LJ too ambitious to refuse his chance

Reporter: Matthew Chambers
Date published: 26 February 2015


JOSE Baxter’s tame chipped penalty was gobbled up by Bournemouth ’keeper Ryan Allsop — and it summed up Athletic’s struggles.

Caretaker boss Tony Philliskirk was doing a manful job combining first-tem duties with driving the youth side’s minibus.

But the squad he had needed renewed purpose. Too many lacked the fitness and mental sharpness to deal with the week-to-week grind of League One.

Lee Johnson’s installation as manager came as a shock to just about everyone outside the interview room.

But he announced himself with a debut win against Hartlepool and followed that with three victories in succession, guaranteeing safety in League One, with Matt Smith on inspired form.

The first major rebuild allowed Johnson to put his own stamp on the squad. Baxter went and there were failures, most notably Adam Rooney.

But the team clicked into gear around November 2013 with four straight wins before the Cristian Montano affair pulled the rug.

Johnson went for a combination of the silky skills of Gary Harkins and the steel of gnarled veteran Adam Lockwood as he chose a pragmatic late-season style — the astonishing 5-4 Peterborough

victory being an anomaly.

With a 10-game unbeaten run behind him heading into this season, Johnson - described by chairman Simon Corney as the most talented of eight managers he had worked with - juggled the budget to bring in experience on long-term deals.

Athletic have been inconsistent this season, but have more than enough quality to improve on last season’s six-year high of 15th in the league.

Ultimately, it was always likely that Johnson’s ambitions would outstrip those of an Athletic manager given the current restrictions. Barnsley are lower in the table than Athletic but have a far superior budget.

The challenge of taking the Tykes back to the Championship is clearly one that appeals to Johnson, despite the peril involved in moving to a club that has had seven managers in 10 years.

Meticulous, modern and driven by any standards, the 33 year old’s efforts at Athletic across two years and 103 games stand up. It would be unwise to bet against his next managerial move being to the Premier League.