From Norwich school boy to head coach of Norwich City FC

And while it’s still officially a secret, barring an event of cataclysmic proportions, after what we’ve been told was an extensive search (although may not have been), we expect Liam Manning to be announced as the man in the next few days.

But who the heck is he? And why is he Ben Knapper’s chosen one?

Well… those who foolishly frequent the world of social media will already be aware of some ‘facts’ that may or may not be facts.

The first thing we need to debunk – even though it shouldn’t matter – is that Manning isn’t an Ipswich supporter. But neither, despite having Norfolk roots, is he a City supporter. That doesn’t matter either. He is reportedly a supporter of Manchester United (another thing not to get upset about).

From Norwich school boy to head coach of Norwich City FC

But who the heck is he? And why is he Ben Knapper’s chosen one?

Well… those who foolishly frequent the world of social media will already be aware of some ‘facts’ that may or may not be facts.

So, with that out of the way, what has been his route from Norwich as a child to Norwich City as a head coach?

How much Norwich City will need to pay Bristol City to appoint Liam Manning

Well, and I’m leaning heavily here on Wikipedia, as a youngster, he was considered a sufficiently talented footballer to be part of the Norwich City academy, albeit not talented enough to progress beyond academy level.

It was that lot down the road who, after initially offering him a place in their academy, went on to offer him his first pro deal. It was a short-lived love affair with the capital of Suffolk, however, where he stayed for just a single season.

Incidentally, as well as being part of City’s academy before his move south, Wikipedia informs us he was also a youth player with Bungay Town – a football club well known to us Waveney Valley locals.

(Perhaps someone ITK could elaborate?)

However, his playing career didn’t take off in the professional realm. Instead, upon leaving Ipswich, he flitted around the non-league scene, both locally and further afield.

Fun fact: Among those teams he played for were some that I played against in my amateur playing days – Leiston Town, Woodbridge Town, and Melton St Audrey – and some that I didn’t, including Selfoss of Iceland.

Other non-league teams that Manning played for were Bishop’s Stortford, Long Melford, Wroxham, and Ipswich Wanderers.

So, undistinguished is probably the best way to describe Manning’s playing days, but the same cannot be said of his coaching career, which, from humble beginnings, has been on an almost non-stop upward trajectory.