Following the death of former Manchester City manager Malcolm Allison, we will now look back at Malcolm's managerial career and the influence he had on Football in the South West .
In the early 50’s, Malcolm Allison, then a defender with West Ham United, started a revolution that would change the face of English football forever.
From a greasy spoon café in East London called Cassetari’s, where the Hammers’ players congregated after training, he headed a number of lengthy discussions on football that would start a footballing revolution.
This was at a time when English football was reassessing itself following England’s disastrous showing at the 1950 World Cup, which saw them lose to the USA, and their first ever defeat at Wembley against a Ferenc Puskas inspired Hungarian side in 1953.
Amongst his team-mates who joined in with these discussions at Cassetari’s were future managers David Sexton and Noel Cantwell. They also helped to lay the foundations for the well renowned West Ham Academy.
As well as having an impact on the game at national level, Malcolm’s methods would have an impact of the fortunes of South West Football. Malcolm himself would later manage Plymouth Argyle and his band of followers included two future Torquay United managers in Frank O’Farrell and Malcolm Musgrove.
O’Farrell cut his managerial teeth at Weymouth Town before taking charge at Plainmoor in 1965 and lead Torquay to automatic promotion from Division Four in his first full season in charge.
He established the Gulls as a force to be reckoned with in the ’old’ Division Three with the help of former Hammers’ players John Bond and Ken Brown who themselves were both disciples of Malcolm from their days at Upton Park.
Like O’Farrell, Malcolm’s managerial career started in non-league football, with Bath City, before moving on to Devon as he then took charge of Plymouth Argyle for the first time.
His first stint at Home Park saw Malcolm take the Pilgrims to the Semi-Finals of the League Cup in the 1964-65 season before resigning at the end of the season. During his first spell at Home Park, he blooded a number of youngsters including Mike Trebilcock, who went on to score for Everton in the 1966 FA Cup Final, Norman Piper and John Hore who would later manage Argyle to the Semi-Finals of the FA Cup in 1984.
Malcolm then embarked on a spell at Manchester City, firstly as assistant to Joe Mercer and then as manager in his own right. During this time, City enjoyed one of the most successful periods in their history as they won the League title, the FA Cup, the League Cup and the European Cup Winners Cup.
Whilst at Maine Road, he would again cross paths with O’Farrell, who had by now become manager of City’s arch rivals Manchester United.
Following a spell with Crystal Palace, which saw him take the Eagles to the Semi-Finals of the FA Cup in 1976, Malcolm returned to Home Park where he helped the Pilgrims avoid relegation to Division Four before returning to Manchester City for a second spell in charge.
As with his first spell at Home Park, Malcolm also handed opportunities to a number of promising young players including Kevin Hodges, who went on to become the Pilgrims record appearance maker.
Malcolm also had an influence on two of the England national side’s greatest achievements. During his time at West Ham, he nurtured the talent of Bobby Moore, who captained England to World Cup glory in 1966. When he was manager of Crystal Palace, Allison gave Terry Venables his first taste of coaching as he embarked on a career that would later see him guide England to the Semi-Finals of Euro 96.
