Steve McClaren

People do not arrive at Rockliffe Park , Middlesbrough Football Clubs state of the art Training Complex, by accident. A concealed left turn leads eventually to the main entrance and a car park populated with the Mercedes & BMWs owned by premiership footballers.

I am here accompanied by Mary Hill, Deputy Headteacher, because we have been granted an interview by Steve McClaren, Middlesbrough manager and assistant to Sven Goran Erikson. The reason why, is that just slightly lower down his CV, somewhere between him being assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson and a Ist division midfield player with Derby County is the fact that his alma mater is Nunthorpe Grammar School for Boys, York. Nunthorpe merged with Millmount in 1985 to become Millthorpe School .

The school is launching a website and it was put to him that it would be an enormous boost for the school if we could highlight the fact that he was an old boy and include an interview with him on the new site.

We arrive early and are apprehensive. Realism dictates that he is creating time for us in a busy schedule and a boost for his old school is a probable inconvenience for him. One of his self confessed mentors was Sir Alex Ferguson notorious for his brusqueness and reluctance to suffer fools gladly. It is entirely possible that he might be the same.

Through security and introducing ourselves at reception we fail to notice him standing beside us. Inconvenient or not, the tone is set by him with a ready smile, a few brief words and a request for coffee as he takes us to his office.

Walking through the corridors he meets a young fan who has clearly been granted special access to see the first team train. Steve stops, talks with him and signs his shirt. Accessibility may be difficult with the football stars but the assistant England manager has ‘the touch’. This is emphasised by the fact that he allows us to overrun our allotted thirty minutes, waiting for us to end the interview. He ignores a ringing phone at his elbow and gives us his undivided attention. His manners and courtesy will stay long in the memory.