HAK-ING INTO MY TOP MINDS

BARRY FRY, Martin O'Neill, Frank Clark, Gary Johnson, John Still, Graham Taylor Hakan Hayrettin has enjoyed a front row seat with some of football's biggest names.

- Matt Badcock

Whether it was winning Conference championships under Fry at Barnet and O'Neill at Wycombe where they also won the FA Trophy - or part of Still's trusted management staff at title-winning Luton, the 54-year-old has had success both as a player and in management.

Hayrettin, of course, has had it in his own right as a No.1 too, with title wins at Grays Athletic - racking up a record points total - and, most recently in 2022, National League South glory at Maidstone United alongside his high- ly-respected assistant Terry Harris.

"How fortunate am I?" Hayrettin says. "I've been blessed. Nothing was put on a plate. I had to work hard for it. And that's like in any team - you have to earn the right and work hard. No one is going to stand there at 5pm on a Saturday and say, 'Here's three points'. You've got to work hard to get that."

Graft has been at the centre of everything - as well as picking up nuggets of management skills from the best.

Motivator

"I have been very fortunate," Hayrettin says. "Barry Fry used to say to us, 'If they score two, we've got to score three'. That was the mentality.