McKenna: It Feels Like Home Thursday, 15th Dec 2022 16:43 Boss Kieran McKenna celebrates one year in charge at Portman Road on Friday and has reflected on his first 12 months as manager of Town. McKenna was unknown to many Blues supporters when his name was first linked with the role a few days before he was appointed the club's 19th full-time manager on a three-year deal. The former Tottenham youngster, whose playing career had been ended before it had really started due to a hip injury, had been on the staff at Manchester United when Blues CEO Mark Ashton made an approach through the man who would become his assistant at Portman Road. “The initial contact was through Martyn Pert,” McKenna recalled. “He had a previous relationship with Mark Ashton in particular. I’m sure Mark can tell the story better but I know they’d always been in contact throughout their careers from Watford and Mark and Martyn had discussed myself previously and my development as a coach and qualities to be a manager in the future. “My head was very much focused on the job at hand, there’d been a managerial change at United, so I was working really hard with Ralf [Rangnick] at that time to help and support him. “Martyn made us aware of the interest from Ipswich and their desire to speak to me, so that was communicated through Man United in the right way. “I had a meeting with Mark Ashton and he told me about the project for the club and the ambitions and the ownership and the potential and where we wanted to take it to. “And it was very much aligned with the stage of the career that I was at and the type of project that I was looking for. “Those conversations obviously went very well and fairly quickly we were able to come to an agreement and get myself down to Suffolk and get started.” The night before his appointment, the Blues, then 12th in League One, fell to an embarrassing live-on-TV FA Cup second-round FA Cup replay defeat to League Two Barrow. Did anyone suggest to him having seen that display that joining Town might not be such a good move? “I’ve said before that I had my parents on the phone after the Barrow game,” he laughed. “I was in Manchester having some important meetings and the people around me watching the game that night were questioning the decision at that point, which was fair to say. “But I knew the reasons why I wanted to join the football club and the potential that was there. One game or a bad spell wasn’t going to change that and doesn’t change the direction we want to be on as a football club. “It seems like a long time ago, like more than a year in some ways, and in other ways it has flown by. “But all in all, it has been an enjoyable year and some good progress — and hopefully there are some good moments still to come. “The numbers don’t mean that much to me at the time as you are just in it and you are worried about the next game, and you are just thinking that game number 51 is the most important and then game number 52. “I don’t know where my number is with games as a coach and an assistant, certainly way beyond the 100s at this point. “Of course, it is an honour and a privilege to be here as manager, but when it comes to the matchday, the process is very similar - with another game coming up and one we want to prepare well for and hopefully get the win.” Town have got the win 28 times in his 51 matches in charge up to now, which coincidentally started with a 1-0 home victory over Saturday’s opponents Wycombe Wanderers, with 14 having ended in draws and nine in defeat. The Blues end his first 12 months top of League One by a point from Plymouth Argyle. Asked what he has learnt over the year, the 36-year-old Northern Irishman reflected: “There is an understanding of the league and I am definitely in a better position now - I know the level of the different teams and what to expect. “I know Wycombe a lot better than I did last year and Oxford, on Boxing Day, I know them a lot better. So you know the opposition and the styles better, you know the managers and the referees better, and the challenges of the league. “Of course, the process around matchdays — with media and other duties — are a little bit different, but I think in general the match is the match. “The key things that I want to implement with my teams, and the principles of how I want my teams to play, hasn’t changed that drastically. You come up against different styles and approaches and you have to try and overcome that. “But what goes on beyond the white lines for 90 minutes isn’t that vastly different. It’s just about understanding the nuances of League 1 and I think we are now in a stronger position than we were this time last year.” “I can’t remember the last time I have had to leave anyone out in the last few months!" he joked. “It is a nice privilege in some ways as we have been working with such small numbers so it has been all hands on deck. “The hardest part of the job? I’ve found it all really good, to be honest. I don’t think I have struggled with anything in particular. It is a challenging job being a manager, it is all-consuming, it takes up so much of your time and you have to sacrifice so much. “Of course, the time you miss with your friends and family is one of the tougher things about being in the deep end of a football club, but that is the same whether you are a manager or a first-team coach, it hasn’t changed too much. “You have to sacrifice a lot of things to be successful in this industry as a coach or a manager. Thankfully, it is also very enjoyable. For everything you think you miss out on or give up on, the game gives so much back.” Quizzed on what aspect of the job he’s done over the last year which has given him the most pride, he said: “I think the feeling of togetherness and spirit at the training ground is probably something that gives me a lot of pride. “People only see a Saturday normally and you live or die, externally, by your results and the fine margins of a football match. “But I know that anyone who comes into the training ground now and witnesses how we work and how we live together and the effort everyone is giving - not just the staff and players but also that feeling within the club - and that drive everyone is giving, is really fantastic and something we have got in a really good direction and something we need to keep going forward with. “I think the work behind the scenes and the atmosphere is so important and we know if we keep pushing all together, we have a better chance of good results. “I think it is important that everyone feels valued and respected, whatever their contribution is, whether coaching staff, a player, medical or kitchen staff. “Everyone must feel their contribution is valid and they are working towards the greater good and helping to push this club forward. “I’d like to think it is a place of work where people come in with shared values and vision of how we want to work, go about our business and where we want to get the club to. It is a good place to be at the moment and we’ll try and keep pushing with that.” "Asked whether a year on Suffolk feels like home, he added: “We are really settled and my family are settled. We are happy with where we are living and we are really enjoying all parts of Suffolk life. It feels like home.”
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