Former Blackpool midfielder Neil Danns is looking to help Southport to Wembley this weekend.
Ex-Blackpool promotion winner Neil Danns states he’s willing to do the ‘dirty work’ at the start of his coaching journey to give him the best chance of enjoying a long career in the dugout.
The 43-year-old was handed his first permanent managerial role in the summer by Southport, and has enjoyed highs and lows during his time at Haig Avenue so far.
On the back of a difficult start to the season, the Sandgrounders now sit mid-table in National League North after a recent strong string of results, losing just once in their last nine outings.
This has coincided with a successful run in the FA Trophy, with a home semi-final against Southend United standing between the Merseyside outfit and a place at Wembley on May 17.
Danns is no stranger to the national stadium, having experienced success there with Blackpool during his playing days.
After initially spending time on loan with the Seasiders in 2003, the ex-Guyana international returned to Bloomfield Road for another temporary stint in 2017, featuring a total of 31 times for the club.
It was during his second spell that success came his way in Tangerine, starting the 2-1 play-off final victory over Exeter City during Gary Bowyer’s tenure at the helm.
Danns’ first taste of coaching came as an interim manager at Macclesfield Town at the end of his playing career, before hanging up his boots completely with a role as part of Tranmere Rovers’ backroom staff.
The Southport boss admits it was important for him to put in the groundwork before taking on a full-time managerial role.
“The Macclesfield gig was my first one - it gave me a nice little taster,” he said.
“I thought it was important, when the opportunity came around, to be assistant manager at Tranmere. It was important for me to be around full time football as a coach and learn my trade there.
“I tried to do it the right way, building myself and learning. Hopefully that’ll stand me in good stead for a longer career.
“I’ve always passionately loved football - I’m a geek when it comes to football. I started coaching in the academy just to dip my toe in, and I was still playing when I was given the opportunity at Macclesfield, which I never expected and came out of the blue.
“That was the thing that wet my feet and gave me the appetite to have a real go at this.
“I didn’t want to jump in at a level where you can get caught out because you’ve not done the dirty work, so this is all standing me in good stead for a longer career, and giving me experience in different situations.
“Southport have been a sleeping giant for a while - they’re in a great catchment area. I went to a few games last year, and I could just see the potential within the club. It just needed a little boost of energy, and the new owners coincided with that.
“I’m just really grateful and thankful that they gave me the opportunity. The fans have been brilliant with me.
“We had a tough start. I hadn’t been at this level so I didn’t know exactly what the league entailed, so the first nine games we found it tough because we probably recruited a little too young, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way as it forced me to adapt quickly.
“The owners were brilliant during that time because they could see what we were doing in training and the philosophy - they understood where we were going.
“A different set of owners might’ve pulled the trigger early. I’m massively grateful, I don’t think I could’ve had better owners in my first proper job in the National League North. When it’s your first job, you do need time to adapt.
“They stuck by us and believed in what we’re doing, and now we’re starting to bear the fruits of it.”
A ‘special’ opportunity for ex-Blackpool man
Neil Dannsplaceholder image
Neil Danns
Danns admits he’s looking forward to a big occasion at Haig Avenue on Saturday afternoon, and believes there’s a strong connection at the non-league club.
“It’d mean a lot to everyone involved (to get to Wembley),” he added.
“We’re under no illusions that it’s going to be a really tough game because we’re playing one of the most in form teams in the National League. It’s going to be a massive task, but we also understand it’s going to be a one-off game and anything can happen.
“We’ll be going into it on the back of some good form and our own bit of confidence. We will respect them because we know they’re a good side, but once that whistle goes it’s about who’s best on the day.
“As a manager, I try not to look too far ahead. I was adamant when we got through the quarter-final that we didn’t speak about the semi-final because I like to focus on the next game.
“What I do know is, I’m really looking forward to this game in front of a sell-out crowd of almost 6,000 - which is a massive achievement.
“It’s been tough not speaking about it for the last four or five weeks, but we knew we had the league to focus on.
“To be fair to the lads, they’ve been excellent in that time. Now we’ve got a break from the league and now we can buy into the occasion and look forward to what will be a momentous game.
“We’ve been in good form for a while now. We had a slow start - which we understand why now. It was my first time in the league, we had new owners, and we had to bring 15 new players in, so it was never going to be that simple to start off flying.
“We’ve adapted as the season has gone on and have developed a squad that’s on a real good run.
“The fans have been unbelievable, that’s coincided with the owners bringing a real energy to the club. We try to play football the right way, so they’ve been enjoying the type of football we play. It’s good we can pay them back with a great game.
“Everyone who knew me as a player knows I was intense and ran about a lot - that’s what I expect from my team. I expect them to run through brick walls for each other, but also enjoy themselves and express themselves in the right areas.
“Every manager wants their team to represent them. I love watching entertaining football, I love seeing tackles, I love seeing people run - and that’s what we’re trying to instil in our team.”
Learning from different managers
Neil Danns (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)placeholder image
Neil Danns (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Danns started his professional playing career with Blackburn Rovers, and it was during his time at Ewood Park that he was first sent out to Blackpool, among others.
The retired midfielder eventually made the permanent move to Colchester United, before linking up with Birmingham City in 2006 - where he was coached by former Seasiders boss Steve Bruce for a period.
Following that, he made over 100 appearances for Crystal Palace between 2008 and 2011, before having stints with the likes of Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers, Bury and Tranmere Rovers.
In 2020, the 43-year-old made the drop down to non-league, playing for Radcliffe, Halifax Town and Connah’s Quay, before joining Macclesfield.
Danns admits he was able to pick up a lot from various big names in the game throughout the entirety of his playing career.
“I’ve had the pleasure of working under some massive managers, the likes of Steve Bruce, Graeme Souness, Neil Lennon, Sven-Göran Eriksson, Nigel Pearson, Neil Warnock - so many,” he stated.
“You look back on your career and you take little bits of each one of them, and what you liked and what you didn’t like.
“You just try to add it to yourself, but the most important thing is having your own identity. You take little bits of advice, but it’s important to create your own model of how you want to be as a manager because the best are individuals with their own ideas.”
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