Willie McFaul
Encyclopedia
William Stewart McFaul, known as Willie and Iam, (born January 10, 1943 in Coleraine
) is a former Northern Irish
football
player and now coach
.
McFaul joined Newcastle United from Linfield F.C.
in his native Northern Ireland in 1966 after impressing in a friendly match.
He went on to serve Newcastle as player, coach, assistant manager and then finally, in 1985, as manager. He was sacked in October 1988 after a poor start saw early season optimism turn into an ultimately futile struggle against relegation.
His reputation was as a caring and loyal manager, who got the best out of a number of players including Peter Beardsley
and Paul Goddard
. His biggest contribution to the game was probably his decision to make Paul Gascoigne
an integral part of the first team despite being only 18 at the time. McFaul has since managed teams in Northern Ireland and worked as the coach of the national team of Guam
. In Northern Ireland he managed his hometown club Coleraine who are very close to his heart. Sadly things didn't go to plan and his spell as manager coincided with a lowly period in Coleraine very proud history. He did, however, discover Paul Gaston, who went on to captain Coleraine and play over 600 games for the club.
McFaul is now working as a scout for Norwich City, professional connections having been made with Norwich Manager Glenn Roeder
during Roeder's time as Newcastle United Manager.
Many Northern Ireland fans reflect that his true ability was never fully seen at international level due to it being the Pat Jennings
era.
had resigned after a pre season friendly against Sheffield United after a row with the Newcastle fans over the sale of Chris Waddle
and the failure to sign Eric Gates
from Ipswich Town.
His first game in charge was away to Southampton,where he made the bold decision to make 18 year old Paul Gascoigne
the playmaker of the team.By the end of August Newcastle had beaten Liverpool 1-0,a result that was good enough to earn McFaul a permanent deal as manager.Ian Stewart and Alan Davies
were early signings as Newcastle made a great start to the 85-86 season by November they were In the top 6,with McFaul signing giant striker Billy Whitehurst
to boost the forward line.More Impressive results followed including a 2-2 draw with champions Everton,and a 1-1 draw at Anfield
against Liverpool,as well as beating Brian Clough
's Nottingham Forest away 2-1,and beating Arsenal 1-0 at St James' Park with Glenn Roeder
getting the winner.Newcastle finished the season in 11th,a good position for McFaul given the chaos at the start of the season when he took over as manager.
Little transfer activity over the summer of 1986 meant that Newcastle had a bad start to 1986-1987 season and found themselves bottom of the table In November,however McFaul was given money to spend and he brought In Andy Thomas
and a club record £400,000 on Paul Goddard
from West Ham United,Goddard's arrival Inspired the team to wins over Chelsea, West Ham and Nottingham Forest.Newcastle were still bottom In March 1987 and they found help from Gascoigne and Goddard,with Goddard equaling a club record of scoring In 7 straight games,to finish the season In mid table with Aston Villa and Man City amongst the clubs to be relegated.Peter Beardsley
was sold to Liverpool on the eve of the 87-88 season for a British record £1.7M to the anger of Newcastle's fans,so McFaul signed Brazil's flamboyant striker Mirandinha
to replace Beardsley and with Wimbledon winger Glyn Hodges
coming In as well as Irish teenager Michael O'Neill
,Newcastle had their best season under McFaul finishing 8th,with Gascoigne taking all the plaudits winning PFA young player of the year.The summer of 1988 brought McFaul's biggest challenge as manager of Newcastle United,with key players Paul Gascoigne
, Neil McDonald and Paul Goddard
all being sold for a combined fee of £3.7M,to the dismay of the Toon Army,with huge gaps In the team McFaul went on a shooping spree buying goalkeeper Dave Beasant
for £700,000,defender Andy Thorn
for £800,000,winger John Hendrie
for £500,000 and Hearts striker John Robertson
for £800,000.Despite Beardsley's sale Newcastle fans were In great spirits for the opening game of the season,as 3,000 travelled down to Goodison Park
.Newcastle lost 4-0 with Tony Cottee
bagging a hat trick
,a battling 2-2 draw with Spurs
seemed to have been the start for McFaul,but no wins In the next 4 matches saw his Newcastle side under severe pressure and they pulled off a great win at champions Liverpool 2-1 with Mirandinha
and Hendrie scoring.A 3-0 defeat at home to Coventry City spelt the end for McFaul,who had only been given the job 3 years earlier for a couple of matches had given his all for Newcastle United.
Coleraine
Coleraine is a large town near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is northwest of Belfast and east of Derry, both of which are linked by major roads and railway connections...
) is a former Northern Irish
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player and now coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
.
McFaul joined Newcastle United from Linfield F.C.
Linfield F.C.
Linfield F.C. , is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, whose home ground is Windsor Park in Belfast, which is also the home of the Northern Ireland international team....
in his native Northern Ireland in 1966 after impressing in a friendly match.
He went on to serve Newcastle as player, coach, assistant manager and then finally, in 1985, as manager. He was sacked in October 1988 after a poor start saw early season optimism turn into an ultimately futile struggle against relegation.
His reputation was as a caring and loyal manager, who got the best out of a number of players including Peter Beardsley
Peter Beardsley
Peter Andrew Beardsley MBE is an English former footballer who played between 1979 and 1999. He once set a record transfer fee in the game and represented his country 59 times between 1986 and 1996, once as captain...
and Paul Goddard
Paul Goddard
Paul Goddard is a former professional footballer and football manager.During his playing career, he gained caps for England U21s and earned a single full cap for the England team against Iceland in June 1982...
. His biggest contribution to the game was probably his decision to make Paul Gascoigne
Paul Gascoigne
Paul John Gascoigne , commonly referred to as Gazza, is a retired English professional footballer.Playing in the position of midfield, Gascoigne's career included spells at Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Lazio, Rangers, Middlesbrough, Everton and Gansu Tianma, where he scored at least a goal...
an integral part of the first team despite being only 18 at the time. McFaul has since managed teams in Northern Ireland and worked as the coach of the national team of Guam
Guam national football team
The Guam national football team is the national team of Guam, an overseas territory of the United States in the Pacific Ocean, and is controlled by the Guam Football Association. They are affiliated to the Asian Football Confederation's East Asian Football Federation region.The team was founded in...
. In Northern Ireland he managed his hometown club Coleraine who are very close to his heart. Sadly things didn't go to plan and his spell as manager coincided with a lowly period in Coleraine very proud history. He did, however, discover Paul Gaston, who went on to captain Coleraine and play over 600 games for the club.
McFaul is now working as a scout for Norwich City, professional connections having been made with Norwich Manager Glenn Roeder
Glenn Roeder
Glenn Victor Roeder is an English football manager and former player, most recently in charge at Norwich City. As a player, Roeder represented England B on 7 occasions...
during Roeder's time as Newcastle United Manager.
Many Northern Ireland fans reflect that his true ability was never fully seen at international level due to it being the Pat Jennings
Pat Jennings
Patrick Anthony "Pat" Jennings OBE is a Northern Ireland former football player. He played 119 games for Northern Ireland as a goalkeeper, a figure which at the time was a world record and is still a Northern Ireland record, in an international career which lasted for over 22 years...
era.
Newcastle United Manager
Willie McFaul was appointed caretaker manager of Newcastle United In August 1985 after Jack CharltonJack Charlton
John "Jack" Charlton, OBE, DL is a former footballer and manager who played for Leeds United in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and was part of the England team who won the 1966 World Cup...
had resigned after a pre season friendly against Sheffield United after a row with the Newcastle fans over the sale of Chris Waddle
Chris Waddle
Christopher Roland "Chris" Waddle is a former footballer from England. He played for a number of clubs in the 1980s and 90s, including Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Sheffield Wednesday in England, and Olympique de Marseille in France...
and the failure to sign Eric Gates
Eric Gates
Eric Lazenby Gates is an English former football player born on 28 June 1955 in Ferryhill, County Durham. He was a striker.He started 345 times for Ipswich Town with another 39 appearances as a substitute, under Bobby Robson, scoring 96 goals and winning the UEFA cup in 1981 and FA Cup in 1978 ; ...
from Ipswich Town.
His first game in charge was away to Southampton,where he made the bold decision to make 18 year old Paul Gascoigne
Paul Gascoigne
Paul John Gascoigne , commonly referred to as Gazza, is a retired English professional footballer.Playing in the position of midfield, Gascoigne's career included spells at Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Lazio, Rangers, Middlesbrough, Everton and Gansu Tianma, where he scored at least a goal...
the playmaker of the team.By the end of August Newcastle had beaten Liverpool 1-0,a result that was good enough to earn McFaul a permanent deal as manager.Ian Stewart and Alan Davies
Alan Davies
Alan Davies is an English comedian, writer and actor best known for starring in the TV mystery series Jonathan Creek and as the permanent panellist on the TV panel show QI.- Early life :...
were early signings as Newcastle made a great start to the 85-86 season by November they were In the top 6,with McFaul signing giant striker Billy Whitehurst
Billy Whitehurst
William "Billy" Whitehurst was an English professional footballer during the 1980s-1990s.-Career:...
to boost the forward line.More Impressive results followed including a 2-2 draw with champions Everton,and a 1-1 draw at Anfield
Anfield
Anfield is an association football stadium in the district of Anfield, Liverpool, England, with a seating capacity of 45,522. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892 and was originally the home of Everton F.C. from 1884 to 1892, before they moved to Goodison Park...
against Liverpool,as well as beating Brian Clough
Brian Clough
Brian Howard Clough, OBE was an English footballer and football manager. He is most notable for his success with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. His achievement of winning back-to-back European Cups with Nottingham Forest, a traditionally moderate provincial English club, is considered to be...
's Nottingham Forest away 2-1,and beating Arsenal 1-0 at St James' Park with Glenn Roeder
Glenn Roeder
Glenn Victor Roeder is an English football manager and former player, most recently in charge at Norwich City. As a player, Roeder represented England B on 7 occasions...
getting the winner.Newcastle finished the season in 11th,a good position for McFaul given the chaos at the start of the season when he took over as manager.
Little transfer activity over the summer of 1986 meant that Newcastle had a bad start to 1986-1987 season and found themselves bottom of the table In November,however McFaul was given money to spend and he brought In Andy Thomas
Andy Thomas
Andrew "Andy" Sydney Withiel Thomas is an Australian-born American aerospace engineer and a NASA astronaut. He became a U.S. citizen in December 1986, hoping to gain entry to NASA's astronaut program...
and a club record £400,000 on Paul Goddard
Paul Goddard
Paul Goddard is a former professional footballer and football manager.During his playing career, he gained caps for England U21s and earned a single full cap for the England team against Iceland in June 1982...
from West Ham United,Goddard's arrival Inspired the team to wins over Chelsea, West Ham and Nottingham Forest.Newcastle were still bottom In March 1987 and they found help from Gascoigne and Goddard,with Goddard equaling a club record of scoring In 7 straight games,to finish the season In mid table with Aston Villa and Man City amongst the clubs to be relegated.Peter Beardsley
Peter Beardsley
Peter Andrew Beardsley MBE is an English former footballer who played between 1979 and 1999. He once set a record transfer fee in the game and represented his country 59 times between 1986 and 1996, once as captain...
was sold to Liverpool on the eve of the 87-88 season for a British record £1.7M to the anger of Newcastle's fans,so McFaul signed Brazil's flamboyant striker Mirandinha
Mirandinha
Francisco Ernani Lima da Silva, better known as Mirandinha , is a former professional Brazilian footballer....
to replace Beardsley and with Wimbledon winger Glyn Hodges
Glyn Hodges
Glyn Hodges , is a Welsh football manager and former player. He played 18 times for the Welsh national side, scoring twice.-Football career:...
coming In as well as Irish teenager Michael O'Neill
Michael O'Neill (footballer)
Michael Andrew Martin O'Neill is a former Northern Irish international association football player, who is now the manager of Shamrock Rovers.-Playing career:...
,Newcastle had their best season under McFaul finishing 8th,with Gascoigne taking all the plaudits winning PFA young player of the year.The summer of 1988 brought McFaul's biggest challenge as manager of Newcastle United,with key players Paul Gascoigne
Paul Gascoigne
Paul John Gascoigne , commonly referred to as Gazza, is a retired English professional footballer.Playing in the position of midfield, Gascoigne's career included spells at Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Lazio, Rangers, Middlesbrough, Everton and Gansu Tianma, where he scored at least a goal...
, Neil McDonald and Paul Goddard
Paul Goddard
Paul Goddard is a former professional footballer and football manager.During his playing career, he gained caps for England U21s and earned a single full cap for the England team against Iceland in June 1982...
all being sold for a combined fee of £3.7M,to the dismay of the Toon Army,with huge gaps In the team McFaul went on a shooping spree buying goalkeeper Dave Beasant
Dave Beasant
David John "Dave" Beasant, is a retired English football goalkeeper who began his career in the late 1970s. A well-travelled player, Beasant's former clubs include Wimbledon, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Southampton, Nottingham Forest, Portsmouth, Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton & Hove Albion and Wigan...
for £700,000,defender Andy Thorn
Andy Thorn (footballer)
Andy Thorn is a retired English footballer and the current manager of Coventry City.As a player at Wimbledon, he was part of the side that achieved a famous victory over Liverpool in the 1988 FA Cup Final...
for £800,000,winger John Hendrie
John Hendrie
John Grattan Hendrie is a Scottish former professional association footballer who played on the right wing or in attack....
for £500,000 and Hearts striker John Robertson
John Robertson
-United Kingdom politicians:* John Robertson , MP for Bothwell, Lanarkshire 1919–1926* John Robertson , British Labour Party MP 1961–1979 for Berwick and Haddington, then Berwick and East Lothian...
for £800,000.Despite Beardsley's sale Newcastle fans were In great spirits for the opening game of the season,as 3,000 travelled down to Goodison Park
Goodison Park
Goodison Park is a football stadium located in Walton, Liverpool, England. The stadium has been home to Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892 and is one of the world's first purpose-built football grounds...
.Newcastle lost 4-0 with Tony Cottee
Tony Cottee
Anthony Richard "Tony" Cottee is a former football player who now works as a television football commentator...
bagging a hat trick
Hat Trick
Hat trick, hat-trick or hattrick may refer to:* hat-trick — in various sports, achieving three goals, wickets, etc. in a single match* Hattrick — online football management game** Hattrick Limited — producers of this game...
,a battling 2-2 draw with Spurs
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
seemed to have been the start for McFaul,but no wins In the next 4 matches saw his Newcastle side under severe pressure and they pulled off a great win at champions Liverpool 2-1 with Mirandinha
Mirandinha
Francisco Ernani Lima da Silva, better known as Mirandinha , is a former professional Brazilian footballer....
and Hendrie scoring.A 3-0 defeat at home to Coventry City spelt the end for McFaul,who had only been given the job 3 years earlier for a couple of matches had given his all for Newcastle United.