DAVID Fish believes he has laid the platform. Now for Mossley AFC to progress, on and off the field.
After five years in charge at Seel Park, the manager’s final home match was the thrilling 2-2 draw with Tameside neighbours Stalybridge Celtic on Easter Monday, April 21.
Assistant Alex Craddock will step up following the Lilywhites’ final match of the season, at Hanley Town on Saturday, April 26.
But the base is there for a bright future, both in terms of players on the pitch and what the club does away from it.
“There’s a good platform now for the club to kick on with and Alex the man to take them forward,” said David. “He’s got so much energy, enthusiasm, passion, knowledge about the game.
“I think it was the right time for me to move out and I think Alex is the right appointment. “He’s worked with me for five years, he’s seen how I do it, but Alex has his own way of doing things.
“Some things will be similar, but I think there’ll be plenty of things that are different. It’s important that Alex does put his stamp on it.
“If he ever needs any advice, he knows where I am, but I’m not going to offer it unsolicited.
“He knows what he’s doing.
“When we took over, we had by far the smallest budget in the league. I’m not saying we’ve now got one of the biggest, but we’ve certainly progressed because we’ve been able to grow things on and off the pitch.
“If you look at the sponsorship that we’re bringing in, if you look at the fans, the attendances have been much higher. They’ve gone up year on year.
“Also, we’ve done pretty well at identifying young players and bringing them through. I think we’ve got a bit of a reputation now.
“Locally, as a club, if you’re a young player wanting to advance, we are a club that you would come to because you get opportunities.
“We’ve seen half a dozen move into higher leagues, probably four or five of them into full-time football. that’s what the legacy is.
“Mossley’s community stuff was already good. I think we’ve continued that and the players have bought into that.
“But if you look at what we’ve done, we’ve increased attendances, made us much more competitive on the pitch. We are now recognised as a place for young players to come and progress. I’m proud of that.”
Fish’s final home match had no shortage of drama as Mossley took a 2-0 lead through Eric Yahaya and Sean Kgwakgwa, after Celtic claimed they scored in the early stages – only for it to be not given.
Courtney Meppen-Walters pulled one back on 85 minutes before Jack Irlam’s injury time penalty made it 2-2, only for Kgwakgwa’s overhead effort to be tipped by Celtic goalkeeper Charlie Monks and the ball to roll agonisingly wide.
And while he admits he is not likely to take another job in football management, do not expect it to be the end of his involvement with the game.
You may also see him at a Mossley AFC game in future.
Fish added: “I think that’s it for management. I think I’ve done it in the dugout.
“It just takes over your life. I’m going to take six months away, reassess, but I’ve already had a couple of offers of things in and around football.
“I’m probably not done with football forever but certainly done in the dugout.
“I’ve been offered some consultancy work to a chief exec at a club and other things like that. They’re potentially of interest but I want six months off. I need to charge the batteries first before I do anything.
“It’s hard to get away from the day job, it’s hard to get away from football. If things aren’t going your way, you’ve got difficult conversations with people. There’s a lot more that people don’t see, and it’s the emotional energy.
“It is draining.
“But I’ll definitely be here occasionally. I’ve already planned to do an away day. If fixtures fall right, I’m going to be at Clitheroe away.
“And you’ll probably see me around and about the place. I’ve got a lot of friends around here, so it’ll be nice to come down and see you from the other side of a fence, with a beer in my hand!”