MARK Hughes played an under-21s international at Somerton Park but the Wales legend is braced for a first Rodney Parade experience tomorrow, complete with stick from the terrace.
The 59-year-old will aim to continue Bradford City’s League Two promotion push when his fifth-placed side take on Newport County AFC, who have pushed away from the relegation zone.
Hughes has hosted the Exiles twice – a 0-0 draw at the end of last season and 2-0 win at Valley Parade in August – but this is a first trip to south Wales with the Bantams.
He won 72 caps, scored 16 international goals – including the last winner against England in 1984 – and came close as manager to ending Wales’ wait for a major tournament in 2004.
Hughes, who was a Wrexham supporter at Wembley when County returned to the Football League in 2013, doesn’t expect any special treatment.
“I’m just viewed as an opposition manager, so I get the same level of stick coming my way,” he told Bradford’s Telegraph & Argus.
“One-to-one situations it’s maybe a little bit friendlier but en masse it doesn’t really change. I’m not expecting they’ll have the bunting out.
“It’s not a ground I’ve played on, but there are some good friends who used to be involved with Newport at ownership level.
“The club did a fantastic job getting out of the National League and back into the league itself. There are some good people down there.”
Hughes has won two Premier Leagues, four FA Cups, three League Cups, the European Cup Winners' Cup, the European Super Cup and the UEFA Cup.
He has been in charge for more than 450 top-flight games in charge of Blackburn, Southampton, Stoke, Fulham, QPR and Manchester City. Now he’s heading for the away dugout at Rodney Parade.
“He is an ex-international manager and it just shows he loves football. Bradford is a big club – they had 20,000 there recently – and he knows he can take that club higher,” said County assistant manager Joe Dunne.
“It says a lot for Mark Hughes and his staff that they can come into League Two and stand around in some environments that are tough.
“That’s a mark of someone who loves the game because there are some people who wouldn’t bother.
“It’s exciting when you get the mixture of a big club and a big manager, that adds extra to the game and we will feel that atmosphere.”
Dunne faced Hughes last season when with Colchester, enjoying a 3-0 win over the Bantams in Essex.
“It’s great for us coaches and managers when you have the chance to speak to Mark afterwards, which I have been lucky enough to do, he has amazing knowledge,” said the Irishman.
“He is with a club whose ambitions are to go back to where they feel they belong, but we need to put a dent in that.
“The data and statistics show that they are a difficult team to break down with lots of clean sheets and one of the best away records in the division.
“They have dangerous players in many areas but this is League Two and we know that if we play at our best, use the atmosphere and really do what we do well then we can cause them problems.
“These fixtures are the best – playing against top sides with top managers in front of big crowds. That is what you live for, players want to play in these environments.”
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