:00:03. > :00:07.on Saturday. Tonight the man who couldn't keep them up is here to
:00:07. > :00:17.tell us how he's going to get them up next season. Welcome to Late
:00:17. > :00:30.
:00:30. > :00:37.Blackpool promenade into the play- offs, but what next for Burnley?
:00:37. > :00:42.has been a good learning curve for the players. Just enjoy it, take
:00:42. > :00:48.each half as it comes. Win at half, that is all we can do.
:00:48. > :00:53.Lifting the lid, a former boss Gary Simpson on the realities of
:00:53. > :01:00.managing the League Two strugglers. I used to go around picking all of
:01:00. > :01:04.the players up. The loan a deal that left a lasting
:01:04. > :01:07.impression on Preston. Welcome to the programme. All the
:01:07. > :01:10.weekend's goals to come along with all of the main talking points
:01:10. > :01:13.concerning our football league clubs. Here to help me get through
:01:13. > :01:15.them all, Rochdale boss John Coleman and a former player with
:01:15. > :01:17.Burnley and coach at Preston, it's David Unsworth. Welcome, lads,
:01:17. > :01:19.thanks for coming. First though tonight, Saturday's
:01:19. > :01:22.Championship derby at Bloomfield Road where Blackpool, jockeying for
:01:22. > :01:26.the best possible play-off position, hosted a Burnley side long since
:01:26. > :01:29.out of top six contention but with one of the best away records in the
:01:29. > :01:39.Championship and aiming to equal a club record eleven wins on the road.
:01:39. > :01:51.
:01:51. > :01:59.Firmly in the middle on derby day, A head-to-head between these two
:01:59. > :02:09.teams, Burnley have the edge. They have won 36, Blackpool have won
:02:09. > :02:13.
:02:13. > :02:18.We would prefer a win. You can't get anywhere, but at least we could
:02:18. > :02:25.equal a club record. By Paul have the bit between their teeth. They
:02:25. > :02:31.will want to win today. Burnley like Blackpool so we don't mind.
:02:31. > :02:35.Your friends with them? We are. has your season gone as a fan?
:02:35. > :02:45.the best. We could have done better. Some away matches were pretty good,
:02:45. > :02:50.but could do better this year. Do you think come 5pm, you will
:02:50. > :02:56.have the play-off spot? Absolutely. Full of confidence. The few get to
:02:56. > :03:01.the play-offs, what can you expect? To passion, and I think we will go
:03:01. > :03:08.away again. Last time, that second game was unbelievable. We talk
:03:08. > :03:11.about it all ways. It was fantastic and hopefully we can do it again.
:03:11. > :03:16.Premier league of next year! Definitely.
:03:16. > :03:21.But what do the experts think? don't think it will be easy against
:03:21. > :03:25.Burnley. Frankly, and I think of this division, there is not much
:03:25. > :03:35.difference between top and bottom. The consistency matters more than
:03:35. > :03:37.
:03:37. > :03:43.anything else. Results away from home have been excellent. Only West
:03:43. > :03:53.Ham have more victories this season so it shows that we play well. They
:03:53. > :03:54.
:03:54. > :03:58.In your opinion, how will it go today? Form goes out the window
:03:58. > :04:02.when you get to local derbies. Burnley are looking to create a
:04:02. > :04:08.record for the number of wins away now so they will go for it. They
:04:08. > :04:13.have got lots to play for, unlike what people are saying. Blackpool,
:04:13. > :04:23.they have over achieved, fantastic position, and from where they are,
:04:23. > :04:29.
:04:29. > :04:39.it would not be a tragedy if they A missile is fire and Blackburn
:04:39. > :04:54.
:04:54. > :05:04.for Blackpool. Outside the box, it lays it up. The golly cannot keep
:05:04. > :05:05.
:05:05. > :05:15.it out. 34 blackball! -- the goalkeeper. This is his first touch,
:05:15. > :05:25.
:05:25. > :05:30.not of sight, and here is Tom Ince. Would have you made it this season?
:05:30. > :05:34.It has been a good learning curve for players in their first full
:05:34. > :05:39.season at this level. A lot of them are young lads trying to learn the
:05:39. > :05:44.lead. A lot of them will be a lot better for this season. We have
:05:44. > :05:47.certainly been inconsistent, away form has been good but the home
:05:48. > :05:52.form has been probably the root of our problems. We need to adjust
:05:52. > :05:59.back into next season. We have reasons to be positive. We will
:05:59. > :06:05.have a great chance. How do you approach the play-offs
:06:05. > :06:08.now? With a smile on your face, enjoy it, take each half as it
:06:08. > :06:12.comes. Try and win the half, that is all you can do it. If someone
:06:12. > :06:16.scores, put the ball out of the net and not worry about it too much.
:06:16. > :06:23.The great thing is no one thought we could do it before and probably
:06:23. > :06:29.people think the same thing, but we might know different. The squad of
:06:29. > :06:33.players this year is better than he's got that got promotion before,
:06:33. > :06:37.according to some critics. Can they get to the Premier League? We have
:06:37. > :06:40.accrued more pints to get into the play-offs them that team did, but I
:06:40. > :06:43.think it says on the record the bat team won every play-off game. What
:06:43. > :06:46.I settle for that was my no, I would not.
:06:46. > :06:48.Well, let's see where that leaves Blackpool in the table with just
:06:48. > :06:51.one fixture remaining. They're fourth going into Saturday's final
:06:51. > :06:56.games, they make the trip to Millwall. Burnley host Bristol City
:06:56. > :07:04.hoping for a top half finish. We have to predict a little bit who
:07:04. > :07:08.will be in the play-offs, West Ham all Southampton, can they do it?
:07:08. > :07:13.think they are a very dangerous punt, especially now. They are not
:07:13. > :07:17.conceding goals, they are scoring goals like we just saw. Whoever
:07:17. > :07:22.plays in the play-offs will be a very dangerous opponent. I would
:07:22. > :07:26.not be surprised if they went all the way. They have got the expense
:07:26. > :07:30.of the past. It was interesting that he said they would put the
:07:30. > :07:37.ball after the net with a smile on their face. He would you fancy if
:07:37. > :07:43.he were a Blackpool punt? I would like to see Blackpool do it. It is
:07:43. > :07:52.great Issie them. West Ham are the most to fear. A lot of expectation
:07:52. > :08:02.on them. The bigger teams... What about Burnley, a disappointing
:08:02. > :08:02.
:08:02. > :08:07.season? When Burley got promoted to the Premiership,... They have only
:08:07. > :08:13.got the money for the Premiership. There is no certainty that they
:08:13. > :08:17.will be able to use that. A lot of teams go up and down. Just because
:08:17. > :08:24.they want it, does not mean that they will get it guaranteed. David,
:08:24. > :08:28.you have seen him recently, what do you make of it? He has got some top
:08:28. > :08:33.players. The biggest thing from Burley's point of view going into
:08:33. > :08:38.next season is can they keep the top striker. He scored all the
:08:38. > :08:43.goals. The remit is he is off. that is the case, can may replace
:08:43. > :08:47.him and who with? Burnley need to be consistent all the way. They
:08:47. > :08:52.have done great away and this year, they have not done well at home so
:08:52. > :08:54.I would like to see a couple of senior players in there with the
:08:54. > :08:56.good of -- good young players they have.
:08:56. > :08:58.One other bit of business from the Championship, congratulations to
:08:58. > :09:01.Blackpool's Matt Phillips and Burnley's Jay Rodriguez, both voted
:09:01. > :09:04.into the Team of the Year at last night's PFA Awards.
:09:04. > :09:09.Well, let's not put it off any longer, Rochdale's relegation back
:09:09. > :09:18.to League Two. We'll hear from John in a moment, but with all the
:09:18. > :09:19.Rochdale's fate sealed at Chesterfield, despite the visitors
:09:19. > :09:26.Chesterfield, despite the visitors looking the better side and taking
:09:26. > :09:29.the lead with 17 minutes to go through Jean Louis Akpa Akpro. The
:09:29. > :09:33.home side created far less than Dale on the day but came back to
:09:33. > :09:35.win it with goals on 81 and 86 minutes, Scott Boden with the
:09:35. > :09:42.equaliser and Danny Whittaker with what would be the winner after
:09:42. > :09:45.Franck Moussa's header came back off the bar. Honours ended even in
:09:45. > :09:48.the League One north west derby with Preston coming from behind to
:09:48. > :09:53.deny Oldham. Robbie Simpson put the hosts ahead with twenty minutes
:09:53. > :09:56.left, nodding home a Filipe Morais cross from close range. But Chris
:09:56. > :10:02.Holroyd levelled ten minutes later, Danny Mayor's fine cross finding
:10:02. > :10:06.Tranmere earned a point against Hartlepool, despite playing the
:10:06. > :10:09.last 20 minutes with ten men. John Welsh put Rovers ahead, converting
:10:09. > :10:15.Lucas Akins' cross after good work in the build up from Zoumana
:10:15. > :10:20.Bakayogo. The visitors equalised in some style, Anthony Sweeney with a
:10:20. > :10:23.classy solo run that he ended with a cool finish past Fon Williams.
:10:23. > :10:26.That was pretty much the last action for the keeper who saw red
:10:26. > :10:29.just minutes later for tripping Ryan Noble.
:10:29. > :10:32.Finally it's congratulations to Bury, who not only confirmed their
:10:32. > :10:37.place in League One next year, they also moved back into the top half
:10:37. > :10:41.of the table with an excellent win at Notts County. David Worrall got
:10:41. > :10:43.them going in style before Mike Grella took centre stage. After
:10:43. > :10:46.Giles Coke's own goal had put county level, Grella first chipped
:10:46. > :10:52.Stuart Nelson to restore the Shakers advantage and then saw an
:10:53. > :10:56.effort deflected to make it 3-1. The one black mark on Bury's day
:10:56. > :10:59.was a red card for Andrai Jones, but even after the home side had
:10:59. > :11:08.made their man advantage pay with a second, Mark Carrington made the
:11:08. > :11:11.Well, if we take a brief glance at the top half of the League One
:11:11. > :11:13.table we see both Tranmere and Bury flying the north west flag. And
:11:13. > :11:15.flying the north west flag. And news from Prenton Park today, a new
:11:15. > :11:18.one year contract for manager Ronnie Moore after he pulled them
:11:18. > :11:21.clear of the bottom four. Talking of the relegation zone, there we
:11:21. > :11:31.see confirmation that Rochdale will be kicking off next term in League
:11:31. > :11:32.
:11:32. > :11:38.John, a difficult weekend for you. I definitely thought we would pull
:11:38. > :11:46.out of it. It has been a difficult week obviously, but the one thing I
:11:46. > :11:51.can possibly tried to draw comfort from his good friends of mine who
:11:51. > :12:00.last season, they got relegated, and his mother died on the same day,
:12:00. > :12:04.devastating for him. They managed to stay in the league. This season
:12:04. > :12:08.-- this season, he would have gone from strength to strength so you
:12:08. > :12:13.can draw inspiration from someone. Even if you are at your lowest,
:12:14. > :12:17.there is always next season and you have to go for that. Fans we have
:12:17. > :12:21.spoken to have said they have faith in you to turn it around, or what
:12:21. > :12:28.have you discovered since he had been at Rochdale? I have got good
:12:28. > :12:34.players but it needs an overhaul. We need the ethos. The team needs
:12:34. > :12:41.to reflect mind over football, my enthusiasm. I have only seen them
:12:41. > :12:47.in small doses at the moment and I have to change. What is wrong?
:12:47. > :12:51.There is not the normal banter about I had been Association -- are
:12:51. > :12:56.associated with. There is not the desire to win. It is there in
:12:56. > :13:02.patches, don't get me wrong, it is evident from some players, but I
:13:02. > :13:07.think because the team has struggled for most of the
:13:07. > :13:13.seasoned... I have played as big a part as anyone else in it. I would
:13:13. > :13:19.say it is not need. I had made some mistakes, and possibly I was a bit
:13:19. > :13:25.too loyal to some players. We looked really good initially and I
:13:25. > :13:34.thought we would pull away comfortably. Maybe I did not
:13:34. > :13:39.replace players opposition's quick Is that what you have to do? Can
:13:39. > :13:45.you turn the players around? Some will have to go, that is for sure.
:13:45. > :13:53.There will be an overhaul. Players will go. We will have to bring
:13:53. > :13:59.players in. The hard part is getting them out. But this year
:14:00. > :14:02.everybody will be looking at the same pool of players. With fleet
:14:02. > :14:09.would be going up you would think they would be the prime of money
:14:09. > :14:14.spenders in this area -- Fleetwood. I have to sell myself on the club
:14:14. > :14:18.to potential players. Rochdale had one of the most financial --
:14:18. > :14:24.successful financial seasons. Did you have any indication you would
:14:24. > :14:29.get that money? I don't think they are going to risk the long-term
:14:29. > :14:36.future of the club. Football is littered with paeans to speculate
:14:36. > :14:42.to accumulate money they haven't got. -- with teams he speculate. It
:14:42. > :14:49.is unfair, immoral. That is one of the things we were proud of at
:14:49. > :14:56.Accrington. How similar to the team now is your starting 11 good to be?
:14:56. > :15:03.Massively different. I want to stress the attitude shown in
:15:03. > :15:10.training and on the pitch will be different. What will it be like
:15:10. > :15:15.facing Accrington? My message is be careful what you wish for,
:15:15. > :15:19.sometimes wishes come true. They might not want to face me next year.
:15:19. > :15:29.An interesting game. A word about a match taking place
:15:29. > :15:38.
:15:38. > :15:41.They can't be many managers who have had to deal with as much as
:15:41. > :15:45.garrisons and at Macclesfield. Not only was he trying to compete on
:15:46. > :15:49.the pitch against bigger clubs and but it's he had to do with the
:15:49. > :15:54.death of his close friend and his captain at the age of just 29. In
:15:54. > :16:04.the wake of his sacking last month Stewart went to see him to reflect
:16:04. > :16:21.
:16:21. > :16:28.It is unprecedented we lost the boss, and then butchered. He was
:16:28. > :16:32.thrust into the job on 3rd March, 2010. A real air of devastation and
:16:32. > :16:41.bewilderment today, I am not sure I have met anybody in football as
:16:41. > :16:46.universally popular as Keith Alexander. In terms of the
:16:46. > :16:52.emotional stuff it was difficult, there are no two ways about it. But
:16:52. > :17:01.in saying that, give us a sense of we wanted to do it for him. In some
:17:01. > :17:05.ways he kept too busy, kept your mind on things. 10 months later
:17:05. > :17:13.with the League Two status secured this happened. Richard Butcher has
:17:13. > :17:23.died suddenly at the age of just 29. I had a lot of time for the kid. I
:17:23. > :17:23.
:17:23. > :17:33.found him. One night at Halifax I said I think we need to sign him.
:17:33. > :17:35.
:17:35. > :17:45.The guys call to my illegitimate son. He was my pet, if you like. He
:17:45. > :17:46.
:17:46. > :17:50.was one of the players, it was hard. It was more difficult to pick them
:17:50. > :17:54.up and get them back on the job of trying to keep us in the league
:17:54. > :18:02.again. That he managed despite having the smallest budget in the
:18:02. > :18:08.Football League. You're fighting Against the odds all the time.
:18:08. > :18:15.do people not understand about a job like this? There are no Scouts.
:18:15. > :18:24.There is me. You finish training, go to a game in the afternoon, go
:18:24. > :18:30.to a game at night, go around then on leaks. -- none at league matches.
:18:30. > :18:34.I used to take them to training, gains, everything. I don't know
:18:34. > :18:39.anybody who managed to do that, a taxi driver as well. Terrible luck
:18:39. > :18:47.with injuries and a slide down the table saw him sacked in March after
:18:47. > :18:53.two years in charge. It is hard. Somebody he showed loyalty,
:18:53. > :18:57.finished the job, I can understand why they did it. But I questing did
:18:57. > :19:06.because of the fact that I thought I was getting the maximum out of
:19:06. > :19:15.what we have got. I am constantly looking at the results all the time.
:19:15. > :19:22.I am just praying and hoping we can find the points necessary. I am
:19:22. > :19:27.proud of what I did. To least two people very dear to me and keep the
:19:27. > :19:34.club going and keep it together. The owners had backed the club
:19:34. > :19:42.tremendously but in my time they had not been a -- they had not been
:19:42. > :19:52.any inward investment in the club. It is difficult to see how any
:19:52. > :19:54.
:19:54. > :20:00.manager could have coped. A lot of adversity. It is hard. Sometimes
:20:00. > :20:07.you drive yourself on. We know from our experience, when you haven't
:20:07. > :20:14.got a great deal to play, you keep trying to spare yourself on. You
:20:14. > :20:20.try to get the players to respond. That is something he did really
:20:20. > :20:29.well. It is difficult to manage -- imagine going through all that then
:20:29. > :20:34.getting the sack. You can see the emotional stress. No manager should
:20:34. > :20:38.have to put up with that, great testament to himself he was able to
:20:38. > :20:45.turn up for work every day and produce a team that could do them
:20:46. > :20:51.proud. I have been to watch Macclesfield a few times. They have
:20:51. > :20:58.had a horrendous injuries, double figures really. What about this
:20:58. > :21:03.business of getting a team minibus? Is that the reality? It makes your
:21:03. > :21:13.eyes water some of the things we had to do. His pursue one, gives
:21:13. > :21:16.
:21:16. > :21:21.you the buzz. -- it spurs you on. They always got paid, but they
:21:21. > :21:28.sometimes got paid late, we had to try and make it, tell them the news
:21:28. > :21:36.as nicely as possible. The side carry left behind on of
:21:36. > :21:46.felling well since his departure. Here is the lead to action. -- lead
:21:46. > :21:57.
:21:57. > :22:04.injured a hamstring. Looking grim at the other end of the table for
:22:04. > :22:07.Macclesfield, rarely in the game at Bradford. They benefited from this
:22:07. > :22:12.finish. They were second best for most of the game but Ben Mills
:22:12. > :22:18.might have done better. The same player was involved in the only
:22:18. > :22:23.goal, James Hansen headed across goal. Males with the final touch
:22:23. > :22:30.past his own keeper, Macclesfield rock-bottom with two games to go.
:22:30. > :22:36.Acting -- Accrington will be pleased with their after being. The
:22:36. > :22:40.visitors went ahead on the half- hour. A deserved point of pop
:22:40. > :22:47.minutes to go. This long-range effort. Morecambe look like
:22:47. > :22:53.escaping with a point after coming from behind twice against Rotherham.
:22:53. > :23:03.The home side got the lead but they should have equalised after some
:23:03. > :23:04.
:23:04. > :23:14.poor defending. -- the Shrimps. The action wasn't over, with seconds
:23:14. > :23:17.
:23:17. > :23:26.remaining the match was one from 30 the table. At the bottom looking
:23:26. > :23:30.bleak for Macclesfield. Their host Burton on Saturday. Not only the
:23:30. > :23:40.best coverage of all weekend's games but news and update on your
:23:40. > :23:48.
:23:48. > :23:51.team every single day on your BBC Now, he's one of the most famous
:23:51. > :23:54.and successful footballers on the planet, and a Manchester United and
:23:54. > :23:57.England legend. He also married a Spice Girl, but before all that
:23:57. > :24:00.David Beckham was very much a Wannabe when he arrived at Preston
:24:00. > :24:03.North End seventeen years ago. He played just five times, but as Andy
:24:03. > :24:05.Johnson reports, it was an important period for Beckham, and a
:24:05. > :24:10.memorable one for the club. 93rd minute at Old Trafford.
:24:10. > :24:15.Beckham! He has done it. That goal took England to the 2002 World Cup.
:24:15. > :24:18.David Beckham's finest individual performance. Preston fans have
:24:18. > :24:24.enjoyed that years earlier when the man who was to become the
:24:24. > :24:29.footballing and fashion icon was sent to Deepdale on loan. He only
:24:29. > :24:39.played here for a month, but as you'd expect he made an impression
:24:39. > :24:40.
:24:40. > :24:49.on and off the pitch. He was sponsored by Armani, T-shirts,
:24:49. > :24:53.jumpers, pounds, jackets. Long before the days of Posh and
:24:53. > :25:01.appetising pants he went to Preston as part of his calling in the game
:25:01. > :25:09.but there were no airs and graces. He was humble, acted as if he was a
:25:09. > :25:13.19-year-old from our side, one of our young lads and he did not at
:25:13. > :25:22.fresh in any way, shape or form. He made coffee for the other lad,
:25:23. > :25:29.things like that. He scored two goals including this one on his
:25:29. > :25:39.debut. His ability shone through. As did his capacity for hard work.
:25:39. > :25:39.
:25:39. > :25:44.Every day after training he would be practising, honing his skills.
:25:44. > :25:50.Maybe any half-an-hour, but striking 50, 60 balls in that half-
:25:50. > :25:55.hour. Our last tour that was the norm. Clubs like Manchester United,
:25:55. > :26:02.top clubs, top players got their way by working hard. He was also
:26:02. > :26:11.keen to mix with the other plays. can recall one night, he drove over
:26:11. > :26:18.from Manchester, in his Armani Kia, went round all pubs in Preston.
:26:18. > :26:25.Ended up in town, drinking Coke all night but he mingled with everybody
:26:25. > :26:30.else. He when home because he wasn't drinking. North End had
:26:30. > :26:35.hoped to keep him for longer. After a month he was recalled to Old
:26:35. > :26:44.Trafford. We would have sold the ground to Keepin if we could
:26:44. > :26:49.because he was becoming better and better, -- to keep him. Everybody
:26:49. > :26:55.asked who the best play you have played against, nice to be able to
:26:55. > :26:58.drop his name and that you have played with him. The best players,
:26:58. > :27:07.sometimes the most humble. They did need to shout and scream, they just
:27:07. > :27:12.get on with it. -- they do not need to shout and scream. You thought he
:27:12. > :27:21.wouldn't be here tonight. He isn't. You presumably had him in your
:27:21. > :27:27.pocket, any special memories? Festival, how hard he worked. Great
:27:27. > :27:32.free-kicks, but he worked incredibly hard. One story, he gave
:27:32. > :27:37.a free-kick at Goodison, the last game of the season. Outside the box,
:27:37. > :27:43.on the ankle. I thought, we're safe here, just defend it, put it in the
:27:43. > :27:49.top corner. Is either a special player? Got to be careful what I
:27:49. > :27:59.say because we have Wheatley arguments about in in our car. --
:27:59. > :27:59.
:27:59. > :28:06.Wheatley arguments. -- weekly. We did rate him. We thought he was a
:28:06. > :28:14.great player. Can one player come in on loan, and transform the team?
:28:14. > :28:24.It is difficult on loan. We'll looking to bring in place to make a
:28:24. > :28:24.
:28:24. > :28:31.difference -- players. But they can have an effect on the players, give
:28:32. > :28:35.people believe they will get promoted. That is it tonight. My
:28:35. > :28:39.thanks to John and David. A reminder to all your friends who