Borrowash Victoria manager Mark Wilson calls time after five years in charge

FOR the first time in a long while, Mark Wilson is looking forward to a weekend without football – unless it involves his beloved Glasgow Rangers.

Wilson resigned from his position as manager of Borrowash Victoria after Tuesday night's 1-0 defeat by bottom side Radford.

He had been with the club for the last five years and feels that he has taken them as far as he can.

With a successful business and growing family to support, Wilson says that now is the right time to take a break from football.

"The balance of family life and steering a business through a recession has got to take priority," said Wilson.

"I'm proud of what I've achieved at Borrowash Victoria but feel that now is the right time to take a break.

"I'm in no rush to get back into football. I'm looking forward to playing cricket with my son, Jack, in the summer, and have a weekend away in Glasgow planned with my wife and family at the end of the season.

"It annoyed me that the league decided to put the end of the season back by another week recently because I've had this weekend away planned for a while.

"It wasn't so much the fact that we lost to the bottom-of-the-table team that annoyed me.

"It was more the fact that I finished work, ate tea on the road, went to football and then arrived home at 11pm.

"That's not what I want to be doing. I want to spend more time with my family.

"I'm proud of what I've achieved at Borrowash and it's an honour to be a part of the club's history, both as a player and a manager.

"I wanted to leave at the start of the season but (chairman) Frazer Watson persuaded me to give it another go.

"We have consistently been in the top three this season and had that fantastic run in the FA Vase.

"There are still 10 or 11 games of the season left for someone to come in and have a good crack at managing the club."

Reserve team manager Mike Staniland has been put in temporary charge of Borrowash and starts his new job with a tough home game against Anstey Nomads on Saturday.

Staniland has the support of great backroom staff, according to Wilson.

"I'd like to thank the chairman and former chairman, Ian Anderson, for their support," he said, "and also club secretary Ian Collins, who I'll miss a lot. In my opinion, he is the best non-league secretary around.

"I'd also like to thank the players, not only those who are still at the club but those who I have managed who have gone on to bigger clubs.

"I've had a great time at Vics. I love the football club and believe that there is a far better infrastructure there now, with a great junior and reserve set-up, to when I first joined them.

"I wish Vics all the luck for the rest of the season."

Chairman Watson added his thanks for Wilson's work over the years.

He said: "We'd like to thank Mark for his hard work over the last five years.

"I think he feels he has taken the club as far as he can.

"He's done a fantastic job and we're sorry to see him go.

"We don't really spend money on players – just something of a petrol budget – and I think Mark felt that we would have to do so if we were to progress.

"But that's not something we're able to do."

Anyone interested in the post should send their CV to Frazer Watson at 38 Waterford Drive, Chaddesden, Derby DE21 6TL or email him: watsonfrz@aol.com