Ryan keen for Bucks to shine

Caretaker boss Tim Ryan says Buxton's players were devastated to see Martin McIntosh leave his role as manager last week but are determined to finish the season strongly.
Tim RyanTim Ryan
Tim Ryan

McIntosh lost his job after six years at the helm, leaving his assistant Ryan in charge until a replacement is found.

And while Ryan says he hasn’t applied for the post, he is happy to take charge for the time being and see what develops.

He said: “Lots of people have applied for the job but for now I’ll take the team and if we can build some momentum and get some wins then it’ll be up to the chairman to decide what to do next.

“I’ve been in the game for 25 years and it’s never nice when a manager loses his job.

“I spoke to the players the day after in training and they were gutted because they didn’t have a bad word to say about Martin as a man or as a manager, but they also know that it’s how football is sometimes and you have to get on with it.

“We have to kick on and focus on getting this club back up the league and to where I believe it deserves to be.”

Ryan added he was surprised at the club’s decision to part ways with McIntosh, but like the man himself, respected the move.

He said: “I was quite surprised but we’ve been here a long time and analyse everything in great detail, speaking every day, and this season things hadn’t gone our way as much.

“I don’t want to make excuses but the facts are that we had a lot of bad injuries to key players, as well as a few suspensions, and those were bound to impact on results.

“But you can understand the club’s decision. It’s a great club with a fantastic structure from top to bottom and the chairman and directors want what’s best for it moving forward.”

With last Saturday’s game at home to league leaders Altrincham having been postponed, Ryan will now take his side to Stourbridge this weekend looking for the Bucks’ league win of 2018.

He said: “I was desperate for the Altrincham game to get played as it is a fresh start for us and I wanted to create some good vibes about the place again.

“But we’ll go to Stourbridge champing at the bit to get playing and will be facing what I think is one of the biggest clubs in the division so it’ll be a tough game.

“There is still plenty to play for. We won’t go down, I’m certain of that, but a good run of form could still have us sniffing around the play-off places and that will be my aim until I’m told I’m no longer required here, and I’m sure a similar aim for the new manager if it’s not me.

“We need to get back on the bike and start riding again and with the excellent squad we’ve got I’m confident we can recover.”

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