Things will change at Farnborough next season, says Old Boys manager Byron Beard

FARNBOROUGH OLD BOYS GUILD manager Byron Beard says he wants to bounce back at the first attempt.



The club were relegated from the Haart of Kent County League Premier Division after finishing at the foot of the table.

The High Street outfit suffered 23 defeats from their 28 league games, conceding 116 goals in the process.

“When I took charge at the beginning of February 2012, I had no team and I had to bring together a number of new players and try and salvage the season,” said Beard, 30, who has played for Dartford, Thamesmead Town, Erith & Belvedere, Orpington, Phoenix Sports, Beckenham Town and Glebe.

“Unfortunately I was unable to do this but what was promising is that with a bunch of players thrown together we managed to stop the 9-0 or 10-0 scorelines and should have collected a lot more points but were unfortunate.

“Last season has been particularly difficult for the club with results, issues with player commitment and the previous management leaving.

“Personally I quit football (when I was playing for Glebe) at Christmas to concentrate on the renovation of my house but when Matt Ellis and Luke Johnson (the club’s reserve team managers) called to ask if I could play, things evolved very quickly which ended up with me taking over.”

Beard now begins the search for a number two next season.

“There are three main skills that I am looking for in potential candidates,” explained Beard.

“I want them to have commitment and be professional.  I want someone to come on board who has the same ambition as me.

“The set-up at the club is probably the best outside the Invicta League in terms of the ground.

“Currently the club are talking about improvements to the ground and this will mean hopefully once all finalised the ground will be moving towards Invicta standard.

“Therefore I am looking for someone that is prepared to work on a two-three year project minimum.

Beard added: “Honesty is hard to find.  It would be easy to look for a newly qualified coach and simply give the orders but I want an assistant/joint-manager who is open and honest enough to have opinions and ideas.

“No one at this level has all the knowledge and I think one of the things I missed at the end of last year was someone that could bring another option to the table.”

Beard wants his side to play attractive football in Division One West next season.

“I want to play football, passing and flowing,” he said.

“I don’t care what level you play at, you can play football the right way.

“I think too many people use the phrase ‘you can’t win this league playing football, as an excuse at every level.  You only need to look at VCD (who won the Ryman League Division One North title last season) to see it is possible.”

“Ideally I would like someone who is Level 2 qualified (or working towards this) and if they have contacts and players to bring with them then even better.”

Beard also wants committed players to play for him next season.

When asked what the difference is between the Kent League and Kent County League, Beard replied: “Apart from the skill and talent gap, it’s commitment.

“When I played Kent League football you would get a whole squad to training and match days whereas at this level you find people to have a lot of other commitments.

“I appreciate that this is the way it is at this level but it is something that will change at Farnborough next season.

“I would say the other major difference is the surfaces we play on.  While some are very good like Chipstead, Staplehurst and Metrogas, whose pitches are better than half the Kent League, the rest do not lend themselves to playing a passing game.

Beard wants to make it a successful first full season in charge of the club.

When asked his aspirations for next season, he simply replied, “Promotion! The players I have achieved it two years go and you don’t become bad players overnight.

“I already have six new players coming in for pre-season as well as couple of others I am waiting on who have all played Kent League previously.

“I honestly think that with a good pre-season behind us we should finish high up in the level.

“We have been told unofficially that we will be relegated due to our league position and some of our changing facilities not meeting requirements but this should be sorted next season if we are promoted.

“We invite people along to the club. We are looking for people to come and support us as numbers have dwindled due to last season’s performance.”

To apply, please contact Byron Beard on 07984 008 359 or email Byronbeard@hotmail.com by 13 June 2014.

Visit Farnborough Old Boys Guild’s website: www.fobgfc.org