Joe Was Wanted Before GB Sacking

By Aston
September 30 2005

It has emerged today that current Ipswich Town manager Joe Royle was contacted about the job Town before George Burley was sacked.

Burley was sacked following Towns 3-0 defeat against Grimsby Town on the 8^th of October 2002 but on Monday the 7^th Town made a form of approach for the then unemployed manager.

 

In his autobiography Royle wrote: “I was taken aside at a match at Old Trafford by Everton chairman Bill Kenwright, who told me that a fellow chairman wanted to know if I was keen to get back to work. I assured him that I was.

 

“The name of the mystery man was not revealed to me until several days later when I received a call from David Sheepshanks of Ipswich Town.”

 

Burley was officially sacked on the 11^th of October and Royle was appointed as his successor on the 28^th.

 

So it would now appear that Joe Royle was appointed before Burley was sacked and that there was no short list for the vacancy when it came up, just Joe’s name.

 

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