The former Sunderland and West Ham ace has no desire to return to football coaching

Former Sunderland and West Ham striker David Connolly has detailed his reasons behind rejecting the chance to become Portsmouth's manager a decade ago.

The Republic of Ireland international, who scored 13 goals in 43 games for Sunderland between 2006 and 2009 later enjoyed stints at Southampton and Portsmouth later in his career. The attacker arrived at Fratton Park in 2012 and performed the role of player-coach during his time at the club.

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Connolly scored 12 goals in 37 appearances for Portsmouth during his three seasons at the club across League One and League Two but has revealed that he was offered the manager’s job during his stay at the south coast club but turned it down. The former AFC Wimbledon ace also stated categorically that he has no burning desire to return to football coaching.

“I don't think so,” Connolly told The Echo when asked if he would like to return to coaching or try his luck as a manager. “I mean, look, I used to do – I worked at another club, although it wasn't in my role because the manager thought he liked the detail I gave. I did basically like 40-odd opposition reports at a Championship club. I did them well, and I'd had a spell in recruitment as well.

“I think I've seen all sides and at Portsmouth, I was actually offered – well, called into the chairman's office when I was nearly 37, I basically offered the manager's role. But we had the late Alan McLaughlin, who was first-team coach. And despite writing about wanting to be a coach for 20 years or whatever, I said to them, no, I'm not going to be the first-in-coach because you've got Alan McLaughlin. And that's not being – what's the word – virtuous or anything. It was just wrong.

“And I stayed as a player-coach and ultimately, I could have maybe got my way in then at Portsmouth, but it just wasn't the right thing to do. So I just think it just hasn't quite fallen that way, which is fine. And I think it's a very – I'm the most empathetic here to managers. I think it's an extremely difficult role, and you need to have lots of skills and wear many hats.

“And I don't want to do myself a disservice, but have I got all those skills? And also, most importantly, I do feel football moves quickly. And when you're out of the game, it can be very – you know, it can quickly pass you by. You've got to stay on top of current trends, current data, and how things are moving. And let me tell you, being a pundit and watching it on TV, it is nowhere near on the same level. So I think to go back into football, you've got to be realistic and you've got to be on the cutting edge of it, otherwise you're not going to do it very well.”

I am now captain of my own ship after football career

“I did my B licence with Kevin Ball and he was class, and what a great youth team at Sunderland he had, what a great coach. I kind of thought that would be the route I would go down, but I took Millwall’s under-18. And I don't know, maybe I just thought, I'm not too sure this is for me. Maybe I got off the train a bit too early, but I don't know. I thought it would be for me. Maybe I just stopped a little bit too soon.

“Maybe I just thought, you know what, I had four young kids. I spent my whole life travelling all over the country. I think I had four kids when I retired, like under 10. You barely sort of – you do see them, don't get me wrong, but when you're travelling around, you pay that price, and you're willing to pay that price. You would put football above everything, births, deaths, marriages. It went above everything.

“When I retired, I didn't know if I was willing to pay that price again. And that's fine. Some people can, some people can't. I did the coaching, and then I thought, you know, I did my pro licence. I spent like seven years getting the top coaching qualification. Then I got into the media, and I thought, you know what, a bit like coaching, to do it well, you have to go to university.

“So I ended up – I did a BA Honours, and I just thought to myself, I went to a grammar school. I think I had a brain. Let me try and do that. So I got a degree.I got first in that, which I was pleased with. It was in journalism. And I think sometimes that's good for players too, because a lot of them are really bright, and they just focus on their football. So I kind of thought I might solidify the media, but I think the longer you go on in the media, the more you realise you could be a 9 out of 10 one week. It doesn't mean you play the next week.

“And I kind of wrestled with that in terms of I didn't like it. I didn't like that I could be brilliant one week and then not work the next week because someone above me didn't think someone else is better. And I found that difficult. Whereas in football, you work hard Monday to Friday, you play well on a Saturday, you play next weekend.

“I always liked that in football, and with commentary on media, I just found it – as long as you go into it knowing it's a hobby, that's fine. Career? Not so sure. So I've got other stuff like off the field, which keeps me really, really busy. Without going into detail, there's no point. So yes, I'm kind of like a captain of my own ship.”