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Neale Fenn is currently the Manager of Longford Town Football Club. He is an ex-Tottenham, Cork City, Bohemians, Dundalk and Shamrock Rovers striker to mention a few of his clubs. We recorded this on a few months back, on the lead up to Christmas in fact, in the off-season and dived into Neale’s career, lessons learned during that period, and also talked in detail about his move into football management. As a Longfordian, it was a great treat to chat with Neale, even if he is a Spurs fan. We covered a lot in the hour and it was a great learning and insight into how Neale has been developing as a manager. Topics discuss during the show include:

• Not having Management as part of his plan when playing
• Starting Coaching Badges toward the end of his career
• Assistant Manager Role with Layton Orient igniting an interest in Management
• Crisis Management in the role & having a low expectation
• Early Career & Big Breaks
• Ambitions growing up as Spurs and Enfield supporter
• Playing Organized football at Under 11s
• Scouted by Spurs and managing to keep moving up the ages with Spurs
• Absorbing football & practicing non-stop – love playing football
• Starting to stand out more as he moved up grades
• Having natural talent and more ability
• Confidence from playing well
• Having a belief in his own ability & knowing a great performance was in his own hands
• Leaving school at 16 after being offered the 2 year apprenticeship and know this was what he wanted to do
• Scoring goals and getting to the FA youth cup final
• Pressure having a positive impact on performance
• Learning from Les Ferdinand, Teddy Sheringham and Gary Mabbutt
• Memories of a first team debut against Man united at Old Trafford in 1997
• Contacted by Agents and getting boot deals thrown at him afterward
• The Dream Contract - signing a 5-year deal with Gerry Francis
• Dealing with an injury and keeping positive
• Playing for Ireland was a no brainer
• Regrets? Yes, many
• Becoming a training ground footballer so looking for new opportunities
• A new start with Peterborough
• Football is just a job? The love of the game always there
• Dealing with the mental side of the game while out of the team
• Moving to the League of Ireland – A surprise move?
• Making a big impact in the 3 years in Cork
• From Dundalk to retirement to Shamrock Rovers
• First ever interview for the Longford Town FC job
• Pithing for the job and waiting for the news!
• Leadership & Management Styles:
  • Playing the way he wanted them to play!
  • Motivating players and balancing expectations
• Creating a philosophy that he believed in and where this came from
• Bending the approach when needed
• Balancing winning & possession football
• Learning from last season – trying to win every game
• Developing Patience and waiting for the right opportunity
• Challenges with recruitment, part-time football, facilities
• Approaches for preparation – video analysis once per week
• Qualities in other leaders?
  • Pat Dolan – knowledge of everyone as a standout
  • Pat Fenlon & Damian Richardson – determination
  • Michael O’Neil – having the same view of the game
• Learning from others but making your own decision in the end
• The Book recommendation:
  • A Brave New World - Inside Pochettino's Spurs - https://amzn.to/2UBAguP

Contact Neale:

• @NealeFenn – Twitter
• LinkedIn – Neale Fenn
• The Coaching School - Path2Pro - https://www.path2pro.com/

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