My Time At Town - Lewis Killeen: “I loved the club, the people and the fans”

The forward joined Town on loan from Sheffield United in November 2002 and experienced a tumultuous few years at the club, coming within touching distance of promotion before the agony of Halifax’s financial oblivion.

“Ryan Mallon had been there for a few months and then his loan came to an end, so it was a bit of a continuation from that,” Killeen recalls of how his initial move to The Shay came about.

“I remember speaking to Chris (Wilder) and Ryan, who had lots of positive things to say.”Chris came across really well, sold the club to me really well and I knew it’d be a good opportunity to play some games for a good club in a competitive league.

“I was really happy to join, I jumped at the chance.

“It was my second year as a professional at Sheffield United, I’d made my debut for them the year before but the following season I didn’t really kick on from that.

“You think to yourself ‘I do need to go out and play because I’m not going to get a chance here’.

“It was exactly what I needed, competitive football, a man’s league, proper games.

“It was high energy, fast paced, but I was that type of player myself anyway. I liked to work hard in games, move round the pitch quickly.

“I was probably played a little bit out of position when I first came because at that point I was an out-and-out striker and we were playing 4-3-3, so I was playing right-wing when I first came.

“But it was quite easy to adapt, it was a really good group of lads who made you feel welcome straight away, brought you into that team spirit, so that helped me settle quite quickly.
“And there were people I knew already like Adam Quinn.”

Killeen’s first impressions of Halifax were of a “really nice, friendly, family-type club”.

“You played, you went onto the clubhouse and spoke to the fans after, they were all supportive of you,” he says. “I found it a really nicely run club.

“They were obviously going through some money troubles so that helped form that togetherness.

“Chris was really supportive of the players and brought that mentality and used it to our advantage over the long-term.

“I went back to Sheffield United after my three months, and I remember speaking to Neil Warnock towards the end of the season and he was really good with me, very honest

“He said he rated me, thought I was a really good player, he’d be prepared to give me another year, but probably thought it was better for me to move on because I’d get a chance somewhere else to play more regularly.

“I had a think about it, spoke to Chris and he wanted to bring me in.

“It was a club and manager I wanted to play for.”

After a successful loan spell that included four goals in 13 league games, Killeen, although a first-team regular, was “disappointed” by his first full season at The Shay.

“I think I did well on loan, then the following season I think I did OK but I would have expected to score a few more goals,” says Killeen, who scored eight times in 34 league games in the 2003-04 campaign.

“But I evolved a bit in my time at Halifax and my position changed a bit.

“It would change throughout the season year-by-year.

“It hindered me a bit in some aspects because I didn’t consistently play in one position, I tended to get moved around, which you don’t mind doing and it’s quite enjoyable to play different positions.

“But that first season was a bit disappointing for me and the club, I think we underperformed because Chris had made some nice signings that summer.”

After a 19th placed finish that season, Wilder was unequivocal he wanted more from Killeen and the team.

“Chris was clear with the players at the end of that season from what I remember,” he recalls.

“I had a chat with him myself and he was very honest, which players like.

“He gave me a bit of a kick up the bum that summer and said he expected a bit more from me and he wanted me to kick on for next season.

“I remember the second season definitely being more successful.

“We were playing a lot better and I felt my performance was better that season.”It was a season we built the foundations to go on from.

“You’re talking about Steve Haslam, Martin Foster, Ryan Sugden, hard-working players who’ve got the quality on top of that, which built the foundation for that play-off season.

“Chris knew which players to bring into the squad and I think that was missing the year before.

“We missed that experience and I think Chris recognised that.

“I think Chris learnt season-by-season what was needed in that league.

“Bit-by-bit, he brought in more experienced players and made that a foundation of the team, and got some quality loan signings.

“That was a good strategy.”

Killeen feels Wilder’s experience at Halifax was ideal preparation for the success he has achieved since.

“The thing that always struck me about Chris was that he looked after his players, he fought for us over things like wages,” says Killeen.

“When things were difficult he looked after you in the press, and if he had stuff to say, he’d say it behind closed doors and he was very honest with you.

“He kept that consistency throughout all the seasons I was there.

“It was hard work for him because he was looking at the budget and having to be the link between the people at the top and the players.

“It was a difficult period for him as a manager but probably one that he learned a lot from and that experience has put him in good stead to become the manager he is now.”

Is Killeen surprised to see Wilder now flying high in the Premier League?

“Not at all. When he got the job at Oxford I remember saying to one of my friends ‘he’ll do really well there and he’ll go on again’.

“When he got the Sheffield United job I said it again, I said ‘he’ll get them back to the Premier League’.

“He’s just got that ability to get a group together and get that winning mentality.

“He gets the right players in and he trusts them, which breeds confidence.

“Man management is a massive thing with players, and Chris had that. He could work out what each player needed and how to treat people.

“That’s one of the things that separates him from other managers.”

The 2004-05 season brought improvement from Killeen - 12 league goals - and the Town team, as they finished ninth.

That proved the launch pad for the following campaign, as The Shaymen, helped by 10 league goals from Killeen, reached the play-offs.

“If you’re playing in a good team and the team’s playing well, you’re going to improve with it.

“I learned as I went along, you feed off those really good pros and learn that’s what you need to be successful, which gets instilled in you.

“That was a big learning curve for me season-by-season in that team.

“And Chris definitely helped me improve. The first thing he used to give you was confidence.

“He trusted you, which is a big thing as a player.

“Even when I didn’t start, I never felt that was a negative, I always felt I’d still have a role to play.

“He gave you that trust and that you could make an impact whether you were starting or on the bench.

“That’s probably what helped us in the play-off season because we had a few forwards - me, John Grant, Suggy (Ryan Sugden), Chris Senior, Danny Forrest.

“Two of us would play and the other two would come on and we’d all chip in with goals. That was really important.

“And I think he improved me in terms of knowing how to manage a game.

“He did lots of shape work on a Thursday and we learned different ways to play, with and without the ball.

“We were hard working, and when you get that in a team, you just bounce from game-to-game.

“I remember feeling like that, you just went from one game to the other, and before you know it, you’ve put together a few wins, a draw, you might lose one but because you’re consistent and you’re doing well, you bounce back quite quickly.

“I just remember that season ticking along quite quickly because we were going from game-to-game.

“Once you get that Christmas period and you know you’re in and amongst it, you just keep going and you do literally take it game-by-game.

“We almost had that ‘us against the world’ mentality at that point because of the financial problems with the club.

“We probably weren’t fancied to be up there against some of the bigger spending clubs in the league, so that siege mentality started to get us bouncing along consistently.”

After a terrific season which saw Town lose only once at home, Wilder’s men met Grays in the play-off semi-finals.

“They were both completely different games,” Killeen recalls. “We got out the traps really quickly in the first game at home, I think we were 3-0 up at half-time.

“Full house at The Shay, I remember it was bouncing. I think I scored the third goal and I remember running along the side of the stand and it was absolutely bouncing.

“Then they came back into it in the second-half and I think Grays thought they’d done enough and you could tell they thought they were just going to turn us over down at theirs.

“I think any other season, that would have affected us losing those two goals in the first game, but I think the play-off season, with the good pros we had and the mentality we had, we shrugged it off and knew we could go down there and get a result.

“The game down there, we started quite brightly, Fozzy (Martin Foster) scored inside the first 10 minutes, and then we were under pressure quite a lot.

“But it was typical of us to dig in, work really hard and defend for our lives. But we knew we could get them on the break and that’s what happened, we went on the break, got the penalty and Fozzy out it away,

“Both ties ebbed and flowed but I think our spirit got us through to the final.”

Old foes Hereford, who had relegated Town in 1993, awaited The Shaymen in the play-off final in Leicester.

“We were confident, we had that spirit amongst us where we felt like we were against the world, especially a big club like Hereford, their budget was a lot bigger than ours and they were expected to bounce back up,” says Killeen.

“We prepared well, we felt like we could give them a good game and we were looking forward to it.

“It was a tight start but we were slightly on top, had a couple of chances, and then I scored to put us 1-0 up which was a really good moment for me, I enjoyed that.

“But they quickly equalised and it became a tight game. They were a good outfit Hereford, they had lots of experienced players like us and they had a group that had been together for three or four years.

“Going 2-1 up with 10, 15 minutes left and then it was the killer blow of them equalising.

“Extra-time was a bit of a blur really because you’re so tired, it’s a tense period, and ultimately they scored the winner, which was devastating for us.

“It’s disappointing when you’ve worked so hard all season, for it to end like that. Quite cruel really.

“The whole team were devastated. It’s a winners place a play-off final, not a losers place.

“Then you reflect on it afterwards and you’re proud of the effort you’ve given.

“And you’ve got to recharge yourself to come back the following season.”

Easier said than done.

The momentum Town had worked so hard to establish over the previous two seasons disappeared, and they ended the 2006-07 season in 16th.

Was there a hangover from that play-off final defeat?

“Potentially,” reflects Killeen, who only netted three league goals that term. “It’s not something you really feel, you still approach it the way you approach every season.

“There probably was a bit of a hangover but sometimes it’s subconscious.

“It was certainly a tougher season, and I think at this point we were really suffering financially, that started to creep in and cripple us a bit.”

The only momentum Town now had was dragging them further towards the trap door of relegation as financial constraints really began to bite.

The 2007-08 season would prove to be Killeen’s last at The Shay.

The forward again netted only three times as Town battled against a 10-point deduction and crippling financial strain.

“That was a hard season because you knew the club was struggling money-wise, occasional issues with paying wages and that side of things, which ultimately does affect you even though you try not to let it,” says Killeen.

“Especially at our level when you’re paying your mortgage with your wage.

“It gets frustrating. You obviously go out on the pitch and you forget about it while you’re out there but off the pitch, it is difficult because we weren’t earning mega money.

“You’re earning enough to pay your mortgage, put petrol in your car, pay your bills and get some food on your table, so late payments are really stressful for anyone.

“That happened a bit during the season, but we used that to get through the season.

“There was one point where I was thinking ‘we’re really struggling here and we’re probably going to get dragged down’ but we always had it in us to pull it out of the bag when it mattered.

“Even though we were up against it, we always had a feeling we’d get ourselves out of it.

“Ultimately we did.”

But Town’s final day escape from relegation proved a false dawn as the club folded.

“There were rumours we were struggling and we all came in for a meeting and we all found out,” says Killeen.

“It was hard for us but obviously more so for the fans and the town, that was the overriding feeling.

“It was more sad for them to lose their club than for us as players because we go and get another job don’t we.

“It was sad for me because I’d been there five years and I loved the club, the people and the fans.

“I didn’t really want to be anywhere else.”

Killeen and the team were both very different by the end of his time at the club, but that final, crushing footnote does nothing to alter the frontman’s affection for The Shaymen.

“My journey at Halifax started off as a centre-forward and I changed into a bit more of a wide player, a free-roaming player almost.

“I learned how to play those positions, I learned about how to manage games, winning games. That all comes from experience.
“There were highs and lows throughout my period at the club but I look at it as a positive time, even the seasons where we struggled.

“We still managed to escape relegation, which is what we wanted because we didn’t want the club to go further down the pyramid than it should do when it was already lower than where it should be.”