Harry Kewell is making history with League Two club Crawley Town.
While Australian coaches are common in England in sports like cricket, rugby union, swimming and rugby league, the same cannot be said in football. No Australian has ever managed in England’s football system, and none have ever achieved success in Europe. While Australian players are dotted across the Premier League, Championship, League One and Two, from Aaron Mooy to Bailey Wright, James Meredith, Jackson Irvine and Massimo Luongo, coaches are not.
Kewell, a Champions League and FA Cup winner in his playing days, wants to change all that. After a spell as coach of Watford’s Under-23s, he took up the mantle at lowly Crawley. Last season the club barely escaped relegation, finishing 19th out of 24 teams. It would not be easy.
“I was always a big dreamer when I played football, I always wanted to play at the highest level and vice versa,” he told The Guardian.
“There’s no difference in being a coach. I want to see how far I can go. If you want to be the best, you have to be amongst it. This opportunity for me at Crawley has come at the right time. It’s going to be tough. They came 19th last season, they had a great start but really faded away. So it is going to be tough, but I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
Kewell overhauled his roster in the off-season, signing nine new players and letting eight leave. It would take time for the 38-year old’s methods and squad to gel. The early signs in pre-season were promising, barring a 6-0 walloping at the hands of Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion.
“It’s a changeover, it’s a new management that’s come in,” he says.
“It was their first full-on season last year. It takes time to create something. People feel they can create something in a heartbeat – it can’t happen. You’ve got to get a good foundation first and then you can start building on top of that. I think this club is starting to build a good foundation.:
But this season started badly, with three losses in a row in the first three League Two fixtures. Defeats also came in the EFL Cup, a 5-1 result against Birmingham City, and in the EFL Trophy, a 2-0 loss to Charlton Athletic. Pressure intensified. Kewell’s time at Crawley appeared to be hanging by a thread.
However, things have started to turn around in the past two league fixtures with dominant wins over Swindon Town (3-0) and Yeovil Town (2-0). In two games the Reds have managed to score eight goals and keep two cleansheets. It’s a long campaign, but right now there is an air of positivity around Broadfield Stadium.
Kewell’s time playing in Turkey, with Galatasaray, helped him get the Crawley job. The club is owned by Turkish businessman Ziya Eren. The Australian’s profile, from 11 seasons with Leeds United and Liverpool in the Premier League, also helped him secure the position. In the off-season Crawley were inundated with media requests to interview their new manager. Kewell has helped put the West Sussess side on the map.
But profile and reputation will only get a coach so far. A great career as a player doesn’t guarantee a great career as a manager. They need to prove themselves again. Kewell is adamant that coaching is his future and is no plaything.
It's been a good day for Crawley... by #Mitch_John573 via @c0nvey
“For me, I love this. When I first did my badges, I remember my first assessment was defending corners and organising the team and getting players into position. When I started playing football I had this fire, this burning desire of ‘wow I love this’. And that’s what I got when I coached from that very first assessment. I just went ‘this, this is what I like’. I love coaching.”
Kewell helped pave the way for Aussie players to make it in the pressure cooker that is English football. Now he could do the same for Australian coaches in the UK. His homeland is watching.
