'I want to put smiles on faces again' - Ian Long returns to management stepping into Rushall hot-seat
Ian Long half thought he was finished with management - but now he is back in the hot-seat and hoping to make Rushall Olympic fans smile.
Long had been out of a job since October last year when Walsall Wood resigned from the Northern One Midlands. He had led them to the top of the table at the time.
But, he is now looking forward to a project at Rushall where he once played himself under owner John Allen.
“I want to put smiles on faces again,” Long said upon his arrival at the club.
Rushall’s two-year stay in the National League North came to an end this season with relegation back to step three non-league football.
“It was 50/50 really,” Long added on whether he thought he would return to management.
“I can be seen as quite aggressive in my approach and I think people might think I can be hard to manage.
“But, I don’t think that is the case. I am very passionate and John Allen and me go back a long way. I played under him when he was manager at Rushall. He knows me like the back of my hand.
“He knows I am a winner and want to win, and will work hard and do my best for Rushall Olympic. I see them as my non-league club.
“There is a re-build that will happen and a turnover of players as there has been at Rushall all season really. It is about stabilising the club and squad which I know has been difficult in the season.
“The remit isn’t to bounce back straight away. John isn’t asking me to get the club back into the National League North at the first time of asking. But, we need to be competitive and stabilise at step three. That is the priority.”
Since his departure from Walsall Wood, Long has spent Saturday afternoons at various football grounds in the region.
And, although he has enjoyed some rest, he is buzzing to be back in the hot seat.
The new Rushall boss continued: “I have quite enjoyed the lay-off. At times you miss the dressing room, but it is quite nice to go and watch games sometimes.
“I don’t sleep on Friday nights, I am wondering whether I have got the selection or tactical approach right. So it has been nice to have a sleep.”
He added: “I am relishing the opportunity that stands before me. It’s a special club where I really enjoyed my time as a player and made some lasting friendships.”
Long will be joined at Dales Lane by long-time assistant, Richard Colwell.
Rushall’s vice chairman, Nick Allen said: “We are delighted that Ian is joining our club as first team manager.
“John Allen and I are long-term admirers of the entertaining and tactically bright teams that Ian and Richard have built over the years and the time is now right for them to join our club.
“Our supporters will enjoy the way that they see the game, their footballing philosophy and their ‘hearts on their sleeve’ approach to the common cause.
“It’s time to reset with a clean slate and build for our next adventure at a different level that our new management team know so well.
“John and I go back a long way with Ian, years before he was a well-loved player at The Pics and he is a passionate character who understands the fabric of our special club, which is really important, and also the traditional standards, disciplines and community ethos that the success of our club has been built upon.”
