More than 30 years after first walking into Valley Parade, Peter Jackson spent his first day as manager of Bradford City today - a job he was probably always destined for. Jackson may be only here for a brief, interim period, but while he is in the hot-seat, he will remain favourite and be "playing for keeps".
An awful lot has happened and been said since Jackson first signed for City as a teenager in the 1970s. Jackson will certainly divide popular opinion among the fans and like any candidate for the Valley Parade hotseat, his attributes will be hotly debated. But by going straight on the record to say today is a huge honour for him, Jackson has neatly summed himself up.
As a superb central defender, Jackson became the club's youngest captain and leader of a very young team following City's financial maelstrom of 1983. He had already experienced one promotion and became an even more central character of the first period of Bantam Progressivism when he led his side to the Third Division title in 1985. Victory was overshadowed by disaster of the Valley Parade fire, but Jackson proved what a strong, mature head he had, by leading the club through a dark period, not just on the pitch, but so admirably off it. He left to join Newcastle United but returned for a two-year spell at the end of the 80s.
Joining Huddersfield and then going on to match City's arch-rivals twice tarnished his reputation among some of the City faithful, particularly for his reactions on derby day and many a choice word. But if the players can show just a fraction of his passion and react in the same way his own teammates did in his first spell at Valley Parade, then he will prove to be a successful manager.
Jackson won't tick all the boxes, there will be better candidates in a lot of attributes, and many fans will have other choices, but the players will have the honour of being managed by a true club legend. Of course, we have been here before ...
Good luck Jacko, you may well need it.
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