Bradford (Park Avenue) forward keen to amend for boss' exit

The former Macclesfield Town stalwart was sacked after just eight months in charge, having overseen relegation from the Northern Premier League Premier Division last season, then led his team to a stuttering start to the current campaign.

They have not won since their opening league game, with the final straw coming when Whitaker’s side were humiliated 4-1 at home to neighbours Liversedge on Bank Holiday Monday.

Swales opened the scoring in that game before everything fell apart, and he said: “When a manager gets sacked, you always feel a level of guilt and responsibility as a player.

“You want to do well for the manager, and unfortunately, we haven’t put the performances and results together that he needed to keep his job.

“However, by the same token, it is football, and you have to move on quickly because there’s always another game coming up.

“You want to put things right, so there’s a level of determination for us, as players, to start getting the results the club deserves.”

Avenue endured their worst result of the season against Liversedge on Monday, as a host of their former players, Ryan Toulson, Omar Sanyang and Chinedu Osadebe, came back to haunt them. (Image: John Rhodes.)

Swales is confident that Avenue can start climbing the table, saying: “I think we’ve got all the tools necessary provided by the club, which is run at quite a high level for this league.

“We’ve got the players necessary to go and get promoted, so now it’s about putting the performances and results together.

“I am confident we can get back up there this season, 100 per cent.”

But if they do so, it will be without Whitaker at the helm, with Swales quick to praise his former boss.

He said: “Danny was playing me out wide or up front in a two, and with him coming from a good footballing background, he helped me a lot tactically.

“I don’t want this to sound bad, but at this level, sometimes it can be quite difficult to find a manager who’s very tactically orientated like that.

“Working with Danny was a breath of fresh air, because I was learning every single day.

“There were a lot of training sessions geared towards how we could improve as a team, but also as individuals.

“He was a good man-manager too, a nice guy who everyone liked, and we all wanted to do well for him.

“It wasn’t just the players, everyone behind the scenes at the club wanted to do well for him too, so it is sad to see him go, but unfortunately that’s football.”

A West Yorkshire native, Swales came through in academy football with Huddersfield Town and FC Halifax Town, while he was at Alfreton Town and FC United of Manchester just before joining Avenue.

Kelan Swales (left) on his competitive debut for Avenue earlier this month, having joined from FC United of Manchester. (Image: John Rhodes.)

But in between those two periods in his life, Swales spent five years playing football out in the USA.

Reflecting on his half-a-decade across the pond, the forward said: “It was a really good experience, which I’d recommend to anyone coming out of academy football like I was, as opposed to dropping straight into non-league.

“The funding out there is astronomical, and you’re talking Premier League or Championship level in terms of the facilities you’re playing in.

“The coaches are paid well, so are of a high level, and it’s a lot more competitive than people think.

“I was playing at university level out there for the most part, which when I was there, was the step before turning professional.

“There were a lot of competitive players from all over the world, but it was different, as the focus was more on athleticism rather than technical ability.

“It was a great way to stay in full-time football, experience something new and I feel like I’ve come back as a much better player for it.

“I’ve been able to make an impact at non-league clubs straight away, having come back from America, where I think it’s difficult to make that adjustment straight out of academy football.”

Meanwhile, Avenue's sporting director Tom McStravick has confirmed striker James Hanson, a Bantams legend, will be helping out on the coaching front at training this week, and may even be in the dugout for the side's league game at Grimsby Borough this Saturday.