Bellshill appoint new management team

Dec 6 2012 by David Bell, Hamilton Advertiser

Two players who were part of a successful Pollok side under former Bellshill boss Rab Sneddon have formed a management team at the Lanarkshire club.

Robert Downs and David Turnbull became good friends during that medal-winning time, both nurtured ambitions of being involved in coaching, and they moved quickly when the opportunity at Bellshill became available.

The deal went through fairly smartly, with Bellshill president Paul Fox saying: “They seem to be an ambitious pair and I’m sure they will bring a freshness about the place.”

Robert Downs, whose two-year spell at Hamilton Accies ended after having to undergo two knee cartilage operations, said: “When we heard the Bellshill job come up we immediately approached Paul.

“We liked what we heard from him and obviously he liked what he heard from us.

“This is a great opportunity – it’s new to us and we’ll make mistakes, but we will work hard and we expect the players to do the same.”

David Turnbull added: “Paul explained the way the club was run and their ambitions, and that fitted in exactly with the way Robert and I hope to progress our careers by moving into coaching.

“As long as they are ambitious and keen to progress that’s all we could ask at this stage.

“This is the type of coaching opportunity that we have spoken about for years.

“We picked up a few good ideas while at Pollok and we look forward to putting them into practice in our own way at Bellshill.”

Striker Downs started with Queen’s Park under-18s, moving to Pollok for two seasons and then Accies for a season, when he had two knee operations.

He returned to the junior ranks with Arthurlie, where he spent four years under manager Frank Lynch.

Downs stepped up to Cowdenbeath for a year, before returning to Pollok, where he met up with David Turnbull.

After a fifth knee operation he quit playing and turned to coaching.

Turnbull, also a striker, had a spell as a schoolboy at Motherwell when Alex McLeish was manager.

He also had a brief spell in England with Preston North End and in Australia before returning to Under-21 football in Glasgow.

He stepped up to Maryhill, then had brief spells with Stranraer and Stirling Albion before Sneddon signed him for Pollok.

He then spent seven months with Petershill before work commitments ended his playing career.

Turnbull has some coaching experience, having served a spell with amateur outfit Knightswood Juveniles two seasons ago.