Coughlan: 'Funny playing three of my old teams in a row, would be great if we beat them all'
Shrimpers player/coach Graham Coughlan has been doing well against his former clubs recently, if even from the touchline helping out Blues boss Paul Sturrock, and would complete a hat-trick of wins in successive games against teams he's applied his trade with, following Plymouth Argyle and Rotherham United, if his present side can defeat second placed Shrewsbury Town at Roots Hall Friday evening.
Coughlan told www.echo-news.co.uk: "It’s funny how the fixtures worked out and we’re playing three of my old teams one after another but it would be great if we could beat them all. My responsibilities now lie with Southend so I want us to do well but it will be very difficult against Shrewsbury because any side who finishes above them this season will get promotion in my opinion.”
Sheffield Wednesday in the cup then!
Graham turned out 89 times during two seasons with the Shropshire club, and has been involved in an appearance at Wembley though they couldn't cross the line to actually get into the League's third tier.
Coughlan said: “I enjoyed it there but we never got promotion and I still see that as a failure. We got the play-off final at Wembley in my last year but lost 1-0 to Gillingham with a last minute goal from Simeon Jackson which was really difficult to take. They’re a good club with a budget and facilities a lot better than most teams in this league so I think they will go up this season. But I’m confident we can match them tonight, especially if we play like we did against Rotherham last weekend.”
Meanwhile, the Plymouth link continues even though it's business a usual for the veteran centre-back.
Coughlan explained: "I was flattered by the interest from Plymouth, because that club still means an awful lot to me, but I’m very happy at Southend. I enjoy working with the group of boys we have here and we’ve all worked hard to get to where we now are. Things have been going well just recently too but there’s still an awful lot to be done, starting with the game on Friday, which is what I’m really focusing on most right now."
And that includes helping out Luggy at first team games, either on the pitch or as his assistant, and all on his own as the man in charge of the reserves.
He concluded: "We all chip in with what we can and I’m happy to help out anyway I’m needed. We’re a small group so there’s plenty to be done but for me working in football is the best job in the world and we’re developing a tight team spirit here now so of course it would be great to stay.”
The Coughlan Files
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Graham Coughlan | ||
| Date of birth | 18 November 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Southend United (player-coach) | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1993–1994 | Cherry Orchard | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1994–1995 | Bray Wanderers | 11 | (0) |
| 1995–1999 | Blackburn Rovers | 0 | (0) |
| 1997 | → Swindon Town (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 1999 | → Livingston (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 1999–2001 | Livingston | 50 | (2) |
| 2001–2005 | Plymouth Argyle | 177 | (25) |
| 2005–2007 | Sheffield Wednesday | 51 | (5) |
| 2007 | → Burnley (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | Rotherham United | 45 | (1) |
| 2008–2010 | Shrewsbury Town | 78 | (6) |
| 2010– | Southend United | 36 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10:30, 21 August 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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(Player info by Wikipedia, for full player info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Coughlan)