Mick Catlin : Inside the managers mind

Mick Catlin has had the privilege to manage Gosport Borough to the FA trophy final and has had some great achievements during his time. He is currently with AFC Portchester and this is the story he told....

Q: Mick, what was your first memory of football?

A: My first memory of football was my dad taking me to football training at Hillside Youth Club in Paulsgrove at about nine years old. I lived in Purbrook so I didn’t know anybody there and you had about 20 kids kicking lumps out of each other in a ball court. I made it into the team and made some great friends....

Q:Who did you support as a child and was there anyone that you looked up to?

A: When i was in junior school I was a West Ham supporter. I loved the kit and Trevor Brooking was my idol and the player I wanted to be in the playground.

Q: Who do you feel got the best out of you as a manager and who did you look up to managerially?

A: had a lot of good managers but the ones that got the best out of me were the passionate ones that showed their emotions like John Robson, Ernie Bradwell, John Waugh and Ray Hiron. They were tough to please but you would run through brick walls for them. In management I have always looked up to Liam Daish. Not only was he a top professional with Pompey, Cambridge, Birmingham, Coventry and a Republic of Ireland International but when he dropped down into non-league with Havant & Waterlooville he still had very high standards as a player and manager, When I need advice he is normally my first call.

Q: Did you play any football semi-professionally in your playing days?

A: I played Semi pro football for Waterlooville, Gosport, Fareham and Andover as a right midfielder. I wasn’t the most technically gifted player but I got by on working hard for the team and being fully committed. I always tried to push myself and play as high a standard as I could so no regrets really on that part of my career.

Q: What was your first managerial role in football and your feelings going into your first appointment?

A: My first managerial role was at Chichester as player manager I was 30 at the time and had taken my coaching badges so I was keen to be my own man. It was tough playing and managing but I learnt a lot in my first two season about man management and dealing with a very demanding chairman. It gave me a good grounding and learnt some valua- ble lessons that served me well.

Q: The most notable managerial role was two stints at Gosport Borough FC. Can you summarise your time at Boro’?

A: My love affair with Gosport first started in 1991 when I signed as a player. I had three seasons at the club but had a serious knee injury and never really showed my true form. I then returned as John Robson’s assistant in 2005 but left when John was harshly sacked in November that season. After a couple of

seasons managing Andover Town, Alex Pike who had replaced John Robson asked me to return as his assistant, which was rather ironic. I had eight and a half very successful years with Alex where we secured back-to-back promotions, taking the club to the National Conference South for the first time in its history, the famous FA Trophy run where I was lucky enough to lead the team out at Wembley, the FA Cup game against Colchester at Privett Park and winning the Hampshire Senior Cup at Fratton Park. We had four good seasons in the Conference South and went toe-to -toe with Havant & Waterlooville, al- ways the benchmark for me locally. The two-legged Trophy semi-final win being our greatest moment with Privett Park packed to the rafters a sight I doubt I will see again in my lifetime. I probably left a season later than I should have. I didn’t agree with some of the things going on at the club financially and it became very difficult to do my job effec- tively and I felt I was letting the players down. I have the greatest respect for Alex and what we achieved together and the fact we were totally different charac- ters worked well. It is so pleasing to see that group of players go on and fulfil their potential like Nathan Ashmore at Ebbsfleet and Rory Williams and Mike Carter at the Hawks. People always say that walking out at Wembley must be the pinnacle of your career and, don’t get me wrong, standing on that pitch with my granddaughter as mascot, next to Jamie Brown our skipper and good friend, it was a boyhood dream come true. However, the pinnacle was all the years of hard work getting there and the respect of a group of young players hun- gry to prove people wrong. The hard bit was losing. It’s not a nice place when that happens and I would love to get back one day and win. My spell back at the club last season leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, I let my heart rule my head but I am proud of the fact that, along with a lot of hard working people, we dragged the club off the floor and got it moving in the right direction. I felt with the new owners coming in I was the right man to take the club forward but unfortunately they didn’t, so I had no choice but to leave. I am glad the club has been rescued and wish them well for the future. The supporters will always mean the world to me.

Q: You were the assistant manager when Gosport got to the FA Vase final. Being the assistant manager, you needed to essentially be the motivator and the voice of reason behind Alex Pike. What were your feelings going into it, though?

A: People always say that walking out at Wembley must be the pinnacle of your career and, don’t get me wrong, standing on that pitch with my granddaughter as mascot, next to Jamie Brown our skipper and good friend, was a boyhood dream come true. However, the pinnacle was all the years of hard work getting there and the respect of a group of young players hungry to prove people wrong. The hard bit was losing. It’s not a nice place when that happens. I would love to get back and win.

Q: After the meeting with the chairman at the time, can you explain what hap- pened and how you felt then? Do you feel any different now?

A: My spell back at the club last season leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, I let my heart rule my head but I am proud of the fact that along with a lot of hard working people we dragged the club off the floor & got it moving in the right direction. I felt with the new owners coming in I was the right man to take the club forward but unfortunately they didn’t so I had no choice but to leave. I am glad the club has been rescued and I wish them well. The supporters will always mean the world to me.

Q: You moved onto pastures new with AFC Portchester, what attracted you to Portchester and how do you feel your relationship with Ian Saunders been since joining (at time of asking)?

A: What attracted me to AFC Portchester was manager Ian Saunders he has been my captain, assistant manager and friend for 20 years. He was the first per- son to call me when I left Gosport and said let’s get back together as joint man- agers. He showed me around and intro- duced me to Paul Kelly the chairman and what struck me most was their pas- sion for the club and where they wanted to take it. I could relate it to what we had achieved at Gosport and felt I could use that experience to assist in getting the club where it wants to go into the Southern League. The club is well run with good facilities and has a lot of good, hard working people involved. It was a pleasure to be part of that family.