Once ridiculed in a famous 1980s television commercial, Accrington Stanley FC is no longer considered a footballing joke and for that they have a red-hot Liverpudlian to thank.


Kirkby-born John Coleman is the inspirational manager who has helped bring League football back to the town of Accrington for the time in 44 years.


Brought up watching the great Liverpool team of the 1970's, the former non-league striker may never have been good enough to play for his beloved Reds but he's steeped in the best Anfield traditions.


The footballing education he received as a young Liverpudlian has helped shape his outlook as a boss and in turn changed the public image of Accrington Stanley.


On Saturday, Stanley kick-off an exciting new era when they visit Chester City in their opening game of the season and in one small part of Lancashire Coleman is deservedly being hailed as a managerial messiah.


Together with his trusted assistant and fellow 'Kirkby-ite' Jimmy Bell, he's guided Stanley to three promotions in seven seasons – a record that compares favourably to that of the most successful managers in the modern game


It's all a far cry from two decades ago when, in a bid to promote the Milk Marketing Board, a young Scouse actor mouthed those immortal words; 'Accrington Stanley – who are they?'


For those who still don’t know, you soon will. Former Kopite/Road Ender John Coleman has seen to that and this famous football name from a bygone age is about to spring into national consciousness once again...

Follow up:

John, first of all, can you tell us a bit about your Liverpool supporting origins?


I've supported Liverpool ever since I was a kid. I went to my first game in 1971, a FA Cup-tie against Aldershot in which fellow Kirkby-lad John McLaughlin scored the winning goal. I went in the Boys Pen in those days and was hooked immediately. The atmosphere used to be unbelievable. I was fortunate that as I got older I saw Liverpool dominate. It's hard to relate this to young Liverpool fans nowadays. Many of them have never seen Liverpool win the league but when I was growing up we used to win it almost every year. It was never a question of are we going to win the league, it was more a case of by how many points!


I had aspirations to make it as a professional footballer but that was not to be and so after leaving school I was trying my best to make it as a semi-pro. I used to follow the Reds everywhere around this time but it's funny because if Liverpool hadn't lost to Arsenal in the fourth game of that marathon 1980 FA Cup semi-final I mightn't be here at Accrington today.


I went to all four ties and nearly lost my job because it meant I had to take a lot of time off work. Anyway, I felt we seemed to go out with a whimper in the fourth game at Coventry, when Brian Talbot got the winner, and I was very disillusioned afterwards. As a result I decided to start taking my football more seriously and began to play of a Saturday instead of going to the game.


Once I established myself as a semi-pro I could only ever go when my team didn't have a match so it became very difficult. I look back now and it's crazy to think what would have happened if Liverpool hadn't have lost that semi-final. They'd have gone through to the FA Cup Final but I might never have become manager of Accrington Stanley.


Who is your favourite all-time Liverpool player?


When I was younger I absolutely idolised Kenny Dalglish. I thought I'd never see a better Liverpool player until Steven Gerrard came along, that's how highly I rate Gerrard. Back then Kenny was a one-off. He brought new things into the game. He was an inventor. If the goalkeeper dropped a ball he'd be onto it like a shot, he was always aware. I remember him taking it off the West Brom goalie this way, sliding in and putting the ball in the net. He was also one of the first players to go through and chip the keeper, and that is commonplace in the game now.


As a player he was someone I wanted to be like. One of my great memories of being a kid was when Kenny made his debut against Manchester United in the 1977 Charity Shield. I was playing for Kirkby Boys at the time and was lucky enough to get picked as one of the ball-boys at Wembley. A team of Merseyside boys and Manchester boys were selected and my name was one of those picked out of the hat. It was a great experience.


What do you consider to be the best Liverpool team you've ever seen?


The best Liverpool team I've seen would have to be the one that did the League and FA Cup double in 1986. They had a bit of everything. The team of late eighties almost done it again and were maybe technically a better team but I don't think they gelled as well. In 1986 it was just a magnificent side and they had a belief in themselves that was second to none.


If you think about Liverpool in the eighties, they were magnificent and swept everyone aside. But they also played with a swagger and bit of style. Manchester United when they were good in the nineties were the same, and Arsenal too when they were good a few years ago. I don't think Chelsea have got that. They are superior to the others at the moment, don't get me wrong, but they haven't got that style of the old Liverpool, Man United and Arsenal sides.


Do you still get along to many games nowadays?


Every opportunity I get, I try to go and watch them. I think I'm quite fortunate that I've never seen Liverpool lose in a Cup Final so long may that continue. Recently, I went to Istanbul and I've been to Cardiff. I don't know what it is but the finals I haven't been able to get to they haven't won. It's amazing.


What would be your most memorable moments as a Liverpool fan?


I've enjoyed many great moments watching Liverpool but there are three that stand out above all others:
1) Istanbul 2005, when Smicer scored against AC Milan. When that went in, the whole ground suddenly believed it was going to be our night and that feeling was unbelievable for me, better than the third goal or Dudek's penalty save.

I don't think any Liverpool fan will ever experience the high of Istanbul again. No team will ever come from behind so quickly in a game. It was a one-off and to be there and be part of it was such a proud moment.


2) Then there was the 2nd replay of that marathon FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal in 1980, which I mentioned earlier. It was the last minute and we were losing 1-0 when the ball got flicked over to Kenny and he finished with the outside of his foot. The ground absolutely erupted. I'd more or less lost my job to go that game, my boss had said I couldn't have the time off but I went away, so the feeling of elation was immense. We thought we were out so to come back from the depths of despair in such dramatic fashion was great.


3) And last, but not least, is the most recent Cup Final, when Steven Gerrard burst the back of the West Ham net to take that game into extra-time. For quality and importance there won't have been many better ever scored.


What does being a Liverpool supporter mean to you?


The importance of being a Liverpool fan is something that is really hard to explain but it got brought home to me never more so than the other week when a player who played with me at Morecambe, Gary Dullaghan, died aged just 41. His funeral was like a tribute to Liverpool FC. It was so moving it was untrue. He was embroiled in everything about Liverpool Football Club. It meant so much to him. He was a great fan. He went home and away. Every single game he took his. It was such a big part of his life and it's the same for countless Liverpool people. It was a real sad occasion but at the same time it made you proud to be a Liverpudlian.


Is it true you once played against Sami Hyypia?


Yes, for the England semi-pro team at Woking but it was only a couple of years after Sami signed for Liverpool that I realised. My brother was going through the old programmes and in it he found the team-sheet from this game and it was marked down on that that Sami had actually marked me.


Since being in management do you find that you are influenced by any of the great Liverpool sides you've watched?


You try and pick up bits of what you think is good and if I'm honest I've certainly tried to model the way Accrington play on the Liverpool team of the early eighties and the Man United team that did the treble in 1999. This involves a very high tempo style, trying to get at people and closing them down. An abiding memory of mine is standing on the Kop or in the Anfield Road, because I used to alternate where I stood, and watching the Liverpool players put the opposition defender under intense pressure in the final third of the pitch going towards the corner flag. The crowd would be roaring and it was like all the Liverpool players were saying 'we are going to take the ball off you and then there is going to be trouble'. It used to happen time and time again when Liverpool were good. I've always wanted my teams to really press the opposition in this way, win the ball and then have the ability to go and hurt them. Once Liverpool had the opposition pinned in there was no way out.


Are there any managers that have had a particular influence on you?


No, not really. Obviously there are certain managers that I like for the style of football their team's plays and then there are other managers who I like for their candidness and honesty. I don't like managers who dress things up and say they don’t see things when they obviously have. I believe in being honest and I'll call a spade a spade. There are too many instances in the game today of people saying what they are expected to say or what the press want to hear. It becomes like a game. I prefer people to speak their mind.


How impressed have you been with the job Rafa Benitez has done at Liverpool?


Very. He's had a very difficult job to do. He's done brilliant to win the Champions League and FA Cup in his first two seasons but I think he'll ultimately be judged on whether he can bring the Premiership title to Anfield. He's certainly got a good style about him, he doesn't get phased and he's got a lot of belief in his own ability, which you need as a manger. He instils this belief into his players and that's important because without it players would struggle.


Was management something you always aspired to do?


I knew I'd stay involved in football because I love it so much. It's just something that is in my blood. I got married on a Friday, then played on the Saturday and played on the Sunday. At least my wife knew straight away what was in store. My reasoning was that I loved football before I loved her and nothing is going to change that! The appeal of management grew as I got older and since becoming a manager I've never looked back.


Do you have ambitions to manage at a higher level?


Of course. My ultimate ambition is to manage in the Premiership. Whether I'll be good enough for that only time will tell. I'm going to complete my coaching badges next summer and I'll then be fully qualified should the opportunity ever arise. Obviously, no club is going to take me into the Premiership now. I'm going to have to work my way up with Accrington first. We have had three promotions in seven years and as someone pointed out to me the other day, another three promotions and we'll be in the Premiership. If I'm honest, I think it would be a very tall order to take Accrington into the Premiership but I can take them to a level where there'd then be an opportunity for me to move on.


How proud do you feel to be now leading Accrington back into the Football League?


This club now has no connections to the one that folded all those years ago but to bring league football back to the town of Accrington after such a big gap gives me a feeling of immense pride. When myself and Jimmy (Bell), my assistant, took over here the potential was clear for all to see. If we could get good players in, this club could only go in one direction and that's what has happened. They'd hit rock bottom and been relegated to the Unibond First Division but everything just snowballed from there. We've been a bit fortunate along the way but last season we assembled a squad of players with a great team spirit and great belief, and they just went from strength to strength. One thing in our favour is our name. I know people take the mick because of the milk advert but whatever way you look at that it good publicity for the club. When you speak to the people of Accrington they can't believe what's happening to their club. It's a dream come true.


There are a lot of Merseyside connections with the club, should we expect to see a Liverpool-based Accrington Stanley supporters club popping up soon?


In the last seven years we've had about 25 players from the Merseyside area playing for us and before going full time here I used to teach at a school in Huyton where there are about 400 kids who now class Stanley as their second team. Word spreads fast so I'm sure there will be a great deal of interest in Accrington from within the Liverpool area and hopefully this will grow.


What are your realistic ambitions for the coming season?


Since taking charge of Accrington we have never finished outside the top half of any table and I don't want to start now. We've not setting any targets but I'd like to think that our lads will go out onto the pitch believing they can win every game they play. Even if we drew Liverpool in the FA Cup I would have it drummed into them that they had a realistic chance of winning. Otherwise I wouldn't expect them to go out on the park. If we can do that for every game and then see where 'x' amount of wins takes us, I think this is the best policy.


You mention drawing Liverpool in a cup tie, surely that must be a dream of yours...


Oh, without a doubt, it would be unbelievable. Saying that, it would be even better to play Everton and beat them! That would guarantee bragging rights on Merseyside for the rest of my life. To play against Liverpool though would be a lovely experience. I've always said that I wouldn't like to play or manage at Anfield unless it was a full-house. If I am ever going to take a team of mine to Anfield I would prefer it to be a really big occasion, against their strongest team and in front of a packed crowd. That would be a dream come true.


Source: noticias/info


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