FC Halifax Town: Doughty believes win over old club could help him stay in the job

Doughty is currently in post until the end of the season but believes some wins in their remaining 15 games will help him get the job on a more permanent basis.

The ex-Town left-back took over when Jim Harvey, who guided Halifax to success in the FA Trophy final at Wembley in May 2016, was sacked by The Robins in December.

Doughty, who is also assistant coach of Everton’s under 11s to another former Halifax player Tom Kearney, said: “I’ve spoken to a lot of managers like Chris Wilder, Jim Gannon, Steve Burr, and they’ve said to me it’s tough to take over mid-season because it’s not your team.

“If you take over in the summer you have a blank canvas and you can do what you want.

“I would like to get it beyond this season and if I can get some wins then why can’t I?

“When I took over there were so many little things wrong inside the four walls of the club.

“The recruitment in the summer wasn’t good enough. It was the poorest I’ve ever seen.

“But the application and attitude is all there, we’ve got the mindset right.

“They were getting booed off under Jim Harvey and Neil Young, but now we’re getting clapped off because of the demands we’ve put onto the players.

“The only thing missing is the results - the performances are there.

“Hopefully it comes off someone’s backside on Saturday and we get a win.

“We’ve got some very good players - they were in the Conference National last season.

“That one result could be the catalyst for us.

“The chairman is backing me 100 per cent but but he needs to see if we can win games, which is fair enough.

“If we lose all our remaining games then there’s no chance I’ll get the job. But the fans can see there’s been a big improvement.”

Doughty admits his introduction to management has been something of a culture shock.

“It’s difficult, but in a good way. You do your coaching badges in order to go into management, although the chance has come quicker than I thought.

“It takes over your life. People think you’re part-time but I’m working 90-100 hours a week - you’re always on the phone to players, agents, other managers.

“But I want to continue in the job. I’ve got it until the end of the season but it’s up to me to pick up some wins.

“You take little bits and bobs from different managers you work under but my man management comes from Chris Wilder.

“He was second to none at that. If I drop a player, I will tell them what they need to do to get back in the team.

“Some players need a rollocking, some need an arm round the shoulder.”

Doughty retains a fondness for The Shaymen, and is under no illusions about the size of the task facing his Altrincham side on Saturday.

He added: “I had four great years at Halifax. I’ll always remember my time there and I met some great people.

“Obviously it’s under a different name now but it’s a great club - I still speak to some fans now on social media.

“It would be nice to see them get promoted.

“We could do with beating them on Saturday but I think they’ll get in the play-offs - they’ve got the squad to do it.

“It’ll be a big ask to get a result against them. They’ve got a great strike-force with the likes of Tom Denton, Richard Peniket and Adam Morgan, plus Matty Kosylo is in great form at the moment.

“They’ve got threats all over the pitch but so have we on our day.

“If we can keep them quiet we’ve got half a chance.”