New Jobs, New Hope
Rob Kelly pictured by Wolves Heroes at a Telford hotel during Wigan’s promotion-clinching visit to Shrewsbury three and a half years ago.
What does Terry Connor have this weekend that Rob Kelly wished he also had? Answer: The prospect of building on a winning start with a new club.
The two former Wolves coaches have recently landed new posts – Connor down the road at Walsall and Kelly in his latest reunion with Leam Richardson, this time at Reading.
Both started with victories in their roles, the Saddlers consolidating their position as League Two leaders by winning a high-scoring game at Newport last Saturday and the Royals using a Thursday night TV date to edge out a Stevenage side who would have gone top with a win.
But while Bescot stages a home clash with Colchester today, Reading’s game at Wigan is off because of international calls.
Connor’s career has grown increasingly varied in the two or three years since he last worked at Mick McCarthy’s side, although it has become concentrated much closer to home.
Following his spell as Grenada’s head coach, he was installed as no 2 at Dagenham & Redbridge and then at Solihull Moors, the second of those appointments coming to a conclusion earlier this season after only seven matches.
Now, though, the 62-year-old has been added to the Saddlers’ coaching staff on an interim basis, standing in while Gary Waddock faces a substantial absence because of an ankle operation.
Walsall currently head the basement division on goal difference from Swindon after last season’s play-off final defeat against Wimbledon and Connor said: “I got the call from Mat (Sadler) to ask if I could come and assist him for the next few months while Gary’s recuperating.
“I was delighted to get back on the grass. My hope is that when Gary returns to work, Walsall are still top. If it can be by more points – great! I’m here to give some experience and a bit of help, have a quiet word here and there. Hopefully, I’ll be a good influence over the players and pass on little bits of information that I’ve gained over the years.”
A few days before Connor moved back into employment, Kelly accepted an invitation to become part of the backroom team assembled at struggling Reading by the newly-appointed Leam Richardson.
The two have worked together at Wigan and Rotherham since first getting to know each other on a coach-player basis at Blackburn.
Richardson oversaw a surprise FA Cup first-round defeat at home to Carlisle two weekends ago but then had Kelly on board for the follow-up against Stevenage, having also taken James Beattie and Danny Schofield with him to Berkshire.
Kelly joined Barrow this autumn for the second time and, as assistant to Andy Whing, helped inspire an upturn that was highlighted by a run of only one defeat in nine matches up to the time of his departure.
While we are focusing on the whereabouts of these two former Wolves men, we will also take this opportunity to reflect on the work of other Molineux favourites around the country and beyond.
John Eustace and his no 2, Keith Downing, have been relishing Derby’s impressive climb up the table amid a sequence of five consecutive victories and we shouldn’t overlook the fine start Keith Andrews has made at Brentford in his first management post.
Mike Stowell (left), Robbie Keane (centre) and friends celebrate Maccabi Tel Aviv’s title triumph a year and a half ago.
From the same era and same country, Robbie Keane, having had some mentions over the recently vacant head-coach position at Molineux, has inspired Hungarian champions Ferencvaros to four straight wins, including continued good progress in the Europa League.
But match-days and might-nights have been nothing like as much fun for his former Wolves and Maccabi Tel Aviv colleague, Mike Stowell.
He was appointed as Plymouth’s goalkeeper coach last month but five successive defeats in League and FA Cup have left last season’s Cup conquerors of Liverpool bottom of the third tier.
That nosedive has led, in turn, to the return to the club this week of Derrick Adams, although in the position of director of football and not as manager in place of the under-pressure Tom Cleverley.