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Postcard from ... Morecambe

Sammy McIlroy would be entitled to have ideas above his station. As a Manchester United player, he spent 12 years at Old Trafford and lifted the FA Cup in 1977, while, in the green shirt of Northern Ireland, he played in the World Cup finals in 1982 and 1986.

So why is he managing Morecambe in Coca-Cola League Two and why does he describe last season’s promotion from the Conference as one of the proudest achievements of his career?

Postcard from ... Swansea City

Rafael Benítez is not the only Spanish manager making waves in English football. Swansea City have the stadium and the fans to make it to the top flight but something has been holding them back for the past 25 years — a half-decent team. When Roberto Martinez replaced Kenny Jackett in the dugout at the Liberty Stadium in February, Swansea still had a chance of making the League One play-offs for the second successive season but even with Lee Trundle in attack, they fell at the final hurdle on the last day of the season.

“It was not a disappointing end to the season because it was a big achievement to finish as well as we did,” Martinez said. “We have a fantastic squad and hugely passionate supporters and we all dream about the Premier League but in the short term we have to concentrate on developing a winning mentality.”

Martinez picked up the coaching bug from his father who was a manager in Spain and he had no problems adapting to the rough and tumble of the lower leagues when he joined Wigan Athletic as a skilful midfield player in July 1995. “I don’t miss places, I only miss people,” Martinez said. “I settled in really quickly because English fans are very passionate about football.”

That passion nearly boiled over when Swansea agreed to sell Trundle to Bristol City last month, but Martinez is convinced that £1 million for a 29-year-old was good business especially because the forward made it clear that he wanted to prove himself at a higher level. “We never wanted to sell him but we had to allow him to chase his dream,” Martinez said. “It was bad timing because it was 10 days before our first league game but we got a fair return.”

The proceeds of the sale will ensure that Martinez can flex his financial muscles when the transfer window opens in January but one player who is unlikely to be pulling on the white shirt — unless he lowers his wage demands — is local hero John Hartson. “He is a true legend and it would be fantastic if he could come home but it would be very difficult for us to pay Premier League wages.”

Get Swansea out of League One and Martinez realises that he would be only one division away from crossing swords with Benítez in the top flight. “I’ve met Rafa a few times and I’m one of his biggest admirers,” Martinez said. “He is one of the most effective coaches in the world but I’m too busy at the moment to dream about Liverpool.”

KAVEH SOLHEKOL

Postcard from ... Darlington

What is in a name? Quite a lot if you support Darlington (Kaveh Solhekol writes). The Coca-Cola League Two club played at Feethams for 120 years until they moved to a new stadium in 2003, which is when the problems started.

The new ground was bankrolled by George Reynolds, a former safecracker who was the chairman at the time, so it was christened The Reynolds Arena. After Reynolds’s arrest for money-laundering, the name was changed to The New Stadium. Then the club sold the naming rights, so it became The Williamson Motors Stadium before being renamed The 96.6 TFM Darlington Arena. This season the stadium has become The Balfour Webnet Darlington Arena and so far, so good.

Dave Penney’s team are top of the table, playing high-tempo, attacking football and on course to leave the basement division for the first time in 16 years. “We’re doing well because we have good players,” Penney said. “Since I got the job last year we have let about 20 players go and brought in about 15. The new players are a lot better and we are reaping the rewards.”

Penney proved his credentials by transforming the fortunes of Doncaster Rovers and his no-nonsense approach seems to be working again. George Houghton, the millionaire chairman, has set his sights on establishing Darlington as a Championship club. Barry Simmonds was appointed the club’s managing director in July and the former Bolton Wanderers director of scouting’s long-term ambition is to see the team playing in front of a capacity home crowd of 25,000.

“We always try to win, rather than not be beaten,” Simmonds said. “We have got a ground that is almost Premiership standard and we are aiming to get to the Championship. We’re not shouting about it from the rooftops, but that is our goal. We’ve had 124 years of promise at this club but not much delivery. The energy here is very tangible and we need to keep that going.”

Postcard from...Preston

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Derek Shaw knew that the writing was on the wall when he walked back to his car nine days ago, after Preston North End’s 3-0 home defeat by Colchester United, and found it covered in spit. The Preston chairman has a thick skin, but enough was enough and, 48 hours later, he announced that he would stand down. “This sort of thing doesn’t bother me,” Shaw said “But when you give so much time and effort for the job and seem to be everyone’s fall guy, the time has come for it to stop.”

Few Preston fans shed a tear. The Coca-Cola Championship club have come within touching distance of the top flight twice in the past three years, but the sale of players such as David Nugent and Claude Davis and the departure of Billy Davies, the manager, who transformed the club’s fortunes, have left Preston back at square one.

Postcard from... Leyton Orient

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If you run a football club you know that sooner or later you are going to have to bite the bullet and deliver some bad news. Results have been terrible, attendances are falling, the crowd are getting on your back and your bottom line is taking a hit. It is a familiar story and it has a familiar ending — the manager gets the boot.

For most chief executives, giving the manager his P45 would be part and parcel of the job, but relieving Martin Ling of his duties would be difficult for Matthew Porter. Porter, the Leyton Orient chief executive, is 27 and Ling is 41. “I’ve known Martin for about ten years because I used to sponsor his kit when he played for the club,” Porter said. “Our relationship is absolutely spot-on and we work really well together.”

Postcard from... Brentford

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As a statement of intent, it takes some beating. John Mackie was keen to make an impression as the new Brentford captain on Saturday. As Ready to Go by Republica blasted out over the PA at Griffin Park, Mackie led out the home team with a ball in his hands. Within seconds, it had been booted out of the ground and Mackie was posing for pictures with the match sponsors. Welcome to Coca-Cola League Two.

“We can play wonderful football, but life is not always about playing wonderful football,” Terry Butcher, the new Brentford manager, said after watching his team draw 1-1 with Mansfield Town. “It’s about dealing with the opposition and what they throw at you.”

Butcher was helping out with coaching at Partick Thistle and licking his wounds after being dismissed as manager of Sydney FC when he received an offer that he could not refuse. Brentford had finished bottom of League One and needed a manager with the hunger and drive to transform the club’s fortunes. Butcher never shirked a challenge as a player and the 48-year-old former Ipswich Town, Rangers and England defender jumped at the chance to erase the bitter memories of his Australian adventure.

“It’s a test for the heart — I might have to get it checked soon, but it is wonderful to be back,” Butcher said.

Without Ben Hamer, the 19-year-old goalkeeper Butcher signed on loan from Reading on Friday, Brentford’s season would have started with a comprehensive defeat instead of an encouraging draw. Hamer learnt his trade at the Reading academy and on loan at Woking last season and only his sharp reflexes — and the woodwork — prevented Mansfield from returning to Nottinghamshire with three points. “We’ve signed some good players and I love their honesty,” Butcher said. Adrian Pettigrew, Alan Connell and Ben Starosta may not be household names, but if they make the most of the chance that Butcher has given them, Brentford have a good chance of bouncing back into League One.

“We’re on an unbeaten run of one,” Butcher said. “I’m going to go home and have a few glasses of red wine.”

KAVEH SOLHEKOL

Postcard from... Macclesfield

If you support Macclesfield Town, everyone else is a glory-hunter. The Coca-Cola League Two club avoided losing their Football League status on the final day of last season. Within weeks, Paul Ince, the former England captain, had left Moss Rose to become manager of Milton Keynes Dons and Macclesfield were back to square one.

The 20-minute walk from Macclesfield railway station to the club's compact ground tells you everything you need to know about why supporting The Silkmen is a labour of love. Stop at any junction and within a minute someone in a replica football shirt will walk past you. However, almost every shirt is red and has Rooney on the back.

"There is nothing we can do about being 20 miles away from Manchester United,” Patrick Nelson, the chief executive of the Cheshire club said. “The only way we are going to attract new supporters is by being successful on the pitch. We are making progress, we have a plan and we’re confident that Ian Brightwell, our new manager, can carry on the good work.”

Nelson does not have much in common with other football club chief executives. If you telephone Macclesfield, he will probably answer your call. If you turn up at Moss Rose to buy a ticket, he will show you round the ground and take your cash, and if you are shopping in the town centre on a Friday, you will see him manning a stall with a view to drumming up interest in the club.

Nelson’s dedication to the club is absolute and even in their darkest hour — when the team were seven points adrift at the foot of the bottom tier last October — he came up with the goods by replacing Brian Horton with Ince.

“We were delighted to get Paul, but we always knew that he wasn’t going to stay for very long because he is very ambitious,” Nelson said. “If it wasn’t for him, we wouldn’t be kicking off the season in the League.”

Ince will be back at Moss Rose in 12 days for Macclesfield’s first home league game of the season — against MK Dons — and Nelson is confident that he will receive a warm welcome.

“We are delighted that he is coming back so soon and it will be a great day,” Nelson said. “Let’s just hope that the only thing he leaves with is a nice cup of tea.

KAVEH SOLHEKOL