Mark Hudson opens up on 'volatile world' of football management
MARK HUDSON INTERVIEW: Former Cardiff boss opens up on ‘volatile world’ of football management and how sacking was a ‘grieving process’ that family helped him through
- Mark Hudson has explained the hire and fire nature of football management
- The 41-year-old was one of three Cardiff managers to be fired this season
- Hudson recalled the ‘very tough’ time where he told his kids he had been sacked
Minutes after an afternoon in the company of Mark Hudson comes to an end, a reminder pops up of why we were here in the first place. ‘Sabri Lamouchi to be sacked at Cardiff this afternoon,’ reads a text message.
The Frenchman became managerial casualty number 22 in the Championship since August. Indeed, 15 of the 24 teams changed bosses at least once this season in the division and, in the top four tiers as a whole, 52 clubs’ coach has been in the job for less than 365 days.
When reflecting on the EFL campaign as a whole, sacking silly season might well be the overarching theme, ahead of even the Hollywood-like drama of the play-offs or how Vincent Kompany reinvented Burnley or that Plymouth romped to a century of points.
Seeing the yellow ticker on Sky Sports News telling us of a sacking felt like a daily briefing at one point. But each of those departures is more than just a statistic and every one of them has their own story, often one of sadness.
This is the story of Hudson, a bright, young coach who was one of those to lose their jobs this season. Hudson, along with Steve Morison and Lamouchi, were let go in a turbulent year for the Bluebirds in which they flirted with relegation.
Mark Hudson was one of three managers to lose their job as Cardiff City first-team coach this season
Frenchman Sabri Lamouchi became the 22 Championship manager to lose his job during a turbulent season of EFL football
Hudson’s story is one of pride, learning on the job, depressive realisms at losing the role and then learning to believe in himself again and find the hunger to get back into management.
You might recall a video that went viral on social media of Hudson and his family. In the first half of the clip, we see Hudson with a proud smile telling his sons that he had been promoted to Cardiff first-team manager after a stint as Morison’s No 2.
‘I’m going to tell all my friends,’ beamed one of the boys, with a couple of happy tears. ‘You’ve waited so long, I knew you’d get it. You’re a legend!’
It shows a side of football we don’t often see – and so does the second half, though this offers a window to the darker side of management. Now a few months later, we see tears of a different kind as the boys are informed their father has been sacked.
‘Don’t worry, we will go out for a meal tonight, then pack up and go home,’ Hudson tells them. ‘That’s football.’ And he’s right, sadly – that is football. But it offered a unique insight into the heartbreak and feelings of failure that might come as a player or manager.
So Mail Sport caught up with Hudson near his family base in Cheshire about this darker side of football and the toughness of getting back on the wagon after getting let go in your first full-time job in what he describes with understatement as ‘the volatile world of football management’.
‘It was a very tough moment telling them, “Daddy’s lost his job” but they needed to hear it,’ he says. ‘As a proud dad, you want your kids to see your successes but they need to see the other side, too. In life, it won’t always be victory and straightforward.
‘I wasn’t expecting it to go viral but ML (his wife, Marie-Louise) has a creative mind. It probably helped my grieving process. A lot of what goes on in a managers’ life is crazy and this shone a light on it… one minute you’re celebrating and the next you’re packing up to move house.
Hudson previously won promotion as a player
‘Hopefully we will get another job and go on another journey together and we will do this again. It all changes so quickly. We go through the highs and lows together as a family.
‘The kids’ understanding took a bit longer. My four-year-old girl kept asking, “Daddy, are you staying or going away again?”. She felt like I was going to leave and not come back every time I went out of the front door. My nine-year-old was unsure, too.
‘But my eldest – he has a greater understanding of football – kept saying to me, “Right, what are you going to be doing next, I’m excited for the next job!”. And ML, she is probably sick of me being at home! It’s nice to spend quality time at home, but we’re all excited for what’s next.’
So, what is next? Hudson has spent a lot of time studying football matches, and took his lads to the recent blockbuster between Manchester City and Arsenal.
‘The boys loved the atmosphere but I just watched Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta and how they approached the game.
A video of Hudson telling his family he had got the job and him then telling his kids he had been sacked went viral
Hudson labelled football management as a ‘volatile world’ but has ambitions to return to the dugout
‘Pep ran that game. He knew how Arsenal would approach the game and he tailored his tactics throughout the match, constantly talking to his players and telling them where to be.’
‘I’ve spent time at Rangers on a study visit with Mick Beale. It’s so interesting to see different ways of going about your week as a manager.
‘I’ve learned how you need to be adaptable tactically and mentally and to create a team that will fight for you, each other and the fans.’
Hudson, who played for Crystal Palace, Huddersfield and Cardiff – a c.v. that boasts a couple of promotions as captain – says he has transferred those leadership skills to his coaching career and, after an hour or so in his company, it is clear he will make a good appointment for a team.
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