JOURNEYMAN is a word most often associated with players, but there are a fair few coaches and managers who have done the rounds when it comes to clubs.

As a player Colin Todd spent the bulk of his career with Sunderland and Derby County, but since hanging up his boots he has been employed by quite a number of clubs up and down the country.

It was on this day in 2001 that he stepped into the hot seat at Derby, promoted from assistant to manager after the departure of Jim Smith.

This was Todd’s third spell at Derby as both player and coach and he took the reigns with the Rams struggling at the wrong end of the Premier League.

Smith had been in charge since 1995 and had taken the club up to the top flight and kept them there for five years before the decline began.

As always seems to be the case with clubs who are desperate to retain their Premier League status and the money that comes with it, the Derby big cheeses started to panic when the club avoided relegation by one place in 2001.



Smith resigned with the 2001/2002 season only a few months old, elevating Todd to the top job.

By now the club were in that downward spiral that seems to grip clubs in danger of relegation and Todd was fighting a losing battle. He lasted only three months before a humiliating home defeat to third division Bristol Rovers panicked the board into sacking him.

John Gregory was brought in but still couldn’t stop the decline and the club went down.

As for Todd, he pitched up next in 2003 as Bryan Robson’s assistant at Bradford. After relegation to the second division, Robson left the club, and Todd was again promoted to manager.

After four years as Valley Parade in which he steadied the ship, again the results started to dry up and he was sacked in February 2007.

Unlike the Royal Mail, here at OTFD we can be relied on to deliver every day, so pop back tomorrow to read about a Newcastle United legend who isn’t Alan Shearer.

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