More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
New Lordswood boss Darren Anslow had to have another crack at managing.
His last management job, at Chatham Town, ended with the sack back in November 2016.
A brief stint at Rochester followed but most recently Anslow has been working with Isthmian League Whitstable. It’s a club he loved being around.
He said: “The first thing I did when I was told I had the Lordswood job was to contact the people at Whitstable and explain why I took it.
“I got a bit of a reputation for moving around but I thought I had found my home at Whitstable. I loved it there and I can’t say enough good things about the club.
“It’s a place you would look forward to going to and not just because of the football, it was a fun place to be.
“There’s something that burned inside me though. I don’t feel I have anything to prove after Chatham but I do need to have another go at it, to see what I can do and where I can take it.”
Joining him at Martyn Grove as his assistant will be Rob Gillman while Owen Price has quit Lewisham Borough to join the backroom team.
“I have got people around me that are second to none,” said Anslow. “A lot of top clubs have been trying to sign Rob this summer and to get him at the club is massive.
“It wouldn’t have happened had he not been my assistant and it’s a great first signing.
“We’re all a bit different. I’ve calmed down a bit but I’m hyper though. Rob is calm and Owen has so much knowledge of the game that rubs off on others.
“It was massive to be able to put that team together and to know I had them behind me when I had the interview. It would have been a bit different doing it on my own.
“When I spoke to the people at Whitstable I got so much positivity back and they understood. I just wanted to be able to explain to them why I have taken it.”
Replicating that same environment that they had at The Belmont is something he’ll be trying to do at Lordswood.
He said: “One thing I have learnt from my time at Whitstable is about the atmosphere at the club. I’m not going to just sign anyone, I want the right kind of changing room and that is going to be worth points.
“We need to bring in the right kind of characters and that’s what we’re working on.”
Anslow, who is an academy coach at Bromley Town Football Club, admits it’s tough to have dropped down a level but believes there is plenty to work with at Lordswood.
“It was a big decision,” he said. “There is a bit more professionalism, bigger crowds, and I want to be back there. It’s going to take time but hopefully we can build something here.
“Look at what Corinthian and Fisher did last season, we will look at what they did well but we will only be concerned about ourselves, nobody else.”
Putting a team together will now be his main job, with many of them departing following the exit of Richard Styles, who has taken over at Tunbridge Wells.
While some players have headed there, others have stayed close, with right-back and leading scorer Joe Kane joining rivals Chatham.
“I’m quite excited and it’s like a blank canvas for us,” said Anslow.
“I’ve been phoning players from last season’s squad, chatting to them and leaving messages. We will be bringing in players but it’s an open book, it’s whoever is best suited to the position, I’m not going to disregard anyone.”
