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— Terry Connor —
leaders
the
manager
WINTER 2011
Who are those mysterious men beside the manager on matchday and what
exactly do they do? The Manager talks to one of them to find out
words
ciarÁn Brennan
manager to Mick McCarthy with
Wolverhampton Wanderers, having
previously worked under John Ward
and Dave Jones. So how does Connor
describe the job? “I’m sure the role has
different aspects and responsibilities
at every club,” he says, “but here at
Wolves it’s really quite simple… my
job is to assist Mick in every aspect
of what he does, both on and off
the training pitch.”
With the variety of pressures
that they work under, the modern
manager is often required to attend to
duties away from the first team and
the training ground. This, Connor
believes, is where a good assistant
manager comes into his own.
“The manager has to deal with a
whole range of things in his job –
the press and other things that go
on around the club – and when he’s
called away he needs to know that
everything will carry on just as if he
were there,” he says.
That said, Connor still sees his role
as amplifying the manager’s message,
rather than replacing it. “If the boss
says something – either to the group
or to an individual player – I can
usually add some ‘meat to the bones’,”
he says. “Mick often has to deal with
30 players at a time, and so has to
deliver his message in general terms. I
get to work with smaller groups, so I
can go a bit deeper into things.
But the assistant’s role is not just
about deputising for the manager
when he’s away from the training
ground. Connor believes that he and
McCarthy operate best when they’re
working in tandem.
“We share an office,” he says, “so
we’re always planning ahead… always
working on trying to improve things.”
The fact that they work in such close
proximity means that there’s little or
no need for a formal structure to their
work. “We don’t put meetings with
each other in the diary or anything
like that. We’re always talking football
– even when we see each other outside
of the working environment, on the
golf course or socialising with our
wives – so there’s no real need for us
to do things more formally… the fact
is, we’re in one ongoing meeting.”
It helps, Connor believes, that
the two men have different (but
Is there any
role in club football
as mysterious as that of the assistant
manager? There are, of course, a few
instantly recognisable and well-known
examples; Steve Clarke at Liverpool,
Roberto Di Matteo at Chelsea, Kevin
Bond at Tottenham, Mike Phelan at
Manchester United and, of course, Pat
Rice… who has been beside Arsène
Wenger in the Arsenal dugout for
more than 15 years. But for the most
part, the assistant manager is a silent
and relatively anonymous figure,
working behind the scenes whilst his
higher profile boss fronts the highs
and lows of the club’s campaign.
Terry Connor is a perfect example.
He’s in his fourth season as assistant
The
right-
hand
man
“Mick is
definitely
the man in
charge… the
final decision
always rests
with him”
Mick McCarthy (left) and Terry Connor
celebrate Wolves’ Championship-
winning season in 2008/09