Three games ago, Leighton Town Head of Football, Guy Kefford, was asked to step into the breach to take charge of the team following the departure of manager, Gary Flinn.
Nine points later, including a highly-impressive 4-1 away win at previously-unbeaten League leaders, Hadley, last weekend, and Kefford has been asked by the Executive Committee of the Pitching In Southern League Division One Central club to remain in position for the ‘foreseeable future’.
So, what has been the secret behind this turn around in fortunes? We asked Kefford to explain.
“The work on the training ground has been key,” he told us. “This has given this talented group the structure from which to play.
“Initially we concentrated on our out of possession set-up, which has then given them the platform in these last few games.
“The coaching staff and I have quickly formed credibility with the players and the players are responding through the learning and adaptation of play. You can't have one without the other, the environment is always the key.
“Last Saturday was our biggest test to date, coming up against a very good and well-organised Hadley side who hadn't been defeated previously.
“We gave them due respect and did our due diligence, as we always do, and the reward was the performance on the pitch. The whole squad contributed to secure a fantastic win that really made people sit up and take notice.
“I did a similar role last season at the club when I stepped in to the helm our Development team in early December and stayed until May before we appointed a replacement during the summer.
“I would say it's always a privilege to be in and around a special group of people, and in both these situations that's what we have; players that want to improve, are prepared to listen and learn and during the process are prepared to run and sweat for the cause.
“That's only achieved by creating an environment in which the relationship between staff and players is allowed to flourish. Once you have that anything is possible.”
Kefford has been impressed by the standard of Division One Central so far this season in what remains an extremely competitive division.
“In my new role this season as Head of Football I've watched every game we’ve played in, bar one,” he added. “It's a very good standard; the technical and tactical elements in the game are now higher than I've known previously and so you have to do the work off the pitch to prepare.
“I think our game on Saturday shows how competitive the League is and will be for the rest of this season. We saw last season how many teams there were vying for the play-off places, right up until the final week and it will be the same this time around too.”
For Kefford, he will be in charge for the battles ahead, continuing with Tuesday’s home encounter with Berkamsted.
“The Executive Committee got together this week to discuss and agree the way forward,” he continued. “We’ve decided on the best structure and direction for the club to take at this point in time, taking into consideration a number of factors, including our unbelievable supporters, sponsors and the incredible work off the field in the close season, which has seen major ground improvements to meet the grading for the level in which we now compete.
“The upshot is that I am delighted to continue at the helm and look forward to the ongoing challenges ahead.
“We are a members’ club who rely on volunteers to operate, everyone is valued here and everyone is working hard to continue moving this club forward.”
IMAGE: Leighton Town
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