Express & Star

The Kingmaker: A closer look at previous appointments made by West Brom chairman John Williams

With Tony Pulis gone, attentions quickly turned to the man leading the hunt for his successor.

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John Williams. (AMA)

John Williams might be new to the role of kingmaker at The Hawthorns, but Alboin’s chairman is certainly no stranger to a managerial search.

Indeed, a perusal of his record during more than a decade calling the shots at Blackburn Rovers should give Baggies supporters cause for optimism.

Williams’ tenure at Ewood Park is now looked back on with some fondness by Rovers supporters, a time when their club was firmly established in the Premier League and regularly challenged and earned for European football.

Much of that was thanks to a series of shrewd managerial appointments which saw Rovers recover the top-flight status lost at the turn of the century and then continue to grow.

Graeme Souness, Mark Hughes and Sam Allardyce all enjoyed successful periods in charge after being appointed by Williams.

Sam Allardyce

The former two only departed after being poached by Newcastle United and Manchester City respectively.

It was the sacking of Allardyce, against his advice, which meanwhile led to Williams leaving Ewood Park in early 2011.

His record in finding managers is not perfect, though there is surely not an administrator in the game who claim that.

Certainly, Rovers’ appointment of Brian Kidd in December 1998, replacing Roy Hodgson, was at the time widely accepted as something of a coup.

Kidd was persuaded to leave his job as assistant to Alex Ferguson at then treble-chasing Manchester United, having been long tipped to take over from the Scot in the Old Trafford hotseat.

“I don’t want to die without knowing whether I could do the job,” said Kidd, on making the step up to management at Ewood Park.

Sadly for Rovers, the answer to that question was that, no, he couldn’t. Kidd was axed in November 1999 with the club well off the pace in the First Division, following relegation from the Premier League despite a £30million outlay on players.

Williams and Rovers would do far, far better with Kidd’s replacement.

Colin Hendry, Colin Todd, Joe Kinnear and Roy Evans were all mooted as possible candidates.

Finally, after four months with Tony Parkes in caretaker charge, Souness was appointed on a three-and-a-half-year deal.

The Scot, who had not managed in England since leaving Southampton in 1997, won promotion back to the top flight in his first full season and then, in 2002, to glory in the League Cup thanks to a 2-1 final win over Tottenham.

Graeme Souness

Souness recently identified leaving Blackburn to join Newcastle in September 2004 as the biggest regret of his career, pointing to his relationship with Williams’ support as a key factor in his success at Ewood Park.

“I had tremendous support from John,” said Souness. “He would come down to the training ground every lunchtime, or certainly three or four times a week, and any air any concerns he might have had. It would drive me mad sometimes.

“But I knew it always would come from the heart and I was cool about that.

“If he had anything to say, he would say it to my face. At most clubs it isn’t like that.”

Rovers moved quickly to bring in Souness’s replacement, with Hughes convinced to leave his job with Wales to take over at Ewood Park.

After a somewhat shaky start, when Rovers sat bottom of the Premier League a month after his arrival, he proved another excellent appointment.

During a four-year stay, Hughes guided Rovers into Europe through the league and twice to the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

When he was poached by Manchester City in the summer of 2008, Williams turned to another former Manchester United star in Paul Ince.

Mark Hughes

Ince had just led MK Dons to the League Two title, but did not have the relevant coaching badges and Rovers had to seek special dispensation from the Premier League. It looked something of a risk and quickly proved as much.

Ince was sacked in December 2008, after less than six months in charge, with Rovers having won just three in 17 and sitting second bottom of the table.

Williams opted to play far safer with Ince’s successor, with Allardyce arriving barely 24 hours later.

Paul Ince

Kick-starting his reign with a nine-game unbeaten run, Allardyce guided Rovers to safety and a 15th-placed finish.

They would finish 10th in his only full season in charge before the club’s new Indian owners, the Venkys, decided on a change of approach which would soon lead to Williams’ own exit from Ewood Park.

It would prove an unsuccessful move as Rovers plummeted and they now languish in League One.