for Torquay United -- the local club -- back in the 1930's. His name was Albert Hutchinson and he was something of a legend for Torquay having made over 300 appearances and scoring 84 goals which put him top 10 all-time for the club. Pretty impressive. She talked about it a lot. She was very proud of her father, rightfully so, and never lost her passion for her favorite club, Torquay. I liked the game... I wouldn't say I loved it at first. I'll admit like most Americans I was more fond of Baseball or American Football for a time.... but grammy kept insisting that I learn the game and give it a chance and I grew to actually enjoy playing. Truth-be-told once she passed I think I actually started really giving the game a chance. Up until that time it was something to just pass the time, a sport to play. We do that a lot in America.... just do things to do them, not necessarily because we're very good at it or even really like it. But eventually I became not half-bad at it once I really gave it a chance. Not that that made me great, because it didn't... but I was good enough to earn a scholarship to play at Stanford, and start for 3 years there. I did learn one thing while I played in college... I actually enjoyed the behind the scenes or sideline stuff as much as I did actually playing the game. I got very involved in stategy and tactics and all the things that grammy used to talk to me about because it's what she grew up on. It's what her father taught her. She used to tell me that you can put the very best men or women on the pitch and tell them to go play and play well they probably will.... but if you don't have a plan of attack to start with, if you haven't trained, if you don't work together... you're not going to get very far. I took that to heart and studied very hard and ended up getting my degree in sports science and management. You see, as much as I liked the game and I was good enough to play in college.......... it was never going to be a career. I knew that much so I made other plans. I'm not really quite sure what they were, I just knew I loved the sport and wanted to do something in it after my college career was over. Little did I know at that time where I would actually end up.

Is Torquay nice... it seems their club is up for sale as well. I wonder how much they want for it. Yeah, I appreciate all the support and help but I think maybe I'm not made out for lower leagues at the moment, as cool as it sounded to start a club but others here are much better at this than I am. Torquay seems like a nice opportunity and maybe a good story, I'll think about that one if I can't find my passion again for this story. I think my first mistake was wanting a seaside club for some reason and not just putting one in Gravesend and planning on becoming the king of London... I had a much better story planned there but I fell in love with Bridlington and just jumped at it and then just lost it. As you said, it happens.

****** out of character ****** My updates have been very slow with this even though I'm doing them monthly because I'm feeling a big disconnect with this save right now. I'm not very good at managing in this game to begin with given my track record but I'm just lost in the lower leagues and having a hard time seeing a way forward, despite the fact I've read some very good "stories" from others that have done exactly that with smaller clubs like I've built here. My problem is we have no money.... and I was advised multiple times not to spend money anyway. But NOBODY and I mean NOBODY is willing to come here on a non-contract... nor have I even found a single loan to bring in players. I'm basically playing with 14 guys given the number of injuries I have and they are exhausted. My keeper is just terrible and couldn't stop a shot to save his life. We have no money and I don't know how to make money.... and every single other club in the league is spending money and bringing in players but mine. They're just not as bad as I thought they would be. I think I made a grave mistake (no pun intended) with not putting the team in Gravesend so at least maybe I'd have a better opportunity to make money in a larger territory but I don't know how that works in the game.... but even then we'd be a small club with no funds and I'm just not figuring out how to make it work. So for now my updates will probably be slow and few until I start feeling this save again -- if I do -- or maybe I'll just be done until FM25 comes out and I figure out how to run a club correctly.

October in Review Schedule It sort of all came crashing down this month, which I somewhat expected. We did win our 3rd Qualifying Round match in the FA Trophy and our Integros League Cup match.... but then lost in the first round of the FA Trophy later in the month. And then in league play our lack of depth really caught up with us as most of my players were just exhausted and started playing very poorly. We ended up with 1 win, 1 draw and 3 losses for the month where we scored 1 goal in those 3 matches. Table Those losses have moved us right down the table as other clubs just keep winning. Team Stats Overview Somehow our offensive numbers in comparison to the rest of the league are still excellent. Player Stats Overview Sani is good. Attacking Data We're still scoring a lot of goals overall.... except this last month. Almost everything else has returned to league average. Defending Data Our defensive numbers are basically average with the exception of possession won.... but we're HORRIBLE at keeping the ball out of the goal. Mostly because our keeper is horrible. Finances Well that's more like it. We lost over 16k this month and once again are bleeding cash.

Britton's Private Blog I'm 2 months into my tenure as the manager of Bridlington United and it's been quite a ride so far. There have been some definite highs and lows. We just lost a FA Cup match to a club that I really would have liked to beat but probably knew we wouldn't. The thing is their manager called my club out before the match and said he was happy to have such an easy match on the schedule. I never want to hear someone else talking about my club like that and we really wanted to go out and make them regret their words, but the fact is they were just better. It happsns, but I hope my boys take that and turn it into something they can use for the rest of the season. We haven't lost in league play yet (quickly knocks on wood).... but it's not like we're necessarily dominating either. We do lead the league in goals scored -- mostly thanks to my 18-year old striker, Glen Sani. He leads the league in goals scored and has 19 goals across all competitions. He has been incredible. Other than him we're relatively average at best on the attacking side. The problem is we're probably slightly worse than average on the defensive side -- especially at the goakeper position. We are just... not good there. I have also brought in a couple of dozen players on trial and have tried to find guys willing to come in on non-contracts but no luck there, so I'm sort of stuck with what I have unless I spend a little money and go get a new player or 2. For now I'll keep trying but I'm a little backed in a corner here. I'd rather not spend the money but if we start to slip in the league I may be forced to find a couple of extra warm bodies because my guys are getting a little tired with the number of matches they've been playing. Otherwise I really can't complain. I wasn't expecting to have a lot of money -- or really any to spend -- so it's nice I've been able to put a decent amount back from our winnings. And we're doing very well in league play with 2 games in hand on the teams right around me and only 2 points back in the league currently. We have 7 more matches on the docket this month with another FA Trophy match and Integro Cup match scheduled as well. Hopefully the guys can keep their legs under them.

September in Review Schedule Let's focus on the league first. Due to all the competition matches we only played 3 league games this month but we won 2 and earned a point in the other one. In competitions we played 3 FA Cup matches... winning in the First and Second qualifying rounds but then losing to FC United in the 3rd qualifying round. That one hurt because their manager called us out before the match and said we were no competition to them and it would be an easy victory. I don't know that I'd call 2-0 "easy" but they certainly outplayed us. We also played 2 matches in the FA Trophy and won both of those, so we're moving on there. Overall it was a very good month and with lots of competitions -- and wins -- comes a decent influx of money as well. Table So despite all our winning -- we still haven't lost a league match -- we find ourselves in the 4th spot on the table because there are other clubs in the league having great seasons so far as well. Stockbridge hasn't lost a match yet either. Pontefract, Belper and Stockton are all playing very well. One thing we do have is 2 games in hand on all those clubs due to our competition schedule... and we're only 2 points off the lead currently. League Player Rankings Sani continues to be not only the player of the year for us... but for the league as well. League Team Rankings Team Attacking Stats Sanie's 19 goals across all competitions paces the club by a large margin. Without him.... we'd be in trouble I think. Team Defending Stats Finances A very profitable month for a small club.

This issue killed a Notts County save for me. I got back-to-back promotions and had signed a lot of the players to new contracts the 2nd season I was in charge. By the 3rd year - a single year after a bunch of new contracts were signed - about half those players demanded new contracts and the few that I didn't capitulate to created all kinds of problems in the club. By the time I ended up giving in on most of them we were spending more than 100k per week as a League One club and I had a couple of players on contracts worth more than 10k per week. There was no way it was feasible and we couldn't make near enough money to support it.

Bridlington Echo Brid's Free Monthly Newspaper We sat down with Bridlington's own Britton Burton, manager of the Bridlington United Football Club to ask him a few questions about the previous month. I would imagine you're quite satisfied with the results of your first month in charge? Yes, very satisfied. The boys have been playing good football and are enjoying themselves out there. Is the good attitude part of the winning formula? Absolutely. I think no matter what field you work in if you're happy with your job and you love coming to work it makes your job easier. When things aren't going well no matter how professional you are it's going to creep into your mind and affect your attitude and make your job that much harder. In sports that's a really big thing since half the job is between your ears. So the mental aspect of the game is something you push in training? It's certainly one big part, just like the physical part and the technical part is... those are probably the 3 main aspects of training. The more prepared you are in each aspect of training the better you're going to perform on the pitch. You've brought in quite a few players on trials but as of yet haven't announced any new contracts. Can you update us on the status of those trials and are there any players you're trying to sign? Umm, yeah, we've definitely brought in quite a few players and there's reasoning behind that. Obviously the financial side of where we are in the English football pyramid at the moment isn't conducive to spending a lot of money and it being a good business decision. We are trying to grow the club and as we do that there will be more money available for us to improve the things we need to improve. So right now bringing in players on free trials gives us the opportunity to scout players without having the need to send scouts across the country which costs a lot of money and it gives us the opportunity to determine who - if anybody - we might want to keep around. And yet you haven't announced any new signings to date. No, we haven't... because the 2nd part of those financial constraints is the fact that we just don't have the funds to bring in a lot of new players, so our best bet right now is to find players willing to play on non-contracts -- basically an opportunity for them to play and show they're worth getting a shiny new contract from some club that can afford it. But obviously most players aren't very willing to do that so it's just a weeding out process to find guys that are, and that fit the club. You've managed 2 wins in the FA Cup preliminary rounds. How happy are you with that and how far do you think the team can go in this tournament? It's been a big boost to the club. It adds to the belief system that we can win games that some others may think we can't. As far as how far we can go, let's not get ahead of ourselves and as much as I hate to sound cliche, just take one game at a time. The team's attacking stats have been quite outstanding so far, to what do you attribute that success? Training... and belief. Again, it's somewhat simple. If you don't believe you can do something you're probably not going to. But that belief is only part of it, the second part is that you have to be prepared. That preparation makes going out there and doing it much easier. So not to be a broken record but you need the mental side, the physical side and the technical side all working together. That's what you train for. And when training goes good, your attitude and belief that you can do something is good as well. We've taken that and we've put it all together on the pitch so far. Now it's just a matter of keeping that belief up and the training good. Well things are certainly good so far, we wish you continued success out there this season. Thank you and thank you to our supporters as well.

August In Review Schedule What a brilliant opening month for the club. It started with a 3-0 win in our opening match of the year, which happened to be a FA Cup match. Then 2 wins and a draw out of our first 3 league matches... one of which we knocked in 5 goals. Add in another win in the FA Cup to advance. And then follow that up with a 4 goal victory and a 2-2 draw.... assisted by an own-goal - but we'll take it. All-in-all not a bad way to start the season. Table A great opening month puts us to the top of the table early. We're one of only 2 unbeaten teams in the league... and hold the best goal difference in the league as well. Team Stats Overview We've almost doubled the next highest amount of goals in the league, plus we are top 5 in possession, pass completion, shots on target ratio and conversion. I'd say that's not bad at all. Player Stats Overview I said Sani had a chance to be speical and so far he's playing like it. I don't want to put too much pressure on the young man, but it's a good start to his career. Attack Data Our attacking stats are just off the map right now. Defend Data Those possession won numbers are outstanding. Financials Not bad. Not bad. It's always good to make a little money... even if it is a little.

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Whatever gets the job done... or fits the narrative.

FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round Preview You make your managerial debut on the road in an FA Cup extra preliminary round match versus Westbury United. How are the butterflies? Yeah, they're there. I don't think you could count yourself alive if you weren't feeling something at this moment. You've previously said that your main objective this season was league play and that everything else was just secondary. Does this mean a result here doesn't matter? No, I wouldn't say that. My intention was to say that our main goal this season is to be competitive in league play, that's what the supporters want more than anything. But that's not to say that we're just going to lay down and roll over in these competitions. That's not in me or this club. We're absolutely going to go out there and give everything we can and go as far as we can. We owe that to our fans. Good luck out there. Thanks!

Bridlington Free Press Exclusive Interview with Britton Burton First off congratulations on the new job. Thank you, I'm extremely happy to have the honor of leading my home-town club. For those that don't know you were born and raised in Bridlington. Your family owns AB Graphic - who own Bridlington United. Your great-uncle - Charles Burton - is the current Chairman of the company and your father - Stanley Burton - is a sales director. AB Graphic is one of the top employers in the area so to say that your family name at least is pretty well known would be an understatement. What was the reasoning behind AB Graphic deciding to start a new club, especially with Bridlington Town recently going defunct after not finding a new owner when it was put up for sale. And why wouldn't they have just purchased that club? Well you'd probably have to ask Uncle Charles and the board he put in place to determine whether purchasing that club or starting a new one made more sense.... or if even starting a club in the first place was a good investment. If you're asking my opinion, I think they wanted to do something from scratch and make it their own, rather than take on the old club and their history. In the end it's really more of a next chapter for Bridlington football... with the name Bridlington United. So a little about you for our readers who are curious who the new gaffer is. You are from Bridlington - which we've already established. You are an ex-football player, having gone through the academy at Leeds United until you were injured playing a match when you were 17-years old. The injury was significant enough that you decided to give up on your playing career and instead decided to coach. You stayed with Leeds and worked in their academy, where you've been for the past 3 plus years. From everything we've been told by the head of the Leeds Youth Academy you were a very successful instructor there. They said you had a great passion for teaching the game and that the kids that went through the academy really liked working with you. Can we assume that you enjoyed teaching as much as it seems the players enjoyed learning from you? I'd say it was a passion of mine, still is. I liked playing. I won't be arrogant enough right now to suggest that I would have been a great player or even a good player, but I had enough talent to play. Unfortunately that was taken away from me so I turned that passion elsewhere. It's a source of pride to hear that the players I worked with enjoyed learning from me and I enjoyed learning from them as well. So that's a brief history obviously but it brings us up to current times and you being hired as the manager of Bridlington United. It would obviously be easy for everyone to assume you got the job because of your family connections and I doubt many would have issue with that since you at least do have a background in the sport, but Charles Burton actually said that they interviewed several other people before settling on you and that you weren't just given the job. Well truth-be-told regardless of my status as Uncle Burton's great-nephew and my father sitting on the board as well... they actually hired someone else as Chairman of the club and that individual sat in on all interviews and had as much say as everyone else on the board did on who they wanted hired. Now, I was told early on that they were planning on starting a new club once Bridlington Town closed down and I was asked if I had any interest in coming here in some capacity - which wasn't necessarily going to be as the manager. So I went through the interview process just like everyone else did. Whether I had a leg up or not is for others to argue. Personally I'd like to think I got the job on my merits alone and I hope to prove to the supporters here that I did deserve the job. Despite being a lower tier club and obivously not in a hot-bed for the sport, Bridlington Town was nonetheless somewhat successful in their own right. Where a lot of other small town clubs are drowning in debt, Brid was solvent. You mentioned that one of the conversations had by the new owners of Bridlington United was whether it was financially realistic to start a new club, so we can assume that the answer they came up with was yes, since they did start a new club. What are the expectations with United? We can obviously assume you want to stay within whatever budget the board sets, but are there hopes of growing the club at all? Is this a Ryan Reynolds thing where you're planning on taking Bridlington all the way to the Premier League? *laughs* I think we'll start by getting the club up and running first. Maybe baby steps to start. I think any comparisons to Ryan Reynolds or Wrexham at the moment are a little far fetched. Maybe our supporters don't want to hear that but we have to be a little honest with ourselves. Does that mean I think we can't fight for promotion... absolutely not. But whether it's in the cards our first year or it takes a couple of seasons, we just want to do things right. One more question then. What type of football can the supporters expect on the pitch? Again, if we're being honest, at this level and with our players I think you are just wanting to see physical play. You want to see the guys out there giving everything they've got. We don't want to make things too complicated, but you do want to see effort. So the one promise I'll make the supporters is we're going to play hard. Thanks for your time. Thank you.