Up Close with: Hucknall Town player turned coach Michael Banister
As the final whistle sounded at Kirkby Road on the last day of April earlier this year, it not only confirmed Hucknall Town's play-off elimination at the hands of AFC Hinckley but it also marked the end of Michael Banister's long and successful semi-professional playing career.
The 37-year-old announced earlier in the season that he would hang up his boots at the conclusion of Hucknall's Uhlsport United Counties Division One campaign.
However, 'Bano', as he is affectionately known to the Hucknall Town faithful, isn't departing Watnall Road as he has joined the new look coaching set up at the football club for the new season.
Bano describes himself as 'Hucknall born and bred' and his love for football began in the town at the age of five.
Speaking exclusively to Hucknall Nub News, he said: "I played for Hucknall Town Harriers until I was about 11 or so and then I went to Hucknall Sports and then I stayed with Hucknall Sports until I went to men's football. I played as a centre forward believe it or not. I scored plenty of goals."
Malcolm Storer, Bano's coach at Hucknall Sports, remembers his quality standing out straight away and he soon formed a pivotal strike partnership with Malcolm's son Chris.
He said: "Martin Brown and I had already put together a good team at Hucknall Sports - it was made even better when we brought Mike into our Under 11 side for the 1995/96 season. It was a decision we never regretted.
"Always good for a laugh off the pitch, but so very determined to do his best on it, Mike's love of the game was so strong, even at 10 years old! With Hucknall Sports, he and my son were really prolific up front and throughout the seasons they played together, won many trophies. It was obvious to all involved that Mike was more than just a striker and that he would go on to play at a decent level in the men's game."
At the age of 16, Bano moved into men's football and signed for Rolls Royce. With this move came a change of position as he swapped being a striker for playing as a right wing back.
"I think it was because I had a bit of pace," he explained. "I was young and raw, and the centre forwards that they had were big strong centre forwards and I was nowhere near but they saw me as a right wing back so I ended up playing right wing back from 16 to 31."
After Rolls, spells at Wollaton and Gedling Town followed. His time at Wollaton yielded his first taste of silverware as he won a league and cup double with the club.
He then moved to Clifton at the age of 22, in a move that came completely out of the blue.
"I played a friendly for Calverton pre-season. A bloke called James Turner was the manager of Clifton and I ended up chatting to him, I knew him through football and I ended up going to Clifton. I think I was there nine seasons all in all.
"I loved Clifton, the social side of Clifton was brilliant, hence the reason why I ended up leaving. They were just a good side. I think the season we won the league with Clifton was probably the best side that I played in; it was a brilliant side that we had. We just had a really good team that worked hard, a lot of the players now play probably step four, step three level."
He joined the All-Whites when they were a step seven side and was part of the team that achieved promotion by winning the old Central Midlands League in the 2013/14 season
This wasn't the only success that Bano enjoyed as he also lifted the Central Midlands League Cup the season before the league triumph.
His time at Clifton came to an end in the summer of 2015, a decision he made so that he could spend more time with his family.
However, he didn't get the swansong he would have liked as Clifton were beaten 3-0 in the League Cup Final by the side he would end up moving to: Hucknall Town.
"We played Hucknall Town at Alfreton and our captain got sent off after 53 seconds.
"We should have been three or four up after an hour, we absolutely battered them with ten men and we just fell apart and lost 3-0. Their fitness just beat us.
"I went to Andy Graves (then Hucknall Town manager). At the time my friend (Junior Harding) was playing centre mid for Hucknall, and I went pre-season with him and that's when I ended up in central midfield. Andy asked me do you want to play centre mid and yeah, I played centre mid for six/seven years.
"It's a local side, I'd hit my thirties, and it was kind of do I want to travel ,and I was getting stick off the Mrs for being out all day Saturday and I'd just had a baby as well. It's literally two minutes round the corner for me. Obviously I've been to watch Hucknall growing up since I was knee high to a grasshopper so it was a no brainer for me really.
"My first ever season in centre mid I got player of the year and since then, every central midfielder who's played with me has won player of the year," says Bano beginning to laugh.
Asked what it was like to eventually sign for his home town club, Bano said: "It was nice. I'd not played in front of the Hucknall faithful. They were brilliant and they have been since the first day I got there to now basically.
"I don't think we've been beat for support. When we move across the road hopefully it'll attract a few more I can't see why it wouldn't.
"I get on with them really well. They know what they're going to get from me, they know I work hard and I'm a mouthy git. I like to organise, I like to shout, I think I must have had a run in with every player and every manager in the league. That's what I'm there for, it's part of my game, to annoy folk and break up the play.
"I've got a good relationship with all of them, there's a few that slate me in jest but I've kind of got used to them now after six/seven seasons."
This fondness is widely reciprocated by the Hucknall fans.
Ste Cooling who follows The Yellows home and away described Bano as: "A true leader, a fantastic player and an all-round great guy.
"For me, it (the reason he's a fan's favourite) was how welcome he made everybody feel, he would always give you a minute or 5 at the end of the game to chat honestly and openly about how he felt everything went, he was always the first to admit to a mistake.
"He always has a charm about him, referees hate the fact that they secretly love him."
Bano's willingness to move into midfield showed his respect for and trust in Andy Graves. Asked about their time together, he said of the outgoing manager: "We had a good relationship from the off. There was him, Stevo (Paul Stevenson) and Phil (Henry). Andy rarely got angry with people. Stevo's the one that gave everybody the rollockings and Phil was kind of the tactician and it worked really well.
"We played a risk and reward thing with Andy, he wanted us all to attack, what will be will be and we were successful for five/six seasons, until he left we were successful really.
"We were never out the top three or four, I know this season we finished in the play-offs and didn't quite get over the line in the semi-final but predominantly we always had a good attacking side and they knew what they wanted and stuck with it. They stuck with the same formation, it was regimental everybody knew what they were doing, and it worked. We just came up against one team every year that was better than us.
"The risk and reward worked up until we went into the United Counties, I think teams were just a little bit cleverer, just a bit more switched on and they were better players to be fair. The seasons before when we were in the Central Midlands we could do that against teams and we'd batter them.
"I think the higher we go up the more tactical nous you have to have. We were tired last year so the risk and reward didn't work as much and it showed against the better sides."
Bano's highlight during his time as a player at Hucknall was winning the league at step seven to get them into the United Counties League.
The Yellows were crowned champions of the Central Midlands Football League Division South during the 2018/19 season in impressive fashion as they won 22 of their 26 matches and went unbeaten at Watnall Road for the entire season. They netted an impressive 112 goals and finished with a goal difference of plus 88.
"That was the best season we've had. The league wasn't as strong as it was before but you still have to beat what's in front of you and that season I think we did it convincingly and we did it with games to spare as well which was good.
Hucknall finished the season 11 points clear of Matlock Reserves. Their promotion wasn't confirmed on the pitch, however.
"Quite a few of us went to watch Matlock and they had to win to stay in the title race and they got absolutely walloped by a team second/third from bottom, so we won the league without even playing with two games to spare.
"We deserved it that year we were really good that year to a man we were very good. I think the last game of the season was at home and we won 7-0 maybe, brilliant, we had a good party, got us up that was the be all and end all to get us out of that league and get us into this United Counties League which I personally think is a good league, it's a tough old league and teams will get stronger."
After two Covid interrupted seasons, one of which saw all of the results declared null and void and the season cancelled, 2021/22 marked a return to normality with the full fixture list completed.
Hucknall finished fifth to secure a play-off place. However, this ended in the aforementioned 3-0 defeat at the hands of AFC Hinckley.
Despite the disappointment of not achieving promotion, Bano still views the season as largely successful.
"I think for our first year in it to finish fifth I think was superb; obviously didn't get the fairy-tale ending against Hinckley. To be fair we weren't great all season so to finish fifth and not play as good as we could have done just shows if we do raise it that ten or 20% where we actually can finish.
"We had a good side, we just got tired, we got leggy. Teams were just a bit cleverer than us, to be fair it bodes well for next year because then we know what's expected of us and we know what we need to do to improve and hopefully we can."
The defeat prompted Andy Graves to resign as manager after nine years in the post, along with his assistant manager Paul Stevenson.
The club wasted little time in announcing Andy Ingle as Graves' successor and Banister as part of his backroom staff.
The new challenge is something that he is really looking forward to.
When asked what his role would entail Bano joked that he would be 'a gopher'.
He said: "Andy Ingle's the new first team manager, then we've got Phil Henry who's carried on as first team coach and I'm kind of assistant to both of them. I'm going to watch what they do and try and learn as much as I can. I'm a bridge between the management and the players, I've only just retired, and I still get on with the lads and obviously a new gaffer coming in could be a bit tough to get across to the players, I'll still listen to the management, if they want me to put across a point to players, I'll put across a point to players. I'm basically there to learn and see what I can do.
"I speak to a hell of a lot of the lads out of football as well, we all get together for socials, I'm friends with the Hucknall lads especially. I think the gap can be bridged; I think that's a good phrase to use. If they've got a problem with the management or if they've got a problem with whatever it is they're doing and they're too scared to speak to the manager, let's say, then I'm kind of there to say look this is what such and such thinks and so on and so on. But first and foremost, I'm there to learn, learn off Phil, learn off Andy and I want to progress obviously into that kind of thing, coaching and management in the next few years really.
"I'm predominantly a winner, I've not really played for a team that's been out of the top three or four since I've played men's football. It's standards really, the same standards that I want to take in to helping the new management, hopefully they're winners as well and we can breed it into the lads that we expect nothing less but to win and that's how I played."
Bano hopes the team can build on last season's league form to once again challenge at the sharp end of the table.
"We just aim to finish as high as we can. We finished fifth last year and we didn't play very well so if we can eke another ten or 20% out of the lads this year, with a few added additions hopefully, we can finish a lot higher and again push for promotion but at any level you want to finish as high you can.
"We're predominantly keeping the same squad, we'll lose a couple, maybe add a couple, we're all together from the off we don't need to mould them all together because they all know what their jobs are, the only thing we need to work on is what the new management team want within a system, what formation they want to play and work on that but I can't see it being a problem at all."
Another change for the club this season will be when they leave their long time home of Watnall Road and relocate a few hundred yards to their brand new purpose built ground on Aerial Way. This is something that Bano cannot wait for.
"It's going to be excellent. I went over recently and had a look inside and on the pitch, absolutely fantastic, it's going to be special when it's up and running. I believe the handover's in September and then it gives us six weeks to move in. It's going to be special and then hopefully we can attract a few more fans. First and foremost hopefully we're playing good football and then we can attract a few more fans once the stadium's up and running. It's good for Hucknall as well, it's good for the town itself, hopefully the team can kick on."
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