Leadership skills inspire rise of Eric and the Reds

Others might disagree. But whatever personal opinion is on Whalley putting his money where his mouth is for Accrington Stanley, there's no doubt that his transition from manager to chairman has turned the club around.

"People had a lot of respect for John Alty, who was chairman before me," Whalley said.

"He had done his best for the club but it needed to go that stage further with new ideas.

"It wasn't a case of me wanting to be made chairman though. I'd just gone back to the club as manager after illness and John asked me to join the board, even though I didn't have any shares.

"After about 12 months he wanted to sell the club and I decided to buy the shares off him. Being the major shareholder you automatically became chairman and I've been that ever since."

But it wasn't just Whalley's bank balance which inspired him to get involved with Stanley.

His love of football and sport in general, especially Cricket, has meant he has been hands on with a number of clubs.

And when he wasn't playing, he was watching.

"When I worked for Clarks, I'd sometimes start at 3am, deliver to Leicester, then I could get home in time to watch football," he said.

"I was a Blackburn fan. I played as well but I always seemed to get to watch the big games at Rovers."

On the local scene, Whalley the footballer earned a reputation as a prolific striker after scoring 107 goals in just one season.

"It was a record, and the then Blackburn Times presented me with a medal for that," he beamed.

"The seasons were a lot shorter then - you could finish playing cricket and play football, and vice versa.

"Now, they're going on longer and longer and the two sports are running into each other's seasons.

"But I enjoy both.

"I played football for Blackburn St John's in the Blackburn Combination League. Going back a few years ago, when Blackburn Central was first formed, I played at centre forward for them and that's when I scored 107 goals in one year.

"Funnily enough, the year after I went playing at Accrington and was full back for the A-team. But I've played everywhere - in goal, at the back, up front."

Would current Stanley manager John Coleman have signed a young Eric Whalley?

"I'm sure he would," Whalley smiled.

But while he has a big passion for football, he has - and no doubt always will - find time for the sound of leather on willow.

"I love my cricket. I never miss going on either a Saturday or Sunday - I always try to watch at least one game a weekend. I'm still the president at Rishton but if they've not got a game I'll go and watch my son Russ playing for Great Harwood," he said.

"My mother's family were all cricketers and I played for the North Lancs Schoolboys, Accrington Town Team, and I made my debut for Rishton as a 15-year-old in the Lancashire League."

Whalley had a 15-year spell as captain at Blackburn Road and got the best out of them, establishing a reputation as a taskmaster.

"We had a brilliant team. We won the cup about four times but unfortunately we finished runners up the same amount of times," he said.

"But we had some good pros at Rishton, and in the league.

"Cricket's the only game that, as an amateur not getting paid, you can play against the best in the world.

"West Indian greats like Wes Hall, Charlie Griffiths, Roy Gilchrist - even the top players in the world were frightened of these people and they all came into the Lancashire League.

"I can remember playing against Charlie in the Worsley Cup final in 1964. There were 8,000 on at Burnley and Charlie had bowled us out in a league game a few weeks before. But against all the odds, we won the cup and it was a great occasion."

Whalley has made many friends on the cricket circuit over the years, including England manager Duncan Fletcher, who was the professional at Rishton in 1977.

"I taught him everything he knows," Whalley laughed.

But he made one or two enemies along the way too.

"I liked to win, that was for sure. But I was one of those that would fall out with people but always buy them a drink after," he said.

"I once threw a plate in the direction of one of the supporters up at East Lancs. There was nothing on it - we'd have eaten the pies first!

"I've thrown all sorts at our players."

Whalley didn't just display his impassioned leadership skills in cricket, he was a revered football manager too, taking charge of Great Harwood and Clitheroe, where he won Third, Second and First Divisions in consecutive seasons - one of the most successful periods in the club's history.

He then returned to the then Crown Ground in 1986 and was an instant hit as they achieved promotion to the HFS Loans League at the first attempt, but he resigned the following season after just missing out on back-to-back promotions.

The seaside beckoned, and Whalley became boss of Morecambe - the only managerial job he was paid for.

But he couldn't stay away from Stanley for long and returned to Hyndburn, replacing Alty as chairman in 1995.

Signing John Coleman as manager of the Reds in 1999 is arguably his biggest coup.

"We were going downwards instead of upwards, and the big turning point was when John came," Whalley said.

"After getting relegated and the manager Wayne Harrison deciding to go to America, it was a blessing in disguise. I knew John, I asked him to come to the club and we haven't looked back since.

"I suppose for anyone who's a true supporter these are exciting times because we've come a long way very, very quickly.

"Somebody once said to me 'I think you've come too far, too soon'.

"How can anybody tell? As long as you've got money in the bank and the team's doing okay I think you've got to keep pushing forward."

Speaking of the future, Whalley added: "Hopefully next year we'll get back in the Football League and see what happens then. Whether my family will get involved with the club in a few years time I don't know, but if they have I'm sure they'll be as ambitious as I am."