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Football has changed plenty since Steve Walford first took up the coaching reins 26 years ago at Wycombe Wanderers but the Whites assistant would like to wind back the clock to help his club in their current predicament.
Neil Lennon’s right-hand-man is unashamedly old school, a tough-tackling centre-back who enjoyed a solid career at Arsenal, Norwich and West Ham in the late seventies and early eighties before forging an association with Martin O’Neill that continues to this day with the Republic of Ireland.
Walford is seeking to instil some old-fashioned values at Wanderers as they look to dig themselves out of a hole in the Championship. But the Londoner admits he and Lennon are having to take a slightly different approach as they look to guarantee safety at the Macron Stadium.
“A lot of teams have nice lads who get on with each other but there’s no-one there who’ll grab you by the throat and say ‘pull your finger out’ and do what they need to do to win,” he told The Bolton News. “They are just nice to each other; that seems to be the way these days.
“It’s a shame. You used to have a lot of characters who would get you through times like this.
“I can’t put my finger on why but you look at top teams in the Premiership – Manchester City for example. You wouldn’t say there are strong leaders in that team and everyone says when Vincent Kompany isn’t playing that they are not the best defensive team in the world. They still have great players and they’ll create stuff but they are not as strong.
“I look at my old team Arsenal and they haven’t got anyone in the team who’ll really grab hold of someone – a Tony Adams – and say ‘get this sorted, we need to win this.’
“The game has changed and even working at international level, the lads are very quiet at that level too. Obviously they want to win the game but there’s no shouting and balling like there might have been in years passed.”
Lennon has expressed his own concern about a lack of leadership on the pitch but is hoping one of his trusted lieutenants Darren Pratley comes through a fitness test to feature against Rotherham today.
The Whites skipper has been in good goal-scoring form and has led by example after claiming he wanted to stick “two fingers up” at the local media and guide the club to safety.
Walford would be more than happy to see him do it.
“Maybe they are having a pop at you lot,” he smiled. “Out of them all, Darren is the most old school. They have got their pride and they don’t want to be bottom of the league.
“They feel they are better than that, and I think they are too.
“They want to keep this club in the Championship, which would be a really big achievement given what has gone on.”
Jay Spearing came to the fore at Wolves in midweek and the combative midfielder is one of the players Walford hopes can find some form at the right time for his club.
“That’s the Spearing I remember breaking on to the scene at Liverpool, putting his foot in; he was a pest,” he said. “I thought he played really well the other night and long may that continue because that is an asset to this team.
“Maybe confidence comes into it. He comes in and out of the team, there have been a few niggly injuries but to be fair to Jay he comes in every day and trains well.
“He got the chance the other day and it looked to me like he said to us ‘I’m going to show you lot, I should be in this team every week. You can’t get me out.’
“If you have players doing that it makes things a lot easier for us as a management team because you have to play them.”
Walford is also placing some faith in Lennon – his long-time protégée. Since quitting Celtic to make his name in the English game, the Northern Irishman has been thrown any number of challenges.
“This has been a massive learning curve for him,” Walford said. “From his previous experience at Celtic as a player and manager, it’s a different animal, you absolutely have to win every week. The pressure is on you.
“It’s different here. He’s used to winning and when we are not winning every week I think he finds it very difficult.”
“Sometimes I think he can’t see that in our team.
“They have got that in them, they want to win, but it’s a mentality thing. It’s difficult to explain.
“I think the spirit in there is very good and they are starting to get a bit more joy out of it, there is a bit more fun about the place and that is starting to come out on to the pitch now, slowly.”
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Neil Lennon’s right-hand-man is unashamedly old school, a tough-tackling centre-back who enjoyed a solid career at Arsenal, Norwich and West Ham in the late seventies and early eighties before forging an association with Martin O’Neill that continues to this day with the Republic of Ireland.
Walford is seeking to instil some old-fashioned values at Wanderers as they look to dig themselves out of a hole in the Championship. But the Londoner admits he and Lennon are having to take a slightly different approach as they look to guarantee safety at the Macron Stadium.
“A lot of teams have nice lads who get on with each other but there’s no-one there who’ll grab you by the throat and say ‘pull your finger out’ and do what they need to do to win,” he told The Bolton News. “They are just nice to each other; that seems to be the way these days.
“It’s a shame. You used to have a lot of characters who would get you through times like this.
“I can’t put my finger on why but you look at top teams in the Premiership – Manchester City for example. You wouldn’t say there are strong leaders in that team and everyone says when Vincent Kompany isn’t playing that they are not the best defensive team in the world. They still have great players and they’ll create stuff but they are not as strong.
“I look at my old team Arsenal and they haven’t got anyone in the team who’ll really grab hold of someone – a Tony Adams – and say ‘get this sorted, we need to win this.’
“The game has changed and even working at international level, the lads are very quiet at that level too. Obviously they want to win the game but there’s no shouting and balling like there might have been in years passed.”
Lennon has expressed his own concern about a lack of leadership on the pitch but is hoping one of his trusted lieutenants Darren Pratley comes through a fitness test to feature against Rotherham today.
The Whites skipper has been in good goal-scoring form and has led by example after claiming he wanted to stick “two fingers up” at the local media and guide the club to safety.
Walford would be more than happy to see him do it.
“Maybe they are having a pop at you lot,” he smiled. “Out of them all, Darren is the most old school. They have got their pride and they don’t want to be bottom of the league.
“They feel they are better than that, and I think they are too.
“They want to keep this club in the Championship, which would be a really big achievement given what has gone on.”
Jay Spearing came to the fore at Wolves in midweek and the combative midfielder is one of the players Walford hopes can find some form at the right time for his club.
“That’s the Spearing I remember breaking on to the scene at Liverpool, putting his foot in; he was a pest,” he said. “I thought he played really well the other night and long may that continue because that is an asset to this team.
“Maybe confidence comes into it. He comes in and out of the team, there have been a few niggly injuries but to be fair to Jay he comes in every day and trains well.
“He got the chance the other day and it looked to me like he said to us ‘I’m going to show you lot, I should be in this team every week. You can’t get me out.’
“If you have players doing that it makes things a lot easier for us as a management team because you have to play them.”
Walford is also placing some faith in Lennon – his long-time protégée. Since quitting Celtic to make his name in the English game, the Northern Irishman has been thrown any number of challenges.
“This has been a massive learning curve for him,” Walford said. “From his previous experience at Celtic as a player and manager, it’s a different animal, you absolutely have to win every week. The pressure is on you.
“It’s different here. He’s used to winning and when we are not winning every week I think he finds it very difficult.”
“Sometimes I think he can’t see that in our team.
“They have got that in them, they want to win, but it’s a mentality thing. It’s difficult to explain.
“I think the spirit in there is very good and they are starting to get a bit more joy out of it, there is a bit more fun about the place and that is starting to come out on to the pitch now, slowly.”
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