THE MOSSLEY MANAGERS Managers
Bob Murphy
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Clifford TARR, 1932-1936 |
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Clifford Tarr joined Mossley as an amateur in 1922 making 5 appearances in the 1921-22 season but was understudy first to Ernie Moores and then Jackie Darley and he returned to play for Mossley West Lads, returning to Mossley to play in their newly formed reserve team in 1923. |
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Sam COWAN, 1937-1938 |
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Born: 1902
Died: 5th October 1964 |
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Robbie BRUCE, 1938-1939 Appointed Manager: August 1938
Not Retained: May 1939 |
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Born: Paisley 29th January 1906 Died: ? |
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James LEAVER, 1939-1940 Appointed Manager: August 1939
WWII ended football for Mossley: May 1940 |
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Born: 26th December 1898 Blackburn Died: 1959 |
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Alt JACKSON, 1945 - 1947 Appointed Manager: August 1945
Resigned: May 1947 |
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Albert 'Alt' Jackson was football mad. He was a Mossley supporter from being a child and he joined the committee as a teenager after playing a few games for Mossley Juniors prior to 1909. Apparently injury had prevented him from taking his playing career further . He was assistant secretary to club founder James Howarth and became Club Secretary following the end of the Great War in 1918. He was Secretary until February 1923 when the entire committee resigned en bloc after a row with the Supporters Club but returned to the helm in 1927 after Mr Howarth's health forced his resignation. Jackson gradually had more connection with team affairs and trainers Bob Brittland, Albert Onions and later J.C.Stanley were answerable to him. He stood down again in May 1930 but by November had returned after his replacement Harry Heginbottom had failed to work out but resigned in April 1932 to become manager of the then powerful Ashton National. |
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Joe BARLOW, 1947 - 1948 Appointed Manager: August 1947
Resigned: April 1948 |
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| When Alt Jackson returned to purely secretarial duties in the summer of 1947 Mossley appointed former Droylsden United, Droylsden and Stalybridge Celtic manager Joseph Barlow, who after just one season in charge of the team was not retained for the following term. | ||
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Len BUTT, 1948 - 1950 Appointed Manager: August 1948
Resigned: May 1950 |
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| Born: Wilmslow 26th August 1910
Died: Macclesfield 16th June 1994 Leonard Butt was born on 26th August 1910 in Wilmslow and began his playing career with Ashton National before joining Stockport County in 1928. Her made just 8 appearances scoring one goal for County before joining Macclesfield in 1931. He was picked up by Huddersfield Town in May 1935 and made 67 appearances for them scoring 11 goals in two seasons. Butt then signed for Blackburn Rovers and in spells both sides of the War made 110 appearances scoring 44 goals. Then followed shorter spells with York City - 25 appearances 2 goals, and Mansfield Town 15 appearances 4 goals. Butt joined Mossley as Player-Manager in the summer of 1948 and embarked on Mossley's best spell for many years. Mossley finished 5th in the Cheshire League in 1948-49 and Butt made 50 appearances scoring 23 goals. He was second top scorer behind former Stalybridge Celtic centre forward Jimmy Thorpe who scored a remarkable 30 goals in just 28 appearances. Butt led Mossley to victory in both the Manchester Junior Cup (2-1 over Goslings at Hurst Cross) and the Ashton Challenge Cup (1-0 over Hyde United). The following season Butt led his team through the qualifying rounds of the FA Cup to the 2nd Round Proper beating Ashton United, Altrincham, Northwich Victoria, Buxton, Droylsden United, Runcorn and Witton Albion in an epic run. It was ended in a replay by Southern League giants Nuneaton Borough but Mossley had won many friends on the way. Butt made 37 appearances that season scoring 10 goals but resigned at the end of the season. He later managed his home town club Macclesfield. Len Butt passed away in 1994 age 83 after a series of strokes. |
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Alan FLETCHER, 1950 - 1951 Appointed Manager: August 1950
Not Retained: May 1951 |
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| Born: Pendleton 28th October 1917 Died: Leigh 1984 Alan Frederick Fletcher was born in Pendleton on 28th October 1917. An inside forward he signed for Blackpool in January 1937 but failed to make their Football League side. He then moved to Bournemouth where he made 12 appearances in the 1938-39 season. He joined Bristol Rovers in 1939 but the War intervened and following the cessation of hostilities he signed for Crewe Alexandra in September 1947. He made just one first team appearance for Crewe early in the 1947-48 season before joining Mossley as player-coach under Len Butt. He made 54 appearances for Mossley that season scoring 3 goals before taking up a coaching post with Sligo Rovers in Ireland. Fletcher returned to Mossley as Player-Manager for the 1950-51 season and made 43 appearances scoring one goal but it was a poor season for the Lilywhites and they finished just three places from the bottom of the Cheshire League and also went down to a shock defeat in the Manchester Challenge Shield Final losing 2-1 to Lancashire Steel. Alan Fletcher passed away in 1984 aged 67. |
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Jack BOOTHWAY, 1951 - 1955 Appointed Manager: August 1951
Resigned: May 1955 |
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| Born: Manchester 4th February 1919
Died: 7th April 1979 John Boothway was born 4th February 1919 in Manchester. A rugged all action centre forward he was spotted by Mossley playing for amateur sides Rusholme and Sedgeley Park and in 1938 was invited to Seel Park for a trial by manager Robbie Bruce. He did well and impressed making 8 appearances scoring 4 goals in the 1938-39 season. The following season was interrupted by the War but Boothway still managed to score 22 goals in just 21 appearances. During the War Boothway had a spell with Manchester City having signed for them in July 1941 but he moved to Crewe Alexandra and scored 5 goals in 11 appearances for them at the beginning of the 1946-47 season. He was transferred to Wrexham and in three seasons at the Racecourse Ground he netted 55 goals in 95 appearances. In February 1951 Boothway returned to Mossley and helped to lift the side off the bottom of the League with 14 goals in only 16 appearances and following Alan Fletcher's departure in May 1951 Boothway was appointed Player-Manager. Mossley had a much improved first season under Boothway finishing 7th in the Cheshire League and winning the Ashton Challenge Cup with Boothway himself scoring the winner in the final against Ashton United. He made 45 appearances that season scoring 30 goals. The form of the previous season wasn't maintained and Mossley finished 18th in season 1952-53 with Boothway scoring 15 goals in 31 appearances a season that also saw Boothway hang up his boots at 34 years old and concentrate on managing the team. The 1953-54 season saw Mossley reach the last qualifying round of the FA Cup unluckily losing to Rhyl in a replay but they did win the Ashton Challenge Cup again beating Stalybridge Celtic 2-0 in the final at Hyde United's ground but League form was again poor and following another unimpressive showing in the 1954-55 season Boothway departed from Seel Park for the last time. He managed Northwich Victoria between 1955 and 1957, and Runcorn between 1961 and 1971 winning the Cheshire League championship in 1963. Jack Boothway died in 1979 aged just 60. |
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Les BARDSLEY, 1956 Appointed Manager: August 1956 Resigned: September 1956 First Game: 18.8.56 v Crewe Alexandra Reserves home W 7-1 Last Game: 5.9.56 v Witton Albion away L 0-3 Games in charge: 6 Won 2 Drawn 2 Lost 2 |
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| Born: Stockport 18th August 1925 Les Bardsley was born in Stockport on 18th August 1925. He signed for Manchester City as a junior in January 1945 and then had a spell with Linfield in Ireland before a £200 transfer fee took him to Bury in April 1948. He made 200 appearances in six seasons at Bury as a wing half before moving to Barrow where he made 21 appearances in the 1955-56 season. He was appointed Player-Manager of Mossley in the summer of 1956 after Mossley had run without a manager in the 1955-56 season. Unfortunately for Mossley he stayed for just six games before the lure of a job as assistant coach at Bristol City left Mossley disappointed and manager-less. He became a chartered physiotherapist in Bristol in fact the Bardsley Physiotherapy Clinic he established in 1960 is still in existence. LES BARDSLEY MCSP SRP. Quite simply a legend in Sports Therapy. Les finished his distinguished professional football career with Manchester City and Bury in 1954 and following his training as a Chartered Physiotherapist took up the post of Physiotherapist to Bristol City Football Club in 1956, a post he held until 1981. A pioneer in his field, he established an International reputation in the treatment of sporting injury. During his forty two year career as a Physiotherapist, he successfully treated many thousands of Bristol people. Now retired, he acts as non-practising consultant to the Clinic. |
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Pat MURPHY, 1957 Appointed Manager: March 1957
Not Retained: May 1957 |
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| North Easterner Pat Murphy was a much travelled former Blyth Spartans and Middlesbrough wing half who had managerial experience with Scunthorpe United, Llanelli and Eastbourne United. He had also managed the Combined Services team and German side Eimsbuttler-Hamburg. He was appointed Mossley manager in March 1957 but it was to be short lived as he wasn't retained for the following season and was in charge for just nine games at the end of the 1956-57 season. He later had a spell as manager of Wigan Athletic. | ||
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Eddie QUIGLEY, 1957 - 1962 Appointed Manager: August 1957
Not Retained: May 1962 |
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| Born: Bury 13th July 1921 Died: Blackpool 1997 Born in Bury on 13 July 1921, Eddie Quigley joined his home town club as a full-back in 1941, but through necessity was converted to an attacker. Although on his debut as a centre-forward he scored five goals, his best position turned out to be inside-forward, where he was able to control the attack, lying deep and having the ability to split defences with inch perfect long passes. In October 1947 he joined Sheffield Wednesday for £12,000 and he scored 50 goals in 76 League appearances at Hillsborough. In December 1949, Preston North End paid a British record transfer fee of £26,500 for him. Quigley found goal-scoring at North End more difficult, but while at Preston he won a Second Division championship medal and represented England 'B' twice against Holland and Italy. A two-year spell at Deepdale ended when a struggling Blackburn Rovers paid £20,000 for his services. In his five years at Ewood Park, he netted a remarkable 92 goals in only 159 appearances, but with the club failing repeatedly to win promotion, the presence of ageing players was used as a possible cause. As Quigley was 35, it was a surprise when he was placed on the transfer list at £2,500. After the Football League reduced the fee to £l,000, he re-signed for Bury in August 1956 where he only made ten League appearances before retiring from League football at the end of the 1956-57 season with a Football League career record of 180 goals from 337 appearances. He joined Mossley as Player-Manager in the summer of 1957. It was Quigley's first attempt at football management and his first season couldn't really have been worse. Mossley finished bottom of the Cheshire League winning only seven out of 42 games. Quigley himself scored 10 goals in 44 games. The following season 1958-59 saw Mossley climb to 15th position and Quigley netted 19 goals in 42 appearances and the side also reached the final of the Manchester Intermediate Cup. Quigley scored twice but Ashton United netted six and Mossley lost. The 1959-60 season saw Quigley's side climb to 8th place and the now veteran inside forward netted 10 goals in 41 appearances. Season 1960-61 saw Mossley's best performance since the War, finishing 4th in the Cheshire League and winning the League Cup beating a strong Tranmere Reserve side 6-3 in the final at Hyde United's ground. Quigley scored 9 goals in 29 appearances. Quigley's last season at Seel Park came the following term as Mossley finished in 8th place and won the old Ashton Challenge Cup for the last time beating Ashton United 5-1 on aggregate in the final. Quigley made 31 appearances scoring seven goals and retired from playing age 41. Quigley then returned to Bury yet again, as youth team coach, demonstrating his talents by unearthing, amongst others, Colin Bell and Alec Lindsay. Although Bert Trautmann had been appointed Stockport County's ‘administrative manager' from October 1964 and continued to be ‘general manager' until 1966, in October 1965, following the departure of Trevor Porteous, Quigley was offered his chance to manage a League club. Over a 12-month period at Edgeley Park, Quigley put together a side that would end up Fourth Division champions, success being based upon his signings of the vastly experienced central defenders Matt Woods and Eddie Stuart. In October 1966, he was offered the assistant manager's job at Blackburn, and when Rovers manager, Jack Marshall, left in February 1967 Quigley took over. Other than in that season, Rovers hardly threatened to make a serious promotion challenge and, in October 1970, with the Ewood club heading for relegation to the Third Division for the first time in their illustrious history, Quigley moved sideways to become general/administrative manager, but was sacked a little over six months later. In May 1976, he returned to Edgeley Park and, for a short time. it looked as if he could repeat his success of ten years earlier. County won five of their first six matches and were in third position at Christmas before an appalling run saw them slump to a miserable 14th place and before the season had finished he was sacked. In 1979 he went back to Blackburn Rovers as chief scout but following Bobby Saxton's appointment as manager in May 1981, Eddie Quigley was again dismissed before moving to Blackpool in a similar capacity. Eddie Quigley died in 1997 age 76. |
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Don WILSON, 1963 - 1972 Appointed Manager: July 1963
Resigned: November 1972 |
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| Born: Bury 4th June 1930 Died: Heywood 11th October 2003 Obituary Donald Wilson was born in Heywood, Bury on 4th June 1930 and signed professional for his home town club in May 1951 this after he had begun to show talent with a football while he was at school and went on to play with Manchester United Colts from 13 to the age of 18, when he joined the RAF. When his national service was over, he was soon back on the soccer pitch – this time as a professional wing half with Bury FC. He played for the Shakers for nine years, before taking the brave decision to train for teaching. A clever yet tough wing half Wilson went on to make 63 first team appearances for the Shakers between 1952 and 1959. He joined Mossley under Eddie Quigley in August 1962. Quigley resigned in November 1962 and Wilson was put in charge of the team but not team selection through to the end of the season. In August 1962 he was appointed player-manager of Mossley and became the Lilywhites longest serving manager remaining until November 1972. He rebuilt Quigley's ageing team with the 1966 signing of inside forward Lennie Dickenson being his master-stroke. Wilson's occupation as a Heywood schoolteacher gave him a methodical approach to his team and after a couple of hit and miss seasons Mossley started to become a force in the Cheshire County League. Wilson had all but retired from playing by the 1967 and then followed Mossley's best spell for many years. From 1967 to 1970 the team got better and better and in the 1969-70 season Mossley finished as League runners up, their best position since 1920, reached the 1st round proper of the FA Cup for the first time since 1949 taking Stockport County to a replay, and reached the quarter final stage of the inaugural FA Challenge Trophy competition. It was an exhilarating spell of the club's history with Wilson pulling the strings off the field and Dickenson on it. Twin brother strikers Bruce and Gordon Birtwistle were an absolute menace to defences whilst the half back line up of Kevin Burke, Mike Batty and Jimmy Dowthwaite was as good as any in non-league football at that time. The successes of the late 60's weren't repeated in the early seventies but Wilson remained as manager as the Lilywhites stepped up into the Northern Premier League in August 1972. In November of the same year he tendered his resignation stating that he had led the team as far as he could. Wilson then had spells in charge at Radcliffe Borough, Stalybridge Celtic and Rossendale United before retiring from football management to concentrate on his teaching career. He spent the whole of his 28 year teaching career at Moorclose High School in Middleton, specialising in PE and Maths. His involvement with adult education in Heywood began when he was asked to run keep fit classes at the former Bamford Road gym. Interest mushroomed and Mr Wilson was asked to develop a wide-ranging further education programme for Heywood . He was the town's adult education principal from 1970 until his retirement in 1988. He was a member of the professional business club Probus in Heywood and was its president in 2000. He was a keen golfer and was a member of the Manchester Golf Club at Slattocks. Don Wilson sadly died on 11th October 2003 after a long illness. |
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George SIEVWRIGHT, 1972 - 1974 Assistant Manager: Bob Murphy |
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| Born: Broughty Ferry 10th September 1937 The delightfully named George Edgar Smollett Sievwright was born in Broughty Ferry, Scotland on 10th September 1937 and signed for Dundee United from his local junior club Broughty Ferry Athletic in 1957. A physical combative hard as nails wing half, he was signed by Oldham Athletic for a £500 fee in the summer of 1963 and made 37 appearances for the Latics scoring 4 goals in the 1963-64 season. At the end of that season he was released to join Tranmere Rovers but spent the year playing for their reserve side in the Cheshire League. He then moved to Rochdale where he was able to get back into League football making 32 appearances scoring 1 goal in the 1965-66 season. Sievwright then spent the next six years with Macclesfield Town and played for them firstly in the Cheshire League and then the Northern Premier League also appearing in the inaugural 1970 FA Trophy final gaining a winners medal as Macc beat Telford United at Wembley Stadium. Following Don Wilson's resignation as Mossley manager in November 1972 Sievwright applied for the position and became a shock appointment as everyone outside of the boardroom believed that midfield maestro Lennie Dickenson would get the job. Dickenson left the club as a result and the Saddleworth based Sievwright spent the next few months dismantling Wilson's team and replacing them with an odd-ball assortment of failed ex League club apprentices and unsuccessful local non-league players. After having just two managers in the previous fifteen years Sievwright's stay was to be comparatively short and he was dismissed to cheers of relief from the fans following a 3-0 defeat at Fleetwood on 27th January 1974. He had been appointed as a player manager but in 14 months in charge he made only 2 appearances in the team. Sievwright had a later equally unsuccessful spell in charge at Stalybridge Celtic. |
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Bob MURPHY, 1974 - 1976, 1978 - 1983, 1992 - 1993 Appointed Manager: January 1974
Sacked : November 1976 |
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| Born: Moston 29th April 1932 Robert Murphy was born in Moston, Manchester on 29th April 1932. His football playing career was short lived, playing while in the army for Stadt Verden while stationed in Germany. He later played for Mather & Platt and St. Dunston's Parish in the Manchester Amateur League but a series of injuries was to curtail his career and for some years his interest in football. In the late 1960's Bob Murphy's brother Ged was running the Newton Heath Working Mens Club Sunday team and Bob was talked into joining him. A young winger who had been with Bradord Park Avenue, Alan Brown, was playing for the WMC and Bob recommended him to the then Mossley trainer Eric Mathews. Following a call from Mossley manager Don Wilson, Brown was signed and Murphy was asked to become a scout for Mossley. He duly accepted. When Wilson resigned in November 1972 Murphy was promoted to Assistant Manager under new boss George Sievwright, and when the Scotsman was sacked in January 1974 Murphy was appointed Caretaker-Manager, a post he held until the end of the season when he was offered the job on a permanent basis. The 1974-75 season saw Mossley in great form, they finally finished 6th in the League and reached the 3rd round proper of the FA Trophy before losing unluckily at Burton Albion, won the Reporter Cup beating Stalybridge Celtic 6-4 on aggregate in the final. The £100 signing of striker Dave Moore had a great influence on the team and the arrival the following January of Leo Skeete from Rochdale was the coup-de'tat. Murphy's team finished 9th in the 1975-76 season and reached the final of the Northern Premier League Cup for the first time losing to Boston United in a two legged final. The 1976-77 season started well enough but the team ran into trouble by November and following a 5-2 home defeat by Goole Town on 13th November Murphy was dismissed. Spells with Stalybridge Celtic and Northwich Victoria followed and Vics were top of the League when Murphy was invited back to Seel park in January 1978 following Dick Bate's dismissal. What followed was the greatest spell in Mossley's history. Manager of the Month awards became commonplace for Murphy as his side marched to the NPL title in 1978-79 scoring an amazing 117 League goals and winning the League Cup against Murphy's former club Northwich in the final at Maine Road into the bargain. If that wasn't enough what followed was even more amazing. The 1979-80 season saw Murphy's team retain the NPL title with a dramatic 31 match unbeaten run in League and FA Trophy which saw the Lilywhites once more crowned champions and Murphy's greatest moment as he led his team out at Wembley for the 1980 Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium. Mossley lost the final of course but Bob Murphy was a hero anyway and the song 'We're on the march with Murphy's army' echoed around the town as Murphy and his team were given a heroes welcome on their return home. The 1980-81 season saw Mossley go out of the Trophy at the quarter final stage and finish runners up in the League but Murphy's guile caused an FA Cup upset as Crewe Alexandra were beaten in 1st Round at Seel Park. The following season 1981-82 saw Mossley again as runners up in the League and again reaching the final of the NPL Cup, this time losing by the only goal to Gainsborough Trinity at Maine Road. Then in Murphy's last full season in charge the Lilywhites finished League runners up for the third successive season and were unlucky to lose an FA Cup tie at mighty Huddersfield Town. Things turned sour for Murphy in the 1983-84 season as early in the season the wage bill was slashed as the club experienced financial difficulties and unrest amongst the players finally saw Murphy depart from Seel Park following a 4-2 defeat at Southport on 3rd December 1983. The following January Murphy became Manager of Southport and stayed there until December 1984. He spent the remainder of that season at Barrow and following term he was back in management again this time with Buxton and he was to stay there for seven years up until October 1992 when he decided to retire from football management. However, when Mossley found themselves bottom of the NPL and with a very poor team Murphy came back to attempt to save them from relegation in December 1992. An almighty effort to save a desperate situation ensued but despite Murphy's best efforts the team was relegated from the top flight of the Northern Premier League and Murphy left Management for the last time. His involvement with Mossley wasn't finished though and he attempted to help later managers Steve Taylor and Roy Soule but he was invited to become a scout for Leeds United under Howard Wilkinson's chief scout Geoff Sleight and then former Chelsea and Wigan boss Ian McNeil. He was tempted away from Leeds by an offer to scout for Oldham Athletic and although now beyond retirement age Bob Murphy still holds that post. When Mossley again found themselves managerless in the 2001-02 season Bob again stepped into the breach and acted as caretaker manager for two games prior to the appointment of Ally Pickering. |
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Howard WILKINSON, 1976 - 1977 Appointed Manager: December 1976
Resigned: May 1977 Assistant Manager: Jack DETCHON |
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| Born: Sheffield 13 November 1943 Born in Sheffield on 13th November 1943 former England Youth International Howard Wilkinson had a fairly ordinary playing record, he made only 22 appearances in his time at Sheffield Wednesday but after his transfer to Brighton he clocked up 116 appearances with the south coast club. His managerial career started at Boston United as player-manager, and during this time he gained a degree in physical education at Sheffield University. He also spent time during this period teaching at Abbeydale School in Sheffield and led Boston to two successive Northern Premier League titles. In December 1976 he was enticed away from Boston to join Mossley as Player-Manager and helped the Lilywhites climb the Northern Premier League table to finish 9th being unbeaten in 19 successive games in the bargain. The side also won the Manchester Senior Cup beating Droylsden 12-3 on aggregate in the final. Wilkinson made 30 appearances for Mossley scoring just one goal. He left Mossley at the end of the season but not before taking the unprecedented step of appointing his own successor at Seel Park, the now England under 15's manager Dick Bate. Wilkinson was appointed FA regional director of coaching for the North East before being tempted back into the pro game by Notts County. He managed England' s semi-professional team and in 1982 he became the coach for the England Under-21 team. At Notts County he started as assistant-manager to Jimmy Sirrel, although his role was effectively that of manager. He managed Notts County in the middle of three seasons they spent in the First Division during the early eighties and achieved 15th place in the table on very low gates. He moved to Sheffield Wednesday in the 1983 close-season and in 1983-84 took Wednesday back to the First Division in his first season. Wednesday were close to winning the Second Division championship, but it was Chelsea who eventually took the title which went to the last game of a thrilling season. His Wednesday team became formidable First Division opponents and the first season back 1984-85 included memorable league victories at both Anfield and Old Trafford. The following season 1985-86 Wednesday finished 5th in the league and had it not been for the appalling scenes at the Heysel stadium, which led to a ban on English clubs, Wednesday would have played in Europe. In 1986-87 & 1987-88, they finished in a mid-table position in the First Division and it was two months into the 1988-89 season when he left the club to manage Leeds United. It' s a great credit to Wilkinson that the performance of his teams always seemed to exceed the sum of their individual abilities. During his time as manager, the Wednesday board were reluctant to speculate too heavily in the transfer market and the club' s wages structure proved a deterrent to some players who might otherwise have joined the club. It remains a matter of debate, that if Wilkinson had been given the kind of budget that was later afforded to Atkinson and Francis, he might have enjoyed the success he eventually had at Leeds. On his arrival at Elland Road, he improved the fitness and discipline of the existing players and staved off relegation to Division 3 in his first season, but with the inspired signing of Gordon Strachan, and the arrival of defensive solidity in the shape of Chris Fairclough and Mel Sterland, Leeds looked set to make a promotion push. The escape bid got a major shot in the arm with the biggest surprise signing of all - Vinnie Jones! Leeds went top before Christmas, Lee Chapman's arrival brought more goals, and the title was sealed in the last game of the season. 1991-92 saw Wilkinson get the better of Alex Ferguson in a season-long tussle for the title, and things were looking bright for the following season. Wilkinson always said that the title arrived a year too early. Leeds failed to capitalise on the position, money (admittedly peanuts by today's standards) and opportunity to make the big signings that were needed as injuries, age and lack of squad depth were reflected in the results. Cantona stomped off over the Pennines, Rangers knocked Leeds out of the Champions Cup, and Leeds failed to win a single away League game all season. Wilkinson went back to the drawing board and started to rebuild the side managing to qualify for the UEFA Cup in 1994-95, and reaching the final of the Coca-Cola Cup the following year. A Wembley final is the peak of many managers' careers - but this one ended with the Leeds fans screaming for Wilkinson to go after a very disappointing performance. The club was taken over in the close season, and after giving Wilkinson a chance to sign some players and seeing him make a decent start to the season, the board realised that they needed some sort of excuse to ease him out and bring in their crony George Graham. A 4-0 home defeat by Manchester United provided the pretext, and Wilkinson was shown the door. He went on to become FA Technical Director, managing the U-21 side and taking charge of the national side first after the departure of Glenn Hoddle and then following Kevin Keegan‘s resignation. He returned to Premiership football as a surprise choice as Sunderland manager in the 2002-03 season but his reign was short lived! |
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Dick BATE, 1977 - 1978 Appointed Manager: July 1977
Sacked: January 1978 Assistant Manager: Jack DETCHON |
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| Richard Bate was a Sheffield schoolteacher and spent his early playing career with Alfreton Town before joining Boston United where he made a name for himself as an accomplished centre half under player-manager Howard Wilkinson and also took coaching badges. When Wilkinson moved to Mossley in December 1976 Bate had already been appointed player-manager of Buxton. When Wilkinson resigned as Mossley manager the following May he recommended Bate to Mossley and he was appointed Player-Manager in June 1977. It was hoped that Bate would carry on the good work started by Wilkinson but his defensive style of play didn't suit the Mossley fans and he soon became a target of abuse. He did however, help the team through to the first round proper of the FA Cup for only the third time in the Club's history and played in the 0-3 defeat at Rotherham United. However, his days at Mossley were numbered and he was dismissed following a 2-2 draw against Frickley on 2nd January 1978. Bate made 34 appearances for Mossley and scored 5 goals. He then had a spell with Frickley Athletic and spent a season as manager of Southend United before being appointed as FA Regional Coach for the North East (a post formerly held by his mentor Howard Wilkinson). He currently works for the Football Association and is manager of the England Under 19's team and a coach at Southampton. | ||
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Brian GRUNDY, 1983 -1984 Appointed Manager: December 1983
Sacked: October 1984 Games in charge: 43 Won 7 Drawn 9 Lost 27 Assistant Manager: Bob PARTRIDGE |
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| Born: Atherton 9th May 1945 Brian Grundy was born in Atherton, Lancs on 9th May 1945. An outside-left who was just 5'5" tall, Brian was a schoolteacher who was spotted by Bury playing part-time for Wigan Athletic in a Lancashire Cup tie against the Shakers at Gigg Lane in November 1967. He scored against Bury that day and so impressed boss Les Shannon that he paid out £3,000 to take him to Gigg Lane just a week later. Originally a part-time -professional at Bury, he signed full-time forms in January 1968 and played his part in helping the Shakers to promotion from Division Three later that season. In all he played in 94 league games for Bury over the next four seasons and scored ten goals. Perhaps like all wingers, he was lacking in consistency at times and in July 1971 joined Great Harwood from where he had spells with Bangor City, Morecambe and Winsford United before arriving at Mossley for a bargain £100 fee under Bob Murphy in March 1979. He helped Mossley secure their first Northern Premier League title and played in the League Cup final win over Northwich Victoria at Maine Road. He was in the side as it started the following season but was released in November 1979 making his last appearance in the FA Cup defeat at York City on 24th November having made a total of 30 appearances for the Lilywhites scoring just one goal but creating many more. He became manager of Glossop and spent the next three years at Surrey Street before returning to Seel Park as a popular choice of manager to replace the departed Bob Murphy in November 1983. Unfortunately for Grundy, who was by now landlord of a public house in Glossop, things didn't go as he hoped. Mossley were struggling financially and the team slipped down the table and finally finished bottom of the NPL and had to apply for re-election. Strangely, Mossley had won their last two games of the 83-84 season and Grundy was given another opportunity to build a contending side. He had managed only three wins from taking over to the end of his first season as the mighty Mossley fell to earth with an almighty bump finishing in bottom place of the then one division NPL and was probably saved in his job by two of those wins coming in the last two matches.Sadly he failed - and just four wins in the opening 19 games of the 1984-85 season saw Grundy dismissed following a home FA Cup defeat by Goole Town. Brian Grundy never returned to football management and now resides in Spain. |
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Tony STEENSON, 1984 Appointed Manager: November 1984
Not Retained: December 1984 |
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| Tony Steenson began his playing career with Salford Amateurs in the late 1960's signing for Mossley under Don Wilson in November 1972. Wilson resigned within a week of Steenson's arrival and he didn't settle under replacement George Sievwright and returned to Salford but re-signed in August 1973. He spent the next two seasons as an almost ever present at the hear of the Mossley defence but left in September 1975 to join Hyde United having made 133 appearances and scoring 4 goals. He had a long career with Hyde. He returned to Mossley as assistant manager to Brian Grundy in August 1984 and following Grundy's dismissal at the end of October 1984 Steenson was appointed manager. His stay in charge was brief when he made himself unavailable to attend a home League Cup match against Goole Town that Mossley lost on 17th December 1984 and was in-gloriously sacked along with his assistant Peter Mayo two days later. Steenson's later involvement in football consisted of arranging celebrity matches. | ||
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Jimmy O'CONNOR, 1984 - 1987 Appointed Manager: December 1984
Sacked : February 1987 Assistant Manager: Paul WEBB |
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Born: Lanark 27th June 1951 |
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John SAINTY, 1987 Appointed Manager: March 1987
Sacked: October 1987 Assistant Manager: Neil WILSON |
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Born: Poplar 24th March 1946 |
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Keith HICKS, 1987 - 1988 Appointed Manager: November 1987
Resigned: September 1988 Assistant Manager: Graham BELL |
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Born: Oldham 9th August 1954 |
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Bryan GRIFFITHS, 1988 - 1989 Appointed Manager: October 1988
Resigned: November 1989 Assistant Manager: Dave JONES |
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Born: Liverpool 21st November 1938 David Ronald Jones was born in Liverpool on 17th August 1956. He signed professional forms for Everton in May 1974 after serving his apprenticeship at Goodison Park. He went on to make 86 appearances in defence for Everton before a £250,000 transfer to Coventry City in June 1979 but he only made 3 appearances before departing for a spell in Hong Kong with Seiko FC. Returning in August 1983 he signed for Preston North End and made 50 appearances up to the end of the 1984-85 season. He had the perfect physique and boundless enthusiasm but lacked the necessary finesse to become a top-class defender. A former captain of England youth, he was the subject of much optimism at Everton and subsequent Under-21 international honours revealed that independent judges nourished similar hopes. However, regular exposure to First Division football highlighted too many technical shortcomings. While with Mossley he made two appearances as a player. He later became assistant to Danny Bergara at Stockport County and stepped up to manager following his departure. Later becoming manager of Southampton before problems in his personal life forced him to quit football. He returned to the game in December 2000 as manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers and is now manager at Cardiff City. |
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Mark HILTON, 1989 - 1990 Appointed Manager: December 1989
Sacked : October 1990 Assistant Manager: Mike HILTON |
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Born: Middleton 15th January 1960 |
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John Cooke , 1990 - 1991 Appointed Manager: October 1990
Resigned: March 1991 Assistant Manager: Kevin GORMAN |
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| John Cooke's playing career took him to Manchester United, Altrincham, Goole Town and Wigan Athletic. He stepped into management with Droylsden in 1977. He later had spells as assistant manager (to Brian Kidd) at Barrow, Stalybridge Celtic and Altrincham and was the reserve team boss with Preston North End. Cooke was appointed manager of Mossley on 26th November 1990 and had a quite impressive spell in charge. Assisted by Kevin Gorman, the future looked rosy. It came as a great shock to everyone when Cooke suddenly resigned following a second successive defeat on 23rd March 1991 citing business commitments as the reason for his departure. Mossley then offered the job to Gorman again but he reluctantly turned it down again due to business commitments. Kevin Gorman was born in Manchester on 26th October 1953. His early playing career saw him play for Bacup Borough, Horwich RMI, Barrow and Droylsden before signing for Mossley in January 1979 for a £500 fee. A gritty but skilful midfield general Gorman quickly established himself in the team and was a mainstay of the all conquering side of the late 1970's and early 1980's under Bob Murphy. He made a total of 247 appearances for Mossley scoring 32 goals before moving to play for Southport in December 1983 following Bob Murphy's resignation. Spells with Hyde United, Buxton, Chadderton and Stalybridge Celtic followed before he returned to Mossley in the twilight of his career in December 1989 under Mark Hilton. Following Hilton's departure he was made Caretaker-Manager but his work was to prevent him from taking the job permanently, though it was offered to him. When Gorman was put in temporary charge he brought in John Cooke to help him and it was Cooke who was to become Manager with Gorman agreeing to stay and assist as Player-Coach. In his second spell as a Mossley player Kevin Gorman made a further 51 appearances scoring 5 goals. John Cooke later became a youth coach with Manchester United. John's son Christian signed for Mossley from Macclesfield Town in August 2005. |
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Les SUTTON, 1991 - 1992 Appointed Manager: March 1991
Sacked : January 1992 Assistant Manager: Ged COYNE |
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| Les Sutton had been a solid defender throughout his playing career with Droylsden, Stalybridge Celtic and Hyde United he had also managed all of those clubs prior to his appointment as Mossley manager in April 1991 bringing in former Stockport County boss Eric Webster as his assistant. He was in charge as Mossley then won the Manchester Premier Cup beating Droylsden 3-2 in the final at Maine Road. The following season saw Mossley in inconsistent form and following a 5-0 defeat at Stalybridge Celtic on 18th January 1992 Sutton was dismissed. Ged Coyne who had replaced Eric Webster as Sutton's assistant in the closed season was to replace him as manager. | ||
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Ged COYNE, 1992 Appointed Manager: February 1992
Resigned: October 1992 Assistant Manager: Tommy MARTIN |
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| Former Ashton United player Ged Coyne was appointed to replace Sutton in January 1992. Coyne, brother of well known former Manchester United and Crewe striker Peter Coyne had had a successful spell in charge at Manchester League side East Manchester before taking over the reins at Seel Park, after a spell as assistant manager to Les Sutton. Mossley had made an average start to the 1992-93 season when Coyne resigned on 28th October. He was installed as manager of Hyde United within a week of his departure from Mossley and later managed Glossop North End and Curzon Ashton. Now resident in Australia. | ||
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Terry CURRAN, 1992 Appointed Manager: November 1992
Sacked : December 1992 Assistant Manager: Paul JONES |
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Born: Hemsworth 20th March 1955 |
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Steve TAYLOR, 1993 Appointed Manager: August 1993 Resigned: October 1993 Assistant Manager: Mark HILDITCH |
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Born: Oldham 18th October 1955 |
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Dave DENBY, 1993 Appointed Manager: October 1993
Resigned: December 1993 Assistant Manager: Gary RILEY |
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Born: Manchester 16th November 1941 |
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Gary Riley, 1993 - 1994 Appointed Manager: December 1993
Resigned: April 1994 |
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Born: Manchester 23rd March 1959 |
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Richard Dawson, 1994 Appointed Manager: August 1994
Sacked: October 1994 |
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Born: York 6th July 1962 |
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Roy SOULE Appointed Manager: October 1994
Sacked: March 1995 |
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Born: Enfield 25th March 1953 |
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Paul CUDDY, 1995 Appointed Manager: March 1995
Not Retained: August 1995 Assistant Manager: Glen BUCKLEY |
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Born: Kendal 21st February 1959 |
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Kevan Keelan, 1995 - 1997 Appointed Manager: August 1995
Resigned: May 1997 |
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Born: Manchester 22nd June 1953 |
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Benny PHILLIPS, 1997 - 2001 Appointed Manager: July 1997
Resigned: November 2001 Assistant Manager: Danny KEOUGH |
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Born: Hazel Grove 9th June 1960 |
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Ally PICKERING, 2001 - 2003 Appointed Manager: November 2001
Sacked: July 2003 Assistant Manager: Jason BECKFORD |
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Born: Manchester 22nd June 1967 |
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Jason BECKFORD Appointed Manager: July 2003
Resigned April 2007 Games in charge: 206 Won 99 Drawn 31 Lost 76 Assistant Manager: John MURPHY |
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Born: Manchester 14th February 1970 |
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