Jordan Ive has “earned the right to step up” as Bracknell Town’s permanent head coach, says club chairman Kayne Steinborn-Busse.
Ive was appointed on an interim basis following the departure of co-managers Carl Withers and Jamie McClerg last month.
His first game, away to Swindon Supermarine, ended in defeat, but that was followed by two good home wins over Walton & Hersham and Hendon and then a goalless draw at Sholing after dominating the game. And, as Kayne states, Jordan “has grabbed hold of the opportunity over the last few weeks.”
The 29-year-old from Warfield is naturally delighted with the appointment.
“Obviously, I wanted the job here,” he told Football In Berkshire.
“I said to Kayne even when I started at Sandhurst, this was a job I was looking to take, and now I have been given the opportunity.”
He quickly praised the players and his support staff, saying: “The boys have been outstanding and definitely helped me; you can see that from their performances and the fans are loving it.”
As it was with Withers and McClurg, Jordan’s target is to keep the Robins on the rise, their 1-0 win over Hendon lifting them to ninth place in Southern League Premier South and well in touch with the clubs who currently occupy the top five places.
“We are in with a chance of making the playoffs, and this squad is capable of making it,” the new head coach said.
“Nobody wants to accept anything less than getting into the playoffs, and the three points we got against Hendon could prove to be the difference between making the playoffs or not reaching them.”
Ive has seen a few players leave the club in recent weeks, but he has been working hard to fill the gaps in his squad, and it didn’t take him long to complete a deal with Slough Town to bring back Gary Abisogun on dual registration.
After an outstanding season for the Robins, the wide player wanted an opportunity to step up a level with the National League South club, but in a pre-season friendly against Bracknell, he suffered a nasty injury, tearing the cartilage in his knee, which required surgery, and it was a long road back for him.
He returned to action in November with Slough loaning him out to Isthmian League South Central Division club Westfield, where he made four league appearances. More recently, he has been largely on the substitute’s bench for Slough.
With Bracknell light on forwards, he is an ideal replacement for Nana Owusu, who recently left the club for league rivals Walton & Hersham.
Gary is unlikely to be the last of the signings as Ive looks to lift the Robins into the play-offs and add another achievement to his CV.
Last season, he guided Sandhurst Town, owned by the Kayne’s SB Group, to the Combined Counties League Division One title and promotion to Premier Division South.
A former player for the club, he had coached Bracknell’s young age groups before joining AFC Bournemouth, where he was an Academy coach.
Jordan returned to Bracknell to assist with their college programme, and then he joined the coaching staff at Sandhurst.
“We won at Step 6, and when I left to come here (Bracknell), Sandhurst were 10th in Step 5,” said the former Garth Hill College student.
Since joining the Bracknell set-up, he has introduced new training and match warm-up methods and is happy with the way things are shaping up.
He continued: “Seven points from our last three games is a decent return. We have kept three clean sheets in a row, which is pleasing, as it shows that we are difficult to beat and break down, which is a credit to the lads throughout the team. But, of course, there is always room for improvement, and there is work to be done here. Hopefully, there are exciting times ahead for the club.”
