Where it all started,
Over the last 13 years of coaching and managing I have experienced some highs and some lows, I have never been relegated, I have always offered my toughest opponents their toughest match as never gone in half measure!
Let me start with my first team.
Let me start with my first team.
Headstone
I started like everyone at a Sunday youth side, the name of my first club was Headstone Venturers FC in Rayners Lane, Harrow, taking them from relegation to mid table was always an achievement for my first season. The season after, we finished second in the league and was a good result considering the team had to fight off poaching from the more established Headstone Manor. I worked there for 3 seasons where we won and got promoted from third division to premier.
I then moved on to a club in Sudbury (Wembley) called Sudbury Court at the request of their Secretary Mick Jennings, who is now the Manager of South Kilburn FC in the Hellenic League, the squad of u14s had finished rock bottom of division 1 the season before and relegated to the second. I remember turning out for the first session with the outgoing manager handing me the squad, I saw a group of spoilt young players, having squash poured on by the manager, thorwing little tantrums, so on the second session I read them the rules and how hard it was going to be and what discipline and work I expected my players to achieve, needless to say we lost a couple of lazy players but finished the season with a good cup run and third in the league.
I went then to assist Mick at Kingsbury Town FC u18s in the Allied Counties, it was a good eye opener to a better standard of youth football.
AEWFC
I then moved on to a team closer to home at Acton Ealing Whistlers where I had a very good relationship with the club and still do.
My first season we started from scratch at u15s, we managed to go the whole season unbeaten (apart from a default game due to ground mix up).
On the last day of the season at home, we played a double header against Headstone Manor, which till today still one of my proudest as a manager. We only needed 1 point to win the league. Headstone were second and had a strong squad with a pacey forward, but so did we, the only problem was that we had 5 players missing from our usual squad and 2 suspended players, which I must admit I tried to play under another name; only for the opposition to find out, I had to pull the players out. We started the game with 8 players with one on the way, no recognized keeper.
We were soon 9 players and managed to win the first game 2-1 and loose the second 3-1, but with the 1 point already gained we won the league.
We were soon 9 players and managed to win the first game 2-1 and loose the second 3-1, but with the 1 point already gained we won the league.
Despite the oppositions protest that we had tried to play suspended players falling on deaf years as they did not play and it was their own fault.
The following season we had Manor on the first game to where they waited until the game was finished to check the cards.
After Acton I went to join with my local club now in Kensington called Kensington Dragons, supporting a coach called Gary Street (now at FC Kensington and a Middx County Discipline officer).
As good a man he is after 1 season as assistant manager, I decided to get my own age group as I am a disciplinarian and didn’t see much at the age I was assisting.
Kensington Dragons FC U13-U18
With a new u13s from scratch we went from first season Mid Table in the 3rd division to winning the league again unbeaten for my second time and promotion to the premier at u17.
I then took some of the boys to my last club Tokyngton Manor FC whilst they played Midweek at TMFC and Sundays at KDFC.
AFter half a season absent from football, i was asked to take my old boys at Kensington Dragons, with a few added players i agreed.
I was Reunited with my old assistant Luke O'Donoghue and a Dragon adult player Jon to support coach the squad, and with 8 games left in the season, managed to finish 3rd in the premier missing second by 2 points having won 7 drawing 1.
AFter half a season absent from football, i was asked to take my old boys at Kensington Dragons, with a few added players i agreed.
I was Reunited with my old assistant Luke O'Donoghue and a Dragon adult player Jon to support coach the squad, and with 8 games left in the season, managed to finish 3rd in the premier missing second by 2 points having won 7 drawing 1.
Tokyngton Manor FC Academy U18's
Management at a higher step of youth football in the Southern Counties Floodlit League
With my mind on the game and the will to win, assembling a squad was my number 1 target, but who to trust? What players do you need? We are playing teams from semi pro set ups after all.
“Ok we hold trials and see what happens” were the words out of my mouth to my assistant manager, adverts and word of mouth and with a set date 53 players turned up.WOW.. Now that’s a bit more then what I had expected.
The quality was not great and a lot of the players were either just 5-a-side or found it hard to understand the level needed.
A few players were picked and to join a small number of players from my previous side.
A lot of pre-season training and some tactical work we were getting the squad ready for our first game of the season.
Oxhey Jets were the first opponents, and I was in Mallorca on holiday for the first game, ‘Bollocks’ but with my 2 assistants keeping me updated, sounded like a good first game winning 6-3.
But the next game was a real encounter and with Clapton FC in the FA Youth Cup it was the highlight for most of these players. With the game and a few nervous players Clapton seemed a big, quick and strong team, tactically aware and no push over, within 5 minutes they went ahead with a massive deflection, Clapton seemed to be creating some openings and their cocky manager proceeded to go to the bar and get a Rum and Coke and swear at his players a little bit more, to then start relaxing thinking the game was won, but we pounced with 2 minutes to go and made it 1-1 to take it to extra time and then penalties where they won.
We didn’t do too badly in the Nemean Division and reached the quarters of the Middlesex cup, losing to Hayes & Yeading in the last minute from a penalty and to be praised as better than most Ryman teams they played was a good compliment.
We reached also reached the Semi’s of the Brian Hitchings cup and the Final of the Supplementary cup so not a bad season.
What makes a good manager?
I left Tokyngton Manor, after appointing a coach whom I thought was actually going to work well and with all the talk he would win the league and get far on the FA Youth Cup I thought I had left the teams in good hands.
But after I left manor this young coach released most the players from the previous season except the goalie, claiming I had left him ‘SHIT’ players, how can one argue of ‘SHIT’? When those players reached 1 cup semi finals and 1 final 1 quarter final and had a squad boasting 6 players playing first team/reserve football, all in their first season at the club, and at a higher level of youth football. Assembling a squad that beat Ryman league Academy sides.
I fought hard at Tokyngton Manor to establish not only the u18s but also support the first team.
I designed the clubs coaching system, worked out a structure of coaching and education, connections with local clubs and attended meetings with QPR to form a Community partnership, Met up with the Eastern Junior Alliance to put 2 teams into the league after convincing the Secretary that we would be better than the other applicants they would have to reject, (we were accepted) due to my persuasion that we were going to be a development club and all the plans were in place.
Towards the end of the season first team matches were terrible and as I was the director of football by then, I had words with the manager about players at key points and chose players to what positions I felt suited, we promoted 3 u18s who played regularly, we didn’t win but surely didn’t get embarrassed.
With the season finished the old manager was not in the Chairman’s plans and he was looking for a new manager. If none was found I would step up, so I carried on doing trials for the first team and from over 60 players chose a 20, and done pre-season fight up till 2 weeks before the start of the season the chairman to pull the team out of the league as he wanted to merge with another club as we didn’t have the needed secretarial support and the team merging would provide this.
So with my 1 season at the club and spending 3 months doing trials and pre-season, the chair asked me to carry on with the DOF role and take back the under 18s off the new appointed manager to, which I refused and decided to leave the club on good terms.
But with the season now in swing and after a year banned from the Spartan South Midlands, TMFC have been allowed back into the league and doing well, so perhaps was a gamble well taken.
I am club-less and looking for the right club or an independent academy set up.
I have also scouted for Reading FC, Fulham FC and Brentford
What managers do I look up to? It would have to be Jose Mourinho his tactics and discipline as well as his methods of dealing with everything to protect his players makes him a winner and also turns the clubs he coaches into champions.
In my career as a manager I have achieved success and helped players along the way.
I must admit that my methods are only to benefit the clubs and players I coach and manage, I am a disciplinarian in many ways, and perhaps it is this detail that allows me to maintain a good but professional relationship at a level outside Academies, do I think I am the best manager out there? Possibly, I sure know I can turn and create a winning mentality into any team I manage whilst being a down to earth approachable and hardworking everyday guy.
Ricardo Soares
