"Ian Holloway might have begun his career at hometown club Bristol Rovers but there will be no time for sentiment when he returns on Saturday in the opposition dugout for a competitive fixture for the first time. It was almost 30 years ago in 1996 when Holloway first stepped into the Memorial Stadium as a manager and, while his career since has taken him all across English football, he has never returned with another club until now with Swindon Town."
"Yet the 63-year-old dismissed the notion of emotions getting in the way when he returns - the focus is solely on getting all three points for the Robins as they try to close the gap on League Two leaders Walsall. "I owe an awful lot to that football club but that was then and this is now," Holloway told BBC Radio Wiltshire. "I owe an awful lot to Swindon now and I'm very glad to say that people I see in and around the ground, I go away, they're just like [fans at] Rovers used to be - absolutely incredible so I want to do well for them.""
"Holloway even jokes it has been so long since he was with the Gas that most of their fans will be too young to even know who he is and his significance to the club. "Half of them don't even know who I am - you've got to be over 25 by quite a long way to know who I am," he added. Holloway was born in Kingswood, just to the east of Bristol, and credits Rovers, who he joined as a player in their youth set-up aged nine, with turning him into the person he is today."
Ian Holloway will return to the Memorial Stadium to face his hometown club Bristol Rovers for the first time as an opposing manager in a competitive fixture. The 63-year-old left Rovers decades earlier after a long playing and early coaching association and now manages Swindon Town. Holloway emphasizes that sentiment will not influence his approach and that the immediate priority is securing three points to help Swindon close the gap on League Two leaders Walsall. He expresses gratitude for Rovers' role in his development and appreciation for Swindon supporters, noting many modern Rovers fans may not recognize his past significance.
Read at www.bbc.com
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