MANSFIELD Town has ended several days of speculation and officially appointed David Holdsworth as its new manager - who immediately said he hoped 'to get the club back to where it belongs'.
The move - strongly rumoured over the past few days and predicted by Chad on Sunday evening - was confirmed today after negotiations between Holdsworth (40), his former club Ilkeston and the Stags were finally concluded over the weekend.
Holdsworth - who replaces the sacked Billy McEwan - has been handed an 18-month contract (with a one-year extension option), and will watch tonight's match against BSP leaders Burton from the stands.
The club's seventh manager in four years described himself as 'driven and very focussed' and wanting to stamp his own imprint on the club, promising:
- That caretaker managers Adie Moses and Mark Stallard would be working with him, at least in the short-term
- To get stability and to progress the club away from the wrong end of the table
- Fast, attacking football and a desire to keep clean sheet (Ilkeston have the best defensive record in the Unibond Premier)
- To assess the current squad - with the help of sports scientists - before making decisions
- To develop the squad, giving younger players the chance and maybe make changes, 'but there is no point mending something that is not broken'
- 'Long term? I hope we can get back the League status'
In a message to the fans, he said: "The club has fantastic support - they will get 100% from me, my players and staff. There will be no stone unturned, we will work tirelessly to do our homework on the opposition and our players . . . results are always important and you will never see be happy when we have not won."
The ambitious Holdsworth - a central defender who played 570 first team matches at various Football League clubs and once commanded a £1mplus transfer fee - lives in Sheffield with his wife and young son..
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He told Chad: "I am looking forward to working with the board and players and, with the help of the fans, hope we can resurrect the season and push on. I am looking forward to the challenges ahead.
"I am delighted to have been offered the job and very excited for the future."
And in a video interview with the club's official website
mansfieldtown.net he explained why he had come to Field Mill: "You only have to be here to look at the club, the structure behind the scenes, it's impressive . . . for the standard it is at, at the moment.
"It is an opportunity to come to a club which has the basis to develop. I believe we can bring that to the club and get it back to where it belongs."
Holdsworth said he hoped to meet the first team squad ahead of Monday night's match with Burton, adding that the staff at Field Mill had already given him a warm welcome.
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The new manager added: "It is important that we do things right. At any level you must have a structure and a belief, you get that by sticking together and remaining tight as a unit.
"I have to congratulate Adie (Moses) and Mark (Stallard) on the job they have done; they have been working very hard for the club. They deserve a 'well done' for the way they have handled themselves and the two victories, very important victories (over Christmas). The Kettering result was a great result. I believe we can build on that and I am looking forward to meeting them.
"All the players will be aware very quickly that we must stick together, we must have that belief, that desire and remain disciplined . . . work to a format that is conducive to winning games."
On the January transfer window, he added: "First and foremost I have to meet the players, evaluate them . . . see who has the ability to go to the next level. We must assess them and see what type of mentality they have.
"They are playing for their Mansfield Town futures. If there are tweeks that need to be made, I will make them with the best efforts in mind of this football club.
"We want to have a squad that has every desire, dsicipline and ability. Players here have good ability - we need to bring that out of them and they need to be focussed on helping us achieve, first the status of being in this league and then if we progress, fantastic."
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The players face a rigorous assessment by the new manager over the next few days and he continued: "My sports scientists will come in and evaluate their body conditions, their fitness conditions and their mental fitness . . . there is nothing to be scared of. If they want to work in a professional environment then they will work with me."
Holdsworth said he did not need an assistant at the moment and wanted to utilise the 'great experience and knowledge of the players' of caretakers managers Mark Stallard and Adie Moses.
His coach at Ilkeston was Kevin Philliskirk, head of youth development at Field Mill a few years ago.
Houldsworth also said that the fans could be prepared to see 'fast, attacking football' . . . and, he hoped, clean sheets.
"We may change formations to win games, especially away from home, and perhaps play counter attacking football . . . but first and foremost we must respect the point we have and don't give it away'.
Stags chairman Andy Perry told
mansfieldtown.net: "David is very enthusiastic about the job that lies ahead. He is a very positive and genuine person and a leader.
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"He received glowing references from the likes of Trevor Francis (who took David Holdsworth to Birmingham for £1.25m) and Glen Roeder (he worked with David Holdsworth at Watford), who are well respected people in the game and we are delighted he has joined us."
Over the past week Chad has been first to reveal that Holdsworth was the leading candidate to replace Billy McEwan, sacked almost three weeks ago . . . first to report how bookies Victor Chandler had suspended betting on the identity of the next Stags manager after original outsider Holdsworth was heavily backed . . . and first to reveal that the Stags had asked Ilkeston for permission to speak to the former Sheffield United defender.
Then on Christmas Eve we reported that he had been offered the job of leading the Stags - and then first reported on the problems of securing his release from Ilkeston, where he had a contract until May, and the possibility of a second strong candidate for the job.
But last night Chad revealed that Ilkeston, the Stags and Holdsworth had come to an agreement to take the manager to Field Mill, paving the way for today's official announcement.
The move to offer the previously 'unknown' Holdsworth the job will surprise many fans, but already some supporters are welcoming the news as 'an inspired and brave decision'.
For in his first few months as a manager he has transformed Ilkeston in the Unibond Premier, won many plaudits from fans and turned down the Grimsby managerial vacancy earlier this season. He finished unbeaten in his last two months at the club and guided them to the best defensive record in the division.
Holdsworth was not among the first names in the speculation that followed McEwan's sacking two weeks ago. But when the Stags' target Chris Wilder joined Oxford on the Sunday before Christmas, Holdsworth emerged as the favourite ahead of the likes of Richie Barker, Steve Burr, Darren Patterson, Colin Walker, John Schofield, Gary Mills and Paul Cox.
His man-management skills, ability to adopt modern coaching methods and hunger for success placed him at the top of the Stags' owners' wanted list.
