Royal Lady Well I've yet to hear of any black person moaning that they can't get a job in football coaching/management - and until I do, I'll continue to believe that Jason Roberts is just inventing a problem that isn't actually there. Thanks then.
Who are you thanking?
Anyway, you can only hear a black person if you bother listening. i.e. look it up - took me a few seconds to find two examples.
Case Study 1 - Luther BlissettLuther Blissett was one of the first black footballers to play in Italy, but his hopes of a ground-breaking impact in management were not realised. As a player, he gained experience abroad, played in every division of the Football League, became an England international and has since completed his coaching qualifications. To date, his only coaching jobs in the Football Leagues were spells at York City and Watford.
"I got my qualifications, started applying for jobs and didn't get interviews. I started applying at 30 and I'm now in my early 50s. People say persevere, but how long can you persevere? I started doing coaching at 17 and always knew that I wanted to stay in the game and contribute something. But eventually, you think, 'Shall I do this forever?' Attitudes have changed in many areas, but in terms of the boardroom and the organisation, there is often not the trust and belief that they can do that job. There's a perception that they can't do things. Some chairmen possibly don't want a black person to be the face of their club. They run the club and make their decisions.
"Statistics say it's getting more difficult. There are fewer English managers in the Premier League, they're taking more jobs in the Championship and it all has a knock-on effect.There needs to be more transparency. You apply for a job in football and you don't know the criteria. It's down to the personal choice of the chairman. All you want to know is that you've had a proper shout. I got the odd letter saying I didn't have the experience. That's the biggest load of rubbish. How do you get the experience if no one gives you a job?"
Case Study 2 - Viv AndersonViv Anderson made history when he became the first black player to represent England in 1978. The enormous progress that black players have made over the past three decades, however, has not been replicated in the dug-out.
Anderson's first job in coaching was as player-manager with Barnsley in 1993-94 and he kept them in what is now the Championship. He then moved to Middlesbrough where he spent seven years as assistant to Bryan Robson. In that time, Middlesbrough achieved two promotions and reached two League Cup and one FA Cup finals. Since leaving Middlesbrough in 2001, he has not had another job offer and now runs his own company. "The statistics are scary," Anderson said. "I'm disappointed but not surprised and it's an issue which needs to be addressed. I would say my CV is pretty good, but I've just got on with doing my own thing.
"There's an unconscious racism. Black kids want role models. There were successful black players and the next thing is to have successful black managers. At the moment, they're not getting the opportunity. You get to a level and there are barriers in front of you. It used to be thought that black players were flair players - that you couldn't be in a position of responsibility. They said we couldn't play in the cold, but I used to wear short sleeves and my job was to defend - that was what Brian Clough told me to do. I think there is a preconception now that they can't perform in the boardroom."
So is there a stereotype of black players being good athletes, but perhaps not such good thinkers? "Exactly right," said Anderson.
EDIT: (a third)
Sol Campbell"I want to start abroad," said the 39-year-old in an exclusive interview with the Guardian. "There are no opportunities for me here, not until attitudes change anyway. Everyone has to ask themselves why there are not more black managers in this country and why the likes of [former Sheffield United striker] Brian Deane have to go abroad [to Sarpsborg 08 in Norway] to get a chance. I've spoken to other black players who want to coach and they feel the same, that attitudes here are archaic. I hope and pray the environment changes."
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Anyway, if more black people came out and said they were turned down, I expect the next 'line of defence' would be that it was nothing to do with colour, they just weren't good enough.
