Holleran stays loyal to Brakes in pursuit of Conference dream

Paul Holleran says he still has things he wants to achieve at Leamington.

Paul Holleran said there was never any danger of him jumping ship to take over at Solihull Moors, saying he still has a burning ambition to achieve things at Leamington.

Marcus Bignot’s switch to Grimsby Town left a vacancy at Damson Park and former Solihull Borough boss Holleran’s success at Leamington, plus his proximity to the club - he lives in Shirley - saw him emerge as a leading contender for the role.

However, he quickly dampened speculation with a tweet outlining his commitment to Leamington and expanded on it when talking to the Courier & Weekly News, saying that although the role was a tempting one, it was never one he would seriously consider.

“It is a super club,” said Holleran hours before the Moors appointed Keith Bertschin as their new head coach. “It’s a great job for someone. But not for me. That ship has sailed.

“I preach about loyalty to the players and there are a lot of good people at this club who have been very supportive of me.

“There will come a time to leave Leamington and it’s come close on a couple of occasions.

“But I’m fully focused on what I’m doing here.

“There’s a lot going on at Leamington and I’ve got a burning ambition to get Leamington under the Conference umbrella and establish them there. I’m desperate to do that.”

An online poll of supporters saw 78 per cent express disappointment in the event that Holleran left Brakes to take up the reigns at Moors, a figure he joked would have been less had it taken place after Tuesday night’s 4-0 League Cup defeat at Stratford Town.

Holleran made six changes from the side that beat Basingstoke Town at the weekend and saw three goals inside a seven-minute spell ultimately settle the tie.

And while he said the League Cup was low down on his side’s list of priorities, the manner of the defeat, especially coming off the back of Saturday’s fine 3-1 win, was especially galling.

“On Saturday I was asked for a man of the match and there were so many names, so many good performances.

“On Tuesday night I can’t think of one player who got near the level they can.

“In that spell from 20 to 27 minutes certain things went on that were below the standards we have set ourselves.

“I won’t be losing any sleep about going out of the competition but it was the manner of it.

“However, we won’t let the League Cup derail what we are trying to do here.”

Calf injuries for Ryan Rowe and Courtney Baker-Richardson compounded a miserable night at the DCS Stadium for the visitors who are without a game tomorrow.

Both are expected to be fit for Tuesday’s Birmingham Senior Cup tie at home to Nuneaton, however, a competition Holleran rates as “more attractive” than the League Cup.