John Nixon talks about today's managerial appointment
Managing director John Nixon spoke to us about the appointment of Keith Curle as first team manager this afternoon.
“It is good to have the appointment made because, as I said the other day, it’s a dynamic situation and things are changing all the time,” he said. “We’ve been through quite a long interview process, which has lasted for nearly a week, because we felt it was important for us to identify and appoint the person we felt was the right man for the job.
“We think we’ve got that in Keith Curle and his assistant Colin West. He has a good record of pulling squads together and making them play well, and his win and draw ratio at Notts County was very good.
“He’s worked in the lower two divisions and that was one of the key issues for us over the course of the last few weeks. He knows the personnel, he knows the type of football and he already has a vast network of contacts. When you put all of that together you get what we feel is the type of man who can take us out of trouble.”
“He was one of the strong candidates all the way through the process,” he confirmed. “Virtually all of the directors have met him and he was clear and focused during both interviews he had. We’re confident he can take hold of the reins and drive the club in the right direction again. He spoke very early in the process about bringing Colin West in to work with him and he is another appointment we are very comfortable with. They have become a strong partnership, they trust each other, and I’m sure they will continue to work well together.”
“I think, at this point, we have to thank Tony Caig, Paul Thirlwell and Alan Moore for the work they have done for us in this interim period,” he concluded. “It has been difficult circumstances and the board of directors are full of nothing but praise for all three of them.
“There is a firm belief that we have now have the foundations in place not only to get away from bottom place but to make significant moves up the table. Keith knows we feel that and he agrees it is more than achievable.
“The process of him evaluating what he had started on Tuesday night, when he came to watch us at Shrewsbury, and I’m sure he will continue to assess things as he watches training today and the game at Mansfield tomorrow. From there we will work with him and support him as he seeks to bring us the success we all want.”
