Feature Interview with Tadcaster Albion manager Paul Marshall

Ask someone in Harrogate if they know of someone called Paul Marshall and what he is best known for and the answer you may get is Harrogate Railway’s 2002 FA Cup second round tie with Bristol City.
That is the current Tadcaster Albion boss Paul Marshall’s greatest achievement during a glorious 16-year management career, but it very nearly did not happen.
Marshall is attempting to steer NCEL Premier Division leaders Tadcaster into the Evo Stik Division One North for the first time in their history. Managing Taddy will be his last job in football, but history could have been a lot different, had Railway accepted his resignation in October 1999.
Three months into his reign at Station View and three years before the famous Bristol City match, Marshall quit after an annihilation by Liversedge.
“As a manager you have a lot of low-points,” he says.
“I had some low-points at Railway before I got it right there. I resigned at Railway when we got beat 10-0 by Liversedge.
“We had no money and we were struggling. Eric Gilchrist was the manager of Liversedge and I’ll never forget it.
“We went to Liversedge and they beat us 6-0, but we had them back-to-back and I said they won’t do that to us next week.
“Then as the goalkeeper picked the ball up to take the penalty at 9-0 with a minute to go I was cowering behind the dugout, thinking ‘oh my lord’.
“He scored and they beat us by ten and I resigned after the game, but (secretary) Mick Gray said ‘I don’t want you to resign, you’re going to stick it out three more games and see where we are’.
“We won one, drew one and the other one got called off. The rest is history so to speak and we did ever so well with Railway and then with Goole.”

It all began in June 1997 when the now 51-year-old Marshall was appointed as the new manager of Harrogate Town, a club he made 94 appearances for as a player. He still has his black hair, despite people telling him he would soon be grey.
Marshall was sacked by Town in September 1998 by new owner Maurice Hammond and he returned to football when Railway boss Dave Fell moved to Wetherby Road during the following June.
Alongside masterminding the unprecedented FA Cup run with Railway, Marshall won the NCEL President’s Cup in 2003 before being told to re-apply for his own job at the end of Railway’s greatest ever season.
He was unsuccessful in his attempt to get his job back as Railway opted to appoint Dave Harrison. Goole was his next role and he led them to the NCEL Premier Division title in 2005.
He was harshly sacked from there months after being promoted and his last stint as a manager was at them-struggling Bridlington Town where he lasted two months and 12 games in late 2006.
Guiding Tadcaster into the Evo Stik is the aim for Tadcaster and Marshall does admit he has unfinished business in that Division.
“This will be me finished when I finish here and I would love to get them into the Evo Stik and I would like to have another go at managing in the Evo Stik,” reflects Marshall.
“There is a little bit of demons to rest because I have never really had a decent effort of managing in the Evo Stik.
“Even though I won the league at Goole, it was a hard place to manage.
“We had 15 points from ten games (after we got promoted) and then we lost five games in ten days and (chairman) Des (O’Hearne) asked me to resign. I wouldn’t resign so he had to sack me.
“I was disappointed because I had won the league in my first season on my own when he had loads of other managers who had tried and failed.
“When I was at Harrogate Town as a young man, we didn’t have any money so it was a case of ‘can you keep us up and in Division One’, which we did.”

After Bridlington, Marshall briefly assisted his former coach Mark Smitheringale at Clitheroe before returning to a number one role in 2008 when Tadcaster President Kevin Derry personally asked him to take charge.
He stepped into the breach and he has even had two stints as chairman alongside being the football manager. The first season was hard and then cash-strapped Taddy were subjected to some heavy defeats.
But, the arrival of sponsor and future chairman Rob Northfield, the former Guiseley and Harrogate Railway chairman, changed the prospects of Taddy and the club have prospered ever since.
A dramatic last day victory over Hemsworth Miners Welfare secured the 2010 NCEL Division One title and Marshall’s men beat Farsley AFC 5-1 in the President’s Cup final the following year to add more silverware into the trophy cabinet.
Looking back on the success at Ings Lane and the first season at the club, Marshall says: “I’ve been here six years and it is the longest job I have ever had, but it is sort of in my heart now is Tadcaster.
“It is like my hometown team and I don’t want to go anywhere else. It makes me happy when I see people in the town who were always miserable, smiling about football.
“When you look at the crowds that we used to get and what we get now, it is very satisfying and if me and Rob Hunter had walked away after a year or so, it probably would have never happened.
“Me and Rob were more determined after the first year to try and get a better team on the pitch.
“I came to help the club and the first year was tough. Me and Rob Hunter did take some beatings, but we stuck at it and in the second year we managed to get Rob Northfield involved through Rob Hunter.
“We got some money and we managed to win the league with a £300 a week budget. To come from second bottom to winning Division One, I think it was amazing.”
Tadcaster attempted to win the Premier Division last season and fell short. Their title hopes were in jeopardy back in July just days before the campaign was due to begin as chairman Northfield resigned.
But despite a poor opening few games, leaders Taddy went on an incredible unbeaten run to put themselves in the frame for the title and the dream is still alive with nine games to go. The club went into new ownership with i2i Sports in November and the future looks very bright for Tadcaster.
But from a league table perspective, even Marshall admits he is shocked at their achievements since August.
“It has been the most interesting one because we started poorly and then we put the amazing run together,” he admits.
“We have had three defeats by Albion Sports, Basford and Brighouse and we then a couple of decent results.
“All the credit goes to the squad of players for getting that unbeaten run of 24 games, which encompassed games at Athersley, Worksop and Heanor. They were really tough away games which I never thought we would have got through.
“I thought we would have finished about tenth (after the Garforth and Parkgate games in August). I looked at (assistant) Mikey Morton and said ‘we have some work to do here because we aren’t good enough’.
“To be fair we have picked up an odd player here and there. We’ve done well, very well. It is unbelievable we have a chance (of winning the league) in the last nine games.
“We never thought we would be in this position, but it’s great to be there and we’ll give it our best shot.”
Nostell Miners Welfare are up next for Tadcaster and a win will keep them in pole position for promotion.

Words and pictures by James Grayson