League 1’s Scunthorpe United have decided to give Nick Daws the opportunity to define a legacy as manager of the Lincolnshire club.
Daws has been handed the role at Glanford Park on a full-time basis as opposed to the interim basis he was in charge for after the departure of Mark Robins in January.
Daws had hoped he would land the role on a permanent basis after the 4-2 aggregate loss to Rotherham United Daws said;
“Once the dust settles I will sit down with him again. I sincerely hope we can find a way forward because I feel myself and Andy have shown what we are capable of over a couple of spells.
“I have been here three and a half years and I am passionate about this football club [Scunthorpe United].
“I want the best for it and I feel I am capable of producing for the chairman and the club [Scunthorpe United].”
The recent playoff loss was the first defeat as interim manager for Daws but came so close to taking the club to Wembley. an impressive feat considering he took over the role in January 2018.
Here’s what Nick Daws had to say after he was appointed the full-time manager of Scunthorpe United this morning:
On Being appointed as Scunthorpe United’s new manager –
Nick Daws: “I’m absolutely delighted and really looking forward to it. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a really long time and I’ve waited patiently for the opportunity. Fortunately for me, I can do it at a club that I’ve been at for three-and-a-half years. I know what everything’s about, I know what the expectations are and I’ve got somebody alongside me that I’ve worked with hand-in-hand, on-and-off for the three-and-a-half year period as well. Now’s the time to look forward and to be able to look forward with the title of manager is one that makes me really proud.”
ON THE DECISION to become Scunthorpe United Manager…
Nick Daws: It was absolutely an easy decision. I’ve done all of the processes of developing as a coach and developing towards management. I can’t be any more qualified to do the job. Experience-wise, I’ve been on the touchline for the best part of 600 games as a coach, so I’ve got a wealth of experience.
On Being at a club he knows very well –
Nick Daws: “It allows us to hit the ground running. It allows myself and Andy to use our friendship, our experience and our understanding of each other to be able to move forward. Those are the things that will help and are of an advantage rather than going into a new club without the knowledge of what it’s about. We know exactly what the objective is here for ourselves and we’re going to embrace that, try and drive the club forward and we’ll enjoy the experience. I know that I’ve wanted to manage a football club for a really long time, so from that point of view, it was an easy decision.”
On Scunthorpe United’s ambition going forward –
Nick Daws: “We’re as ambitious as ever. We know, to a certain extent, a club like Scunthorpe is punching above their weight being in-and-around the playoffs. I’m ambitious and want to be successful in the game and so does the Chairman. To his credit, and his family’s credit, they’ve invested an awful lot of money in this football club. Therefore, hand-in-hand, the club has an ambitious manager and an ambitious Chairman and we want to achieve more than what we’ve achieved in the last few seasons and that’s the objective. The nature of the game is that there will be a few bumps in the road and we’ll need to be patient at times. We’ve got the basis of an outstanding squad, which we will add to throughout the summer and hopefully we’ll be in a stronger position than this time last year.”
On the challenges he’s faced and what he will face in his new role as Scunthorpe United boss –
Nick Daws: “As a First Team Coach and Assistant Manager, what you don’t have is the overall ability to do things exactly your way. When you’ve worked so long and hard and done all the qualifications, you are trained for that. The two spells I’ve had (in interim charge) has given me the practical experience, the pressures – if you call them pressures – of being on the touchline and making decisions over players. I’ve had to consider the other side of the job, such as recruitment, plans and preparations for the new season. But I’ve always been comfortable with those situations. I’ve worked hard under previous managers here, Mark (Robins) and Graham (Alexander), to support them with my experience. Now it’s my time to put my stamp on things really, and that’s not tearing anything up. The supporters have seen how my teams have played over a couple of spells. The best bit about it is I’ll be busier. I’ll be busy every minute of the day and that’s what I like. I want to be busy, I want to be engaged, I want to be challenged and the role will certainly provide that for me.”
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