Direct, physical, a student of the game and a winner... what Paul Cox brings to Boston United

Jon Dunham gives the lowdown on the new Pilgrims manager
Paul Cox. Photo: Peter ShortPaul Cox. Photo: Peter Short
Paul Cox. Photo: Peter Short

Paul Cox is the new manager of Boston United.

But what can Pilgrims fans expect from the new boss?

Well, my knowledge only extends to the most recent having followed his time at Kettering Town closely.

His record before he arrived at Kettering pretty much speaks for itself.

He’s been there, done it and got the title-winning t-shirt when it comes to the pinnacle of non-League football having taken Mansfield Town back into the Football League.

So, there’s no doubt the credentials are there and that, in itself, will have no doubt been in the forefront of the minds of those with the power at Boston.

Cox is ambitious. He made that clear from the moment he walked through the door at Latimer Park.

He wants to be managing as high up as he can and he clearly feels that, in this moment in time, Boston offers him a better chance of doing that quickly.

That’s not to say he was simply using Kettering as a stepping stone. He is a former Poppies player and his love for the club was genuine.

He was committed to his role at Kettering and I think that is a key element.

He threw himself into a tough job and, as recent results show, things were starting to click which is highly impressive given he would have been wheeling and dealing with one of the smallest budgets in the National League North.

It’s all-too-easy to point fingers at his style of football.

Does he prefer a direct approach? Yes. Does he want his teams to compete physically? Yes. Is he a one-trick pony? Most definitely not.

Given the surface at Latimer Park, any manager would have to adjust things accordingly and Cox did an incredible job of finding a way for the Poppies to play effectively on their tricky home soil.

But he got them playing as well. Wins at Gloucester City, on a 4G surface, and at York City didn’t happen by a fluke. They happened because there was a plan, which was executed.

Cox is a student of the game. Perhaps, sometimes, he overthought things too much. There’s nothing wrong with that, however.

And he had a solid team with him. Assistant-manager John Ramshaw has been around the block. A passionate and knowledgeable individual. And coach Ben Marvin was more focused on the data, statistics and everything else a manager needs to devise his game plans.

Cox, himself, takes no prisoners. He manages like he used to play the game. No nonsense.

If his team performed badly, he didn’t disguise it. His honesty with the Kettering supporters was probably the thing they liked about him the most.

So you can expect some tough talking, you can expect passion and, quite frankly, you can expect results as well.

It seems, from the outside looking in, the ambitions of Boston and Cox match each other, it could well be a very tasty cocktail for success…