ROB EDWARDS walks across a pitch in Dunstable and is met by a boy wearing a Luton kit sobbing.
The child has played for a Hatters youth team that has been knocked out of the nationwide Utilita Kids Cup by Watford.
It illustrates how deep the bitter rivalry runs between the clubs and is doubly upsetting because these players have had their dreams of playing in a Wembley final dashed this year.
Luton boss Edwards knows a thing or two about being left disappointed by Watford — having incredibly been sacked by the club after just TEN Championship games earlier this season.
He sits the Under-11s team down into a circle before crouching down to speak to them.
He said: “They were devastated. I’d have felt the same at their age. All of us want to win and they were so desperate to but lost 1-0 to Watford in the quarter-finals. There were one or two of them in tears.
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“But I said, ‘I like that. You’re all desperate to win.’ I then asked, ‘Did you give everything and try your hardest?’ They had. That’s all you can do. You can never guarantee a win.
“I say the same to my lads — and the one thing you can guarantee from my team is we’ll give it our best.
“These young boys did that too and they’ll look back and be better for it. They’re not used to losing so it’s a new experience.”
Everything has been a new experience for Edwards, 40, in a whirlwind management career that is only into its second season.
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He led Forest Green Rovers to the League Two title and promotion last year before his ridiculously brief time at Vicarage Road.
Luton, though, turned to him after Nathan Jones quit for Southampton and today he welcomes the club that axed him to Kenilworth Road with the Hatters in far better shape than the Hornets.
His team sit comfortably fourth and even have second-placed Sheffield United within their sights.
Meanwhile stuttering Watford are five points adrift of the play-offs and on to their THIRD manager in Chris Wilder after sacking Edwards’ successor Slaven Bilic.
Asked to sum up his brief time at Vicarage Road, Edwards said: “It was a great opportunity for me and my assistant Richie Kyle.
“There’s always a risk with any job you take but I wouldn’t change anything. We believed in ourselves and were frustrated with how it panned out.
“When Watford decided to part company with us, we were a point behind the play-offs. We’d only lost twice but, frustratingly, drew five of them.
“At that moment in time, we were trying to change the culture. It was a team that had become used to losing in the Premier League and we were picking up the pieces.
“I felt it was all starting to come together but the club decided they wanted to go in another direction. That’s history now.
“However I’m proud of what we did — but now even prouder to be at a brilliant club in Luton Town.”
Edwards did have to consider the ramifications of taking the Hatters job as a recent Watford boss and discussed it with the club at length during the interview process.
But his mind was firmly fixed on making the move after meeting the Luton owners.
He said: “What I saw was a group of honest people at a well-run club. I also saw a team of hard-working players who were used to winning and being at the right end of the table. They’re also more talented than people give them credit for.
“When we took over, we were 10th or 11th and had our first game against Middlesbrough. We were right in the mix so it was a team who were competing for something.
“It’s not something that happens often when you think about a manager coming in during the season. So it was a case of us just continuing the good work.”
In his 18 league games in charge, he has won 11, drawn four and lost three.
Edwards has won promotion to the Premier League before.
He was in a Blackpool team as a centre-half that won the 2010 play-off final against Cardiff under Ian Holloway.
And Edwards admits going up this season would be almost as big an achievement when you consider the size of the clubs.
He said: “It certainly will be in terms of how people perceive the clubs from outside.
“The difference would be: Blackpool were favourites to go down the year we went up — whereas, because of the great work of Nathan and the group last season in reaching the play-offs, expectations are higher.”
Ironically, the manager that left a lasting impression on Edwards was Watford legend Graham Taylor, who gave him his Premier League debut for Aston Villa against Middlesbrough when he was aged 20.
He said: “Graham was an incredible human being and manager. I know how strong his links are with Watford but I’ll be forever thankful to him for giving me that opportunity.
“The things I took from him were his honesty. He could be quite brutal in his honesty but 20-plus years ago things were different in terms of how you would communicate and deal with people.
“But he was brave and wanted to play young players. He did that throughout his career so is someone I’ve a heck of a lot of respect and admiration for.
“There were a lot of coaches at Villa who got us to the point of reaching the first team such as Kevin MacDonald, Tony McAndrew and Gordon Cowans — but Graham was the man brave enough to put me in.
“I picked up a bad injury and wasn’t able to get back in at Villa. But had I not had that chance from Graham, I’d not be here managing Luton today!”
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Meanwhile, Watford made Wembley to face Sheffield United ahead of the Championship play-off final. How Edwards and the Hatters would love to be there.
*ROB EDWARDS was speaking at the Utilita Kids Cup tournament, which in partnership with the EFL, sees 12,000 under-11 boys and under-13 girls competing across the country in six-a-side games to play in a Wembley final.
The girls’ showpiece, between AFC Wimbledon and Carlisle, will be held tomorrow ahead of the Papa John’s Trophy final while the boys are due to battle it out ahead of the EFL play-off finals for each relevant division.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
