CHAIRMAN Mansell Wallace believes Dean Holdsworth's experience helped to make him the stand-out candidate to become Chelmsford City's new manager.
As well as a playing career that saw him make more than 500 Premiership and Football League appearances, the new Clarets boss has already won the Conference South in his days with Newport County.
He left Newport for Aldershot in 2011, and managed the Shots in the Football League until February, when he was sacked after a poor run of form – although they were 20th when he left, and were subsequently relegated under Andy Scott.
He has signed a two-year deal to become the full-time manager at Melbourne Stadium, and Wallace is delighted to have got his man.
"He's been there, done that, got the T-shirt," Wallace said. "He's a class act, he's very professional, he's done all his coaching badges.
"He's got great motivation, he's very technical in the way he does it, the fitness levels are carefully monitored, there's a lot of weights involved and they are going to be at their peak.
"When you listen to him you realise how he won the league because he's so professional."
His former club Newport passed Aldershot on their way into the Football League, and Wallace believes Holdsworth's experience at a higher level is another reason why he was the best candidate for the job.
"It's a good coup," he added. "I think he'd like to take us through like he did Newport.
"He's got a motivation, he's very ambitious and I think he'll perhaps take us up to another level and then springboard off somewhere else, he's proved he can do it.
"He's won the league, but he's also managed at the higher levels, which is important because there's no point in winning the league and having only been at this level and then find it's a big culture shock.
"He is full-time, it's the first time we've done that [while I have been chairman] because Glenn [Pennyfather] was always part-time, but Dean will be full-time and he wants to get very much involved with the youth set-up, bring more players into it which is obviously exciting for the club."
Holdsworth's first task is to build a squad for next season, and Wallace believes it will take a couple of years before Holdsworth has completely shaped the squad as he desires.
He said: "He will be starting with almost a blank canvas, we haven't signed on any players specifically to give the new man a blank canvas to work with.
"It's going to take two or three years to get the team together, there will be some that stay, some that move on and we'll get others in to replace them.
"We've got to accept that it's going to be up to a three-year plan."
One of Wallace's main reasons for sacking Pennyfather was that things had "stagnated", and he believes Holdsworth's arrival has brought a buzz to the club.
"The pre-season friendlies will be very much more exciting than they have in the recent years," he added.
