Co-owner to be manager next season but knows ideal successors

Co-owner Lloyd Hume is ready to stay on as Ashford United manager next season. Hume initially took the reins until the end of the season following Danny Kedwell’s departure in January. It was something of a reluctant return to the dugout for the former Maidstone boss at the time.

But it’s increasingly made sense to remain in charge, particularly with all the hard work going on behind the scenes to prepare for an Isthmian South East promotion push. He’s been encouraged to do so by director of football Alan Walker, among others, and players have been asking for clarity during contract talks. Hume is dedicating countless hours to his commitments as co-owner and manager, missing a family holiday to Australia this week.



But it will be worth it to bring success to the club. “We’re building a squad, we’re building a team and everyone who comes can generally see we’re going in the right direction,” said Hume. “I’m getting more pressure from a lot of experienced people around me, like Alan Walker, saying we’re not going to find someone better than you to be the manager right now.

“I’m not doing it reluctantly now, the reluctance is the amount of time and commitment it takes. “If I do anything, I do it 110%, so I’m putting 25 hours a day into it at the moment. “I’ve gone from retiring, if you like, into running a football club into managing a football team, and there aren’t enough hours in the day.

“Last week I spent five hours in hotels meeting players and I’m meeting more this week. “I’m constantly on to players because I know the most important thing that we’re going to do is recruit the right individuals so we go into pre-season with a very strong squad, not as a new squad with the excuse it takes time to gel. “We haven’t got time to gel, we need to hit the ground running in August.

“I’ve openly said if there’s certain managers out there who became available today, I’d be interested in talking to them. “But those managers are winning things in leagues above and there’s a reason they’re not available, because they’re doing really well. “Some of the players I’ve been speaking to but, more importantly, the players internally that have signed contracts, have done so on the understanding that I’ll be here next year.

“That was a prerequisite from them, they didn’t want to sign a contract and not know who was going to be in charge, which I completely understand. “It was at that point I sort of made a decision that I’m going to commit to it.” Defenders Craig Stone and Barry Fuller have been working as assistant manager and first-team coach respectively.

Stone will continue as No.2 and Hume is also keen to keep Fuller on his staff, although he’s currently only on loan from Dorking until the end of the season. In an ideal world, they would be successors to Hume when the time is right to step aside.

“Ultimately, I think we’ve got good people in the club and I’m hoping we promote from within,” said Hume. “But I want the people I’m working with to step into the role naturally, as opposed to it being forced on them. “If Stoney or Barry become the management team in the future, I don’t want it to be ‘you be the manager and give it a go’, I’ll have gently handed the reins over, if that’s going to work, over a longer period of time, so it’s a seamless transition.

“If we’re not careful we can go through four or five managers in three or four years and I don’t think that’s healthy for any club.” Bar a brief spell at Rochester, Hume hadn’t managed since leaving Maidstone in 2010. The game has changed but not to the extent some would have him believe.

“Everyone warned me that football’s different and players are different but the bunch of lads we’ve got are great,” said Hume. “They’re not prima donnas, it’s not much different to when I last managed at this level with Maidstone. “They’re very professional about what they do but the dressing room is also a good, fun place to be in.

“I see managing a football team no different to how I see managing my other businesses. “It’s about managing staff, making sure you get more out of individuals than perhaps they believe they’ve got within them and they’re really happy, and there’s a real want to do well for the club rather than just because you’re paying them. “The tactics side has changed slightly but in the level we’re in, everyone plays similar formations, everyone’s got the same mentality about keeping the ball and it actually makes the tactics a little bit easier because there’s more knowledge out there now about what other teams are doing.

“We’ve got analysts, people who watch games, I know all the players, I know how they’re going to play, what formation they’re going to set up in, what their set-pieces are. “The money we’re investing in the infrastructure is making the job a little bit easier, so you can set yourselves up the right way. “But it all comes down to players, getting the right players, making sure you get players with a real desire to win and that want to be part of a project.

“When we’re meeting players, we’re not talking about chucking loads of money at them. “What we’re doing is trying to get people to play for us for the right reasons and buy into what we’re looking to do over the next two or three years, as opposed to the next two or three weeks.” Louis Collins scored twice against his former club as Ashford led Sevenoaks 2-0 last weekend but Warren Mfula and a Will Moses own goal saw the visitors leave with a point.

The Nuts & Bolts visit Three Bridges this Saturday (3pm)..