NLP coverage of Holleran departure

 

Viva Holleran

The news that Paul Holleran is standing down was a shock and a blow.   In days of rapid managerial turnover he has served the club for 16 years and his long spell in charge was recently featured on BBC TV.

Paul has a marvellous contacts book and has developed many under rated players who have gone on to greater things, e.g., Colby Bishop at Portsmouth.   Danny Newton writing on X was full of praise for how Paul had rebooted his career.

Danny Newton said: 'The word legend for this man is an understatement  Signed me when I was close to packing it all in.   Gave me belief, advice and endless opportunity to discover my abilities that sparked my career.  What a man!  I am for ever grateful.'

I understand that Paul has some health challenges and I wish him well with those.

We will not see his like again.   I hope that someone on the board is filling in the Cabinet Office forms for an appropriate honour.

What we must now try and do is find a manager who will stay with us for a while.

I might give my Paul Holleran mask one more outing!

Prudent and hard working board underpins pitch success

Just 18 fans turned up to the club's annual general meeting yesterday.   Perhaps that reflects broad satisfaction with the way things are going and there is plenty to be pleased about.  We are punching above our weight in a league where most clubs are now full time or 'hybrid'.   (It was also a hot day with lots of other attractions).   In any event I thought that it was a constructive and informative meeting.

We owe a lot to Hollers.   The meeting was told that he had brought in £250k to the club in transfer fees during his tenure by identifying and developing promising players.

The board have worked hard, have been strengthened and are to be strengthened further.   They put in average of £5k a year each apart from their hard work which helps to reduce the deficit (how large that is depends on how you calculate it and the figures in any one year are distorted by transfer payments including appearance fees and a share of sell ons).  The gross loss in 2024 was £102k.  However, commercial income is on the way up, almost compensating for the £38k we lost in National League funds when we were in Step 3.   This season it will be around £45k.

The club shop is to be put on a new basis to maximise revenue and provide a much better online offer (much needed after the experience a family member had last Christmas).

The whole new stadium saga is complex and uncertain.  There is a regular dialogue with the CEO of the District Council.  The original plan was there to be by 2022, but Covid and a war intervened.   What is clear is that we need the stadium to be a sustainable club in Step 2.  There is a Plan B but it would involve accepting a likely Step 3 status,

Apparently just the planning and procurement work for the new stadium will take one year.   There would be a Coop store and a nursery there and quite probably housing development nearby which would help to defray the cost.  The Council has no real alternative to Harbury Lane for a site for the 'travelling community'.

I asked about what would be the implications of the replacement of the present local government structure by a unitary authority, however constructed, but the honest answer is that no one knows.

A comment from the floor pointed out that comms could have been better on the car parking fees and that January was not a great month to introduce it.   This point was more or less accepted, it being fairly pointed out that sometimes the board got overwhelmed by the number of issues it had to deal with (hence why it is a good idea to increase its size and double up in some roles).

We have made some good signings and I am looking forward to what will be a challenging season.

I suggested to a board member after the meeting that we need some survey data on where supporters actually live.

Farewell Callum Hawkins

I have always been interested in keepers and Callum Hawkins has been outstanding for us.   He deserves to play at a much higher level, hopefully eventually in the EFL.   Good keepers are not easy to find at any level and our survival last season owed a lot to him.

Some other quality departures have rocked us, but I put a lot of faith in Paul Holleran and his contacts book.  We have just made one signing and I am sure that others with potential are on their way.

'Brakes are Hollering'!

That was the headline over an article in yesterday's Non-League Paper.

Holleran said: 'It was probably never meant to be like this' referring to his nearly 15 years in charge. 'You probably think at the start I'll have two or three years at this and take it up a notch or two.  But there's always something going on here.  Every time I've thought the end could be near, something's happened.'

'It does take its toll when you're part time - there is a lot of work and prep each week and I've never really had a summer off.'

'We have a model that's worked for years.  You still need a little bit of luck.  Young players have come here because they've seen what we can do with youngsters.   They see that we can develop players.'

'We had to rebuild our identity in Step 3 and we're really fortunate a couple of players we brought in did really well.'  Referring to the National League North he said: 'It's tough, it is hard, week in, week out, but we love being back in it.  When you come out of the National League you lose lots on and off the pitch. It asks you a lot of questions, but at the moment we are finding the answers.'

Holleran Milestone Fuels Fire for More

Following his appearance on Football Focus there is a featured interview in The Non-League Paper with Paul Holleran this morning.

Here a few excerpts.  'Being honest, it is a tough job - I am getting older and the players are getting younger.  I am 53.  You do have moments when you think "Can I keep doing this?" but the players and the fans keep me driving on at the moment.'

'Even at this level you don't stop.  Regardless of whether you are Jurgen Klopp or Paul Holleran, it is relentless, and I do 50 hours per week on top of that as well which I imagine is a bit different to Jurgen.'

'You keep ticking along and maybe become part of the furniture - it is a bit like with your wife, you begin to like them, they begin to like you.   [Not sure what Mrs. H would say about that].  The fans have always been good with me, as the years have gone by, the bond has certainly grown.'

'It does cross your mind as to whether you can do it any more, there is no doubt about that.  When we got relegated last season I felt I was the best person to stabilise the club and get it back on track.  It has been a real challenge in a tough league this season, we have had to rebuild and I am looking forward to the last few games.'

'Holleran aiming to make it a lucky 13'

Paul Holleran thinks that a new stadium is key to Leamington's future.  In an interview with The Non-League Paper he stated: 'I think that Leamington's ideal would be to get the stadium through and then they would have the incomes streams and resources that they might need to then say we can go into that league and compete.'

After the pain of relegation last season, Holleran says that he has enjoyed life back in Step 3 as the club relish the chance to regroup and prepare for a return to National League North,.   'On a personal level, I am quite enjoying it, not being so intense and less travelling.'

'Realistically, people in the club know we have had a good look at the National League.  It is frustrating to go on there and be setting on the edge of your 18-yard box for most of the season.'

Reflecting on his time at the Brakes, Holleran said: 'At certain times when I thought the end was near, something has happened which has sparked me again. There always seems to be something that comes along that goes right.   When you have got an affinity with the club I have thought, realistically, I know I will be the best person to sort it out.'

''We have lost our top goal scorers for the last five, six, seven years and, thankfully, most of them gone on to do really well.'  The article points to players who have established themselves in the Football League from Holleran's stewardship, including Courtney Baker-Richardson at Crewe, Colby Bishop at Portsmouth and Josh March at Harrogate.

Yesterday Baker-Richardson scored a winning goal for Crewe with a clever back flick.

Holleran praises talented youngsters

Paul Holleran has told The Non-League Paper he believes he can have a positive impact on some of the talented youngsters coming through the ranks: 'The main plusses from the season where the young boys coming in and doing well for us.'

'You look at Dan Turner, it was his first full season in the National League North and he gets 17 goals.  Dan Meredith, his first season, and he's been great.   Devon Kelly-Evans the same.  We have bedded in three or four really good young players.'

Holleran commented, 'As with anything in life, the longer you do it, the better you get.  I have seen things before, been in different scenarios, in tough times you can relate back to it, and use it in matches and moments.'

'I like to think I can be a calming influence and bring that to the players.   They are all good footballers, but it's that psychological and emotional difference.   If they can make good decisions and stay in control of their emotions, then they tend to perform better.   Sometimes you've just got to take it away from the players and deal with it yourself.'

Referring to players who have moved on to a higher level, Holleran said, 'It is a great motivation for younger players to come here, when they can see others have had a similar path and we have helped them get back into full time football.'

'People might criticise us for letting them go but we'll bring in players who have chosen us because they know what the move is capable of.  We take a lot of satisfaction out of trying to get players back into the Football League full-time.    The good thing is the players know if they want to move up, they have to do well for Leamington.'

He reckons it will be a tough and challenging season with new and well-resourced teams entering the league. 'The next step for us is turning into an established team, maintaining our position and gradually climbing up the league.  A lot of managers will be mindful that there are more teams going down next year.'

Holleran interview

Paul Holleran is now one of the longest serving managers in English football.  He has had a couple of interesting offers, but everything fits at Leamington.   The most difficult period was when we were relegated from the National League North and then lost in the play offs at Hungerford: https://francismorrisbcu.wordpress.com/2021/04/18/twelve-years-and-counting-for-paul-holleran/

Poppies boss wanted to replay second half tonight

Poppies boss Paul Cox has his say about last night's extraordinary events at the Community Stadium: https://www.northantstelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/logic-and-common-sense-went-out-window-says-poppies-boss-cox-after-ridiculous-night-fa-trophy-3106226

It will be interesting to see how the same journalist writes this up for the Courier.   Paul Holleran's comments have now appeared: https://www.leamingtoncourier.co.uk/sport/football/mixed-feelings-victorious-brakes-boss-holleran-after-bizarre-evening-3106328

Joe Dunham's report is now available and it is full of praise for the football skills of the Brakes under Paul Holleran: https://www.northantstelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/kettering-town-0-leamington-3-jon-dunhams-review-3106551

I do not think the second half could have been replayed tonight as Dunham suggests because there has been heavy rain (as forecast) and even our pitch couldn't cope.

As for the incident involving the Klattering captain, there are different versions of this, but it is at least possible that he touched the referee which is not permitted.

I understand that the FA had an observer at the match which is just as well.

Osborne goes

Sam Osborne has joined ambitious AFC Fylde for an undisclosed fee.  He has been a great player for us and I wish him well for the future.   Holleran knows how to spot talent that has been neglected and can be developed.

Some fans have expressed disappointment.   They knew he was going, but hoped it wouldn't be to another club in our own division.  AFC Fylde, of course, think they are entitled to play in the EFL.

I would describe their ambition as 'vaulting ambition over reaching itself' to misquote Shakespeare, but then I am not one of their supporters.  They did get relegated from the National League.

Another great product was Colby Bishop who scored two goals against my league club Charlton to win the game for Accrington Stanley last night.  The defence handed him the opportunities on a plate, but he took them with great composure and was a threat throughout the game.

My match preview pointed out that he would be a threat: https://addicksdiary3.blogspot.com/2021/01/bishops-move-for-accrington.html

They were full of praise for Colby on The Football League Show on Sunday, not just for his goals on Friday.

Viva Holleran!

Leamington manager Paul Holleran is featured in an interview in The Non-League Paper this morning.  He says that the FA Trophy win over Wrexham had all the hallmarks of what Leamington's season had been about.  It was one of the finest days in the club's history since it had been re-formed. 

He said, 'We've had to be resilient and robust, we've been very good in periods and scored good goals, we've been backs to the walls and hung in there.'

He singled out Jake Weaver and Sam Osborne for praise.  Osborne is already in the shop window and could potentially be joined by Weaver.

Holleran 'optimistic and realistic'

Paul Holleran

Leamington are the featured National League North team in today's Non-League Paper.

The new recruits are all discussed,  'Getting the goalkeeper situation sorted was a big thing on my mind,' said Paul Holleran. Holleran turns 50 next month and is approaching 1,000 games in management.

Discussing his recruitment strategy he said, 'We do look at Step 3 players, up-and-coming players, and players who have been released.  They should have the mind set that they can get into, or back into, full-time football.  The best way to perform is in the National League - the rest will look after itself.'

Holleran was described as optimistic and realistic about what Leamington can achieve this season.  'National League North is a really strong league.  It's a bit like the Premier League - you can split it into three sections.  You sort of know where Spennymoor, York, Boston, Brackley and a few others will be.'

'We've been in the bottom third and hovering around it.  The next step is trying to be a team that gets into that next tier.  It's within our capabilities to compete with teams settled and established in the division.  That has to be the aim.'

'I loved my time at Leamington'

Both The Football League Paper and The Non-League Paper carried stories on Josh March yesterday. As they are sister papers, the reports were similar, although not identical. He started in Forest Green's 4-3 victory at Mansfield, but did not score and was substituted on 69 minutes.

Unfortunately, neither story specifically mentions the Brakes in any great depth but here are a few key points:

• He can't stop smiling after only joining Paul Holleran's side in the summer
• Playing non-league 'gives you the drive to look after yourself, eat the right things before games. You have a job and get up early in the morning when you want to play football.'
• He had to give up his day job as a pipe fitter for Armstrong. 'I was meant to go back last Thursday after New Year, but I was meeting clubs. I went in and explained what was going on and they've been as good as gold.'/LI>
• 'I've filled out now, but when I was 17, 18, 19, I was stick thin almost. You learn about how to get the ball between your body and the man. They might try and kick you but that never really fazed me - I like that!'
• 'I felt I could play in the League, but would never get the opportunity.'
• 'I loved my time at Leamington. Paul Holleran has really helped me out getting this through. He's been great.'/p>

Not a happy bunny

It's not just Jurgen Klopp who is complaining about fixture congestion. Paul Holleran has told the Leamington Courier 'We've got games on the 21st, 26th, 28th and 1st. I don't think the 28th should have been there, especially with the pitches being so heavy this time of year.'

Holleran also complained about the Throstle Nest pitch and the infrastructure at Farsley Celtic. He was unblocking the toilet with a mop at 2 pm.

He was also aggrieved about a penalty awarded to the home side: 'The referee is a good age and so far away from play.' Holleran is pretty free with his advice to referees, ranging from indignant shouts of 'referee', to more vigorously expressed sentiments.

Not all referees accept Paul Holleran's advice

To be fair, he has been in the job over ten years and has an unrivalled contacts book, conjuring up promising players from Football League academies. Judging by the picture of his well stocked fridge he put on Twitter, he had a good party on Christmas Eve. The 3-0 win over Gloucester City on Boxing Day should have cheered him up as well.

Brakes finish 13th

Leamington finished a creditable 13th with 54 points in the National League North after a 1-1 draw at Darlington this afternoon. This is the best finish since the club was resurrected in 2000.

Leamington managed to contain the home side until just before half time when they went ahead. Bishop equalised in the second half. Breeden made a number of good saves throughout the game: how much we owe him.

Congratulations to the 20 or so Brakes fans who made the long trip.

Next season only two clubs go down as the pyramid is reorganised so we should still be in tier two when (hopefully) our new stadium nears completion.

Praise is due to the board, the manager, the players and all the volunteers who keep the club going. Paul Holleran has his critics, and I have sometimes had reservations about our style of play, but his contacts enable us to bring in great loan players.

And we have a cup final to look forward to.

Congratulations to Paul Holleran

Congratulations to Paul Holleran on being made National League North manager of the month for October: Viva Holleran

After a worrying start to the season, both performances and results have improved considerably.

There is something of a pattern of winning this award affecting a team's results adversely, so let's hope for three points tomorrow!

Brakes hammered at Nuneaton

Leamington lost the Warwickshire derby 4-0 at Nuneaton this afternoon with Jamie Hood red carded. Let's hope it was actually Jamie Hodd as on the team sheet. However, he appeared to push an opposition player and make contact with his face.

Brakes were comprehensively outplayed and unable to deal with fierce shots from distance. It was all too easy for the home side. Leamington were 3-0 down at half time.

As someone said, bring on North Ferriby United so we can win something. Leamington now have the same number of points as North Ferriby and are second from bottom.

It is being argued that Holleran peaks at Southern League Premier level and can't cope with National League North. However, I am not sure that the squad is strong enough. Even the defence couldn't stand up to Nuneaton today.

Attendance was 712.

Holleran salutes 'fanastic fanbase'

Brakes boss Paul Holleran describes the National League North as like an 'old League Two' in an interview in The Non-League Paper. 'We are aware we are a small club, but we are run very well and have a fantastic fanbase, so we have to try and be competitive. It's a strong league with some fantastic clubs.'

Talking about the relegation back to the Southern League after two seasons in the Conference North, Holleran said: 'It's such a tough division - some good sides get stuck at that level by just missing out on the one promotion spot - so it was such a blow to be back at that level. We all looked at ourselves after being relegated, and to be honest I was ready to hang up my boots, but after 17 or 18 years in management I didn't want to end on my only relegation.'

Holleran puts the club's relegation down to his own inexperience and the club losing some of its key players, but this year confidence and experience is far higher going into the season. 'We will need to be at it from the word go. We don't have massive squad depth, so we need all our players to be at their best for every minute. We have to make sure we are competitive and reach 45/48 points as quickly as possible.'

'Give this a good write up'

Tony Breeden's penalty save. His penalty goal was something as well.

That was the instruction a fan gave me on the coach after last night's victory for Leamington in the Birmingham Senior Cup final over Wolves at Molineux. I didn't need any encouragement. This was a fitting finale to what has been an excellent season for the Brakes. As someone else said 'Leamington 1, Charlton 0', compensating for a poor season at The Valley.

We had a magical mystery tour on the coach on the way there. If I had wanted to get to the vicinity of Birmingham Airport, I could have got there more quickly via Kenilworth and Balsall Common.

Before the game a presentation was made to Paul Holleran for his 400th managerial appearance. I have been critical of his formations on occasion, but last night we look very well organised. We were fluent and passed the ball along the ground to each well, showing good anticipation of positioning.

After 15 minutes the lively Obeng (later named man of the match) was brought down in the area and the referee pointed to the spot. Thompson-Brown gave the keeper no chance to make it 1-0 to the Brakes.

Meanwhile, I had to put up with the Irish branch of the Wolves supporters club behind me, the height of their wit being to advise that Tony Breeden should be sent to weight watchers. A much better quip was that of the Brakes supporter who bellowed, 'You're worse than Cinderford.'

After the break Wolves became more energetic and determined and exerted some real pressure. Tony Breeden made a good save with his leg, but eventually Sealy equalised from eight yards out.

Leamington remained in the game, although they were starting to tire, but some judicious substitutions reinvigorated them. It was a good thing, however, that there was no provision for extra time.

There was an outbreak of handbags on 90 minutes after substitute Richard Batchelor was shoved and Tony Breeden came up to join in.

Tony Breeden, who reminds me of Charlton's legendary Sam Bartram, stepped up to take the first penalty and scored decisively. At 5-4, he saved from Sealy to give Brakes the trophy.

Attendance was 920 (no dogs), not sure there were 800 Leamington as the Express & Star says in its report (Wolves have won the BSC seven times): Local report

Good to see Barry Reeve to get a volunteer trophy at the end of the game for everything he does for the club (not least making the tea and coffee for the vice-presidents).