O'Driscoll backed to be a big hit

O’Driscoll ended more than a week of speculation yesterday when he accepted the challenge of leading Reds in League One next season.

The 54-year-old former Doncaster and Bournemouth boss had been Crawley’s No.1 target from the moment Steve Evans quit to join Rotherham United in April.

O’Driscoll opted to leave his role as first team coach at Nottingham Forest to take up the reins at Broadfield Stadium after being promised the funds to mount a play-off challenge next season.

The former Republic of Ireland midfielder achieved promotion via the play-offs in his first full season in charge at Doncaster and his former assistant, Richard O’Kelly, believes he could have the same impact at Crawley.

O’Kelly, who worked with O’Driscoll for seven years at Doncaster and Bournemouth, said: “I think it is an excellent appointment.

“Crawley are just two years out of the Conference so to get a manager with the quality and credentials Sean has shows they are very ambitious and doing things the right way.

“Sean was successful at both Bournemouth and Doncaster, and also in the short space of time he was at Nottingham Forest, so I have no doubt he will be successful at Crawley too.

“Sean is ambitious but if you are not ambitious in football you are in the wrong game as it is a competitive sport.

“Everyone wants to be successful at the start of a new season but sometimes it doesn’t work out.”

“But when Hereford (who O’Kelly managed last season) played Crawley at the end of last season you could tell they had a good core of players down there so with somebody of Sean’s ability as manager it is a good combination.”

O’Driscoll will be unveiled at Broadfield Stadium tomorrow after being pinpointed as the ideal man to build on the club’s recent progress by director of football Steve Coppell.

Coppell will continue in that role while Craig Brewster, who led Reds to promotion in the final seven games in a caretaker capacity, will remain part of the coaching staff.