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|
Joe
Kinnear Interview 05/05/03 |
| Some
acts are pretty hard to follow, legends even harder. It’s been
a decade since Brian Clough finally called it a day as Forest boss
and ever since Old Big ‘Ead walked down the Trent into retirement,
the Tricky trees have desperately been trying to find a worthy successor,
the likes of Frank Clark, Dave Bassett, Ron Atkinson, David Platt
and Paul Hart all trying and failing to follow in those giant footsteps.
When it came to naming the latest taster from the poisoned chalice, few would have put much money on Joe Kinnear being at the top of the shortlist, but the former leader of the Crazy Gang rolled into the City Ground earlier this year, has promptly saved Forest from a terminal drop into Division Two and such has been the red renaissance over the course of the last three months, people are already suggesting that Forest are favourites for promotion to the Premiership next term. Cloughie famously said that if the Good Lord had meant us to play football in the sky, he’d have turfed the clouds, a sharp reference to the long ball style that made Wimbledon so successful, but in fairness to Kinnear he had long begun to adapt their style of play into a more cultured form of the game before the sale of the club saw him get his marching orders and Wimbledon begin the long, slow decline that led to Milton Keynes. Having left Luton in equally shambolic fashion following that club’s ownership problems last summer, Kinnear seems energized by this fresh challenge, perhaps his last in management and is looking to the future with real confidence, having signed a rolling one-year deal with the club. “I’ve had meetings with the Chairman about the way forward for the club and he’s left me in no doubt that he is as ambitious as I am. It’s a big challenge for me and I’ve really enjoyed my time here so far. “Everything about the set-up at Forest appeals to me. With due respect to the other clubs I have managed, this is by far the biggest and although we are not having the best of times at the moment, I am very confident about the future. It gives me a buzz to turn up on match days and see nearly 30,000 in the ground. Just think what it would be like if we were doing well instead of looking over our shoulder! “The fans have been superb since I arrived and the level of support we get from them tells me that they deserve a successful football team here. With the help of the Chairman that’s what I will be striving to do.” Part of Kinnear’s preparation seems to hinge on veteran Des Walker, out of contract at the end of the season at the age of 37. But Walker is part of the Forest furniture and Kinnear recognizes the value of having the talisman on tap, and has hinted that perhaps a player / coach role might be on the cards for Walker, saying, “I’ve got one or two ideas in mind for Des and I will be sitting down with him this week to talk things through.” A run of just two defeats in sixteen games means that Forest are ending the season on a high and with David Johnson back among the goals again, it’s little wonder that at least one half of the Nottingham public can start to hope for better times around the corner. And Kinnear certainly isn’t going to dampen those expectations. “I now want to build on what we have achieved so far. I know what I want to do with my squad. I've spoken to the Chairman and he's enthusiastic about the future and hopefully we can take this club on to the next level. I’ve had really positive discussions with the Chairman about the future and I’m excited about what is in store for this club. There's nothing like putting pressure on yourself but I will regard anything less than the play-offs next season as a failure.” |
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