New First Team Coach Shaun Derry has been telling iFollow how excited he is to be joining the U’s. The former Notts County and Cambridge United boss joined Karl Robinson’s backroom team this week and told us:
“I left Cambridge two or three months ago and have had a little bit of time to take stock, relax and enjoy my life; you know what football’s like, it consumes you.
“Along the way I’ve had a few interesting offers to get back into it; with a few management offers which didn’t quite suit me, I’ve always wanted to wait for that one one opportunity that felt right, I’ve always waited for that feeling. I’ve know Karl a while, and I’m really looking forward to working with him closely and Derek Fazackerley too; the experience with Derek is something that I’m looking forward to, that’s why I’m here!
“This clubs got vibrancy, it’s looking forward. I’ve been to the training ground and I’ve witnessed the fans when they get right behind the team. I came to the Rochdale game and it was a phenomenal experience, the atmosphere on the day is something I want to be a part of.
“To give that support mechanism to Karl and Derek is why I’m here. I’ve come here in a different role to my last couple and I want to show my flexibility as a leader and as a football coach and manager.
“The experience that I’ve had in the last four years, I’ve had two fantastic assistants in Greg Abbot and Joe Dunne. They were everything that I wanted as assistant managers and assistant head coaches; I know what it’s like to support properly, and that’s what I’ll definitely doing to Karl and Derek, I’ll be supporting them in the right way.
“ I think to have that support, you need to be challenged. Hopefully we can all work together and take this football club forward because it’s got a fantastic chance. The stadium is good and the training ground is absolutely excellent. When the players turn up at the new training ground, they’ll want to work and put in the extra yards, and so will me, Karl, Derek and all the supporting staff here at Oxford.”
Shaun has the added bonus of kicking off with two home friendlies against clubs he played for:
“ That’s brilliant” he said. “What a great couple of fixtures to whet the apatite ready for a long League 1 season. We know that League 1 is a tough league to play in, but to play against Leeds and Palace is going to really set the tone for what I am sure will be a great season.”
See the full interview in iFollow.-