Lee Molyneaux reveals why life in lockdown led him to resign as Gosport Borough manager
The 37-year-old admitted lockdown had led him to do some serious soul searching following a tough managerial baptism at Privett Park.
Portsmouth-born Molyneaux is now ensuring that football does not get in the way of family - he has two young children - and his work with sportswear giant Nike.
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Hide Ad‘It was a hard decision,’ he told The News. ‘But if I’m going to do something, I need to be totally dedicated, I need to give it my all. I wasn’t able to do that at Gosport.
‘The whole lockdown thing has given me time to reflect. I’ve enjoyed spending more time with my family, and that was a deciding factor too.’
‘If this hadn’t happened I’m not sure I would have had the time to reflect. I’m in a better state of mind now.’
Molyneaux has worked for Nike for around nine years, and his job can take him overseas. There were a couple of occasions in 2019/20 when he missed matches for that reason.
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Hide Ad‘I actually travelled a lot less than I have before,’ he recalled.
‘That was another factor. I don’t want anything to get in the way of my career, that is my bread and butter, my job - football is just my enjoyment.
‘There were a lot of evenings and early mornings in order to get my work up to the required standard, so I could spend time at Gosport. It was like having two day jobs.
‘Friends have told me they could see it was affecting me. They don’t tell you that at the time, they don’t want to hurt your feelings. But they know why I was like that - it’s because I’m a winner and I can’t do anything half-heartedly.
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Hide Ad‘I probably put myself under too much pressure. Early on I was trying to put things in place thinking things would ease up, but they don’t and you end up under even more pressure.
‘I probably took on a bit too much.’
There was no honeymoon period for Molyneaux when he was appointed Craig McAllister’s successor last May.
It was his third spell at Privett Park - he had previously helped Alex Pike win back-to-back Southern League promotions and reach an FA Trophy final in his first spell as a player before returning on loan from Hawks in 2017/18.
When Molyneaux returned last year, Borough had just avoided relegation from the Southern Premier League South by a single point - just 12 months after finishing second bottom but in a season when only the bottom club went down.
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Hide AdThe glory days of promotions and a Wembley appearance seemed a very long time ago, even if they weren’t.
By the start of the season in early August, the manager had assembled a virtually new squad - leaning heavily on his Hawks contacts.
Molyneaux had been a coach at Westleigh Park under Lee Bradbury in 2018/19, and quickly brought in the likes of Theo Lewis, Rory Williams and Ryan Woodford - all National League regulars for the Hawks in their relegation campaign.
Mike Carter, Matt Paterson and Marley Ridge, players who had also appeared for Hawks in 2018/19, also moved down a level.
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Hide AdDan Strugnell and Ben Dudzinski - two more players Molyneaux worked with at Westleigh Park - were recruited before Christmas, the latter on loan.
‘I only kept Pat O’Flaherty and Sam Roberts, and they turned out to be two of our standout players,’ said Molyneaux.
‘I think that showed they were the right ones to keep.
‘No doubt some of the other players thought they should have stayed but, quite frankly, they shouldn’t have. Players were saying it wasn’t their fault - it would have been nice to have seen a bit of accountability.
‘Havant were moving towards full time and some of the players wanted to return to part-time football.
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Hide Ad‘But we didn’t just sign Havant players - Charlie Kennedy and Liam Robinson were ones I brought in using my contacts.’
Gosport were lying eighth when the season was halted in mid-March, six points adrift of the play-off zone but having played more games than all their promotion rivals.
They were in form, though, having won three of their last five games prior to Covid-19 taking a stranglehold on worldwide sport.
Molyneaux’s teams were certainly hard to break down - only leaders Truro and Poole - who had played six games fewer - conceded less than Borough’s 32 goals in 33 matches.
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Hide AdBut goals were hard to come by, with only 35 netted - only Blackfield and Beaconsfield scored fewer. Even Dorchester, in bottom position, netted more.
In a frustratingly inconsistent season, there were some great results - Gosport beat Truro (1st), Chesham (2nd) and Taunton (6th) at Privett Park (the latter in Molyneaux’s first game) and also won at Tiverton (5th).
Against that, though, Gosport drew at home to lowly Dorchester, Beaconsfield and Yate Town and lost at home to Hartley Wintney.
Despite all that, Molyneaux remarked: ‘I have to say I’m really proud of the job I did, taking a side that had been fighting relegation for a few years.
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Hide Ad‘I genuinely think we would have made the play-offs. It was a shame it all came crashing down.
‘I hope the fanbase and the community of Gosport can see the club has turned a corner.
‘I wish them all the best, I’m not a bitter person - I’d like to go down there and watch some games if I have the time.
‘The chairman (Iain McInnes) is a great guy, he always supported me. If he stays I’m sure the club can continue to progress.
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Hide Ad‘They’ve been in the Conference South before and that’s where they should be.
‘The club’s aim should be promotion next season and then a few years of stability in that league before they look to go up again.’