George Alan Ashman (30 May 1928 – 30 November 2002) was an English association footballer, best remembered for some notable managerial successes.
Playing career
Born in
Rotherham
Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...
,
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...
, Ashman had an undistinguished amateur playing career with
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
and
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
during the ad hoc competitions of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
.
In 1951, he signed for
Carlisle United for whom he made 214 appearances, scoring 98 goals.
In 1958, suffering from
cartilage damage, he retired from playing to manage the poultry farm of one of the club's directors. As a recreation, he managed amateur team
Penrith and when
Third Division Carlisle found themselves in need of a manager in February 1963, the club offered Ashman the job. During his playing career he played
cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
for
Cumberland in the 1956
Minor Counties Championship.
In 2009 Ashman was named at 18th in a list of
Carlisle United's top 100 players, compiled by local newspaper the ''
News and Star
The ''News and Star'' (formerly the ''Evening News and Star'' and ''Cumberland Evening News'') is a local tabloid newspaper in Cumbria. As of 18 October 2018, it belongs to Newsquest who produce several regional newspapers throughout the UK.
...
''.
Management career
Ashman was too late to prevent that season's relegation but the following season saw a bounce back, and the season after that, the Third Division championship. Leading
Division Two for much of the
1965–66 season, the club was disappointed to miss out on promotion by finishing third.
Ashman's exploits had not gone unnoticed and, in 1967, he joined
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
, leading them in a series of exciting cup runs, crowned by victory in the 1968
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
. His new club was, however, impatient for further trophies and he was dismissed in 1971, hearing of the news from a waiter while on holiday in Greece.
Somewhat ironically, he went on to manage
Olympiakos before returning to Carlisle in August 1972, leading the club to the
First Division and a brief spell at the top of the entire English league.
The heights were short-lived and Ashman left the club to manage
Workington
Workington is a coastal town and civil parish at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England. The town was historically in Cumberland. At the 2011 census it had a population of 25,207.
Locat ...
from 1975 to 1977 and
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
before settling for junior coaching and scouting roles at
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 188 ...
,
Hereford United
Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'Th ...
and Swallows of Walsall. He died in 2002 in
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
. A minute's silence was held in his honour prior to West Bromwich Albion's home match against
Sunderland.
Honours
Managerial
;
Carlisle United (1963–1967) & (1972–1975)
*
Football League 2nd Tier (Currently
Football League Championship):
**2nd Runners-up:
1973–74
*
Football League 3rd Tier (Currently
Football League One):
**Winners:
1964–65
*
Football League 4th Tier (Currently
Football League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
):
**Runners-up:
1963–64
;
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
(1967–1971)
*
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
:
**Winners:
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
;
Olympiacos
Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number ...
(1971–1972)
*
Greek League:
**Runners-up:
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
*
Greater Greece Cup:
**Winners:
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashman, Alan
1928 births
English footballers
Sheffield United F.C. players
Nottingham Forest F.C. players
Carlisle United F.C. players
English Football League players
English football managers
Carlisle United F.C. managers
Olympiacos F.C. managers
West Bromwich Albion F.C. managers
Workington A.F.C. managers
Walsall F.C. managers
English Football League managers
English cricketers
Cumberland cricketers
2002 deaths
Penrith F.C. managers
Association football forwards