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Delaney’s making his mark again at Villa
Mark Delaney’s superb footballing career with Aston Villa and Wales was brought to an abrupt end when he damaged the posterior cruciate ligament in his knee but now the popular full back from Goodwick is putting something back into football as a member of the Villa’s coaching staff at their much-respected Academy.
Very few clubs have a better success rate at producing home-grown players for their first team and Mark’s role at the Villa Academy is to look after the under 13s and 14s as they take on other top clubs like Liverpool, Manchester United, Everton and Arsenal. He trains the promising young players signed up for Villa on three evenings a week and travels with them to matches on Sundays, where they take on top opposition in their quest for experience that will serve them well for their futures.
Still loves coming home
But he still finds time to come home to visit parents Mike and Angelina, plus big brother Nigel and sister Tina - and we were delighted to catch up with this talented and modest former footballer when he was in the county over Easter and found time to go down to Phoenix Park and watch his former club Goodwick United draw 1-all with Narberth. Mark told us that he was delighted to be home and was really enjoying his work with the Villa youngsters.
Cracking lads to coach
He took up his coaching role at Villa in December 2007 and says that he currently has a cracking bunch of lads in his care who are already showing considerable potential but he is intent on not rushing them. Match days are great and everyone shares that anticipation of top competition against other very good sides – and Mark is equally keen as his players to see them do well.
“I wish that I had taken my coaching badges earlier, when I was still playing,” Mark told us, “but I have already passed my C and B licences and am now working for my A coach’s licence as the next step in my coaching career. My own experiences when I was with Manchester United as a kid have helped me become aware that different players develop more at different stages in their young lives and we try to get them to play with a smile on their faces and a sense that football as a 13 or 14 year old should, above all else, be great fun.”
Interesting start for Mark
It must all seem a long way now from the time that he made the grade in football, starting with Goodwick and then moving up to Carmarthen Town, where he captained them in the Welsh Premier League from his full back berth before being transferred to Cardiff City and making the transition in style, with his ability to read play well, his speed into the tackle and ability to play the ball forward. It was a similar story at Villa Park, where he became one of the most popular players as he made 193 appearances and had the editor of the Aston Villa web site saying:
“He is a great defender as he proved by switching effortlessly to centre back for his national team. With Mark at the back you have no worries about being left exposed on the right hand side. He is hard in the tackle, he is quick and always gives 100%.”
When rumours abounded that he was wanted by Newcastle United another fan wrote on the web site:
“Villa and Wales right back Mark Delaney, rated by many as one of our better players, is rumoured to be 'mulling over' a possible move to join Bobby's dazzlers up in the North East. He is one of our key players and when he is missing we count the days to his return. And he is a Holte favourite - a sure sign that his effort is never in question.
“You know what you're getting from Mark every match and managers like that, and he is not one of the players I would look to replace if I had a few million to spend on the team.”
Undoubted highlights
Mark played in the 2000 FA Cup Final against Chelsea, which he says was an amazing experience, and was also a star with Wales in his 36 appearances, a number of them as captain. He readily admits that gaining his first Welsh cap was another great moment and he enjoyed testing his skills against some of the best attackers in the world. It was a body blow for John Toshack when Mark got injured and Tosh said of his talented right back or centre half, in an article entitled,
‘Toshack bemoans loss of Delaney’,
"Losing Mark Delaney is a blow for us as he was our most experienced defender and that is an area where we are struggling," said Toshack. “He shows a great attitude for younger players to follow on the training pitch and in matches – and will be very hard to replace.”
And finally . . .
But now Mark is well and truly back in the game and putting his wealth of experience to good effect. His untimely loss to Welsh and Aston Villa football is already being countered at Villa because he is passing on all that he knows to youngsters at a key time in their careers and who knows? Perhaps one day we will see Mark helping to coach Wales in some capacity because he has so much he can pass on. We at PembrokeshireSport.co.uk would relish that moment because Mark Delaney has always been a great flag-bearer for our county and it is great to see him back in action with football once more!
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