Cardiff City news 12/09/00

Tues 12th Sep 2000 - Halifax sack manager

lillis.jpg (2152 bytes) City's opponents tonight, Halifax Town, last night sacked their manager Mark Lillis. The shaymen were hammered 5 - 1 at Mansfield last Saturday which left them at the bottom of Division 3. Favourite to take over is Peter Jackson who would have been City manager if Clive Sullivan had completed his takeover of Cardiff earlier in the year. City coach Billy Ayre, a previous Halifax manager, could also be a candidate.

Report from Sporting Life.
Mark Lillis has been sacked as manager of Halifax Town after just 15 months in the job.

Lillis, 40, the former Aston Villa, Manchester City and Huddersfield striker, was axed after Saturday's 5-1 defeat at Mansfield left Halifax bottom of the Third Division.

Former Halifax defender Peter Jackson, out of work since being sacked as Huddersfield manager in May last year, is favourite to take over.

Also in the frame is former Leeds United and Northern Ireland defender Nigel Worthington.

It is not yet clear whether Lillis' assistant Peter Butler and goalkeeping coach Tony Parks remain in their posts but both have playing contracts anyway and are likely to stay at the club.

Report from Total Wales (before they knew Lillis was sacked).
HALIFAX TOWN were preparing to meet Cardiff City for a league clash at Ninian Park tonight - without a manager.

Mark Lillis was facing the sack after an emergency board meeting at The Shay Stadium last night.

Halifax, bottom of Division Three, without a win in six matches, suffered their heaviest defeat since regaining League status - 5-l at Mansfield Town on Saturday.

Peter Jackson is favourite to become The Shaymen’s 20th manager since the war.

The former Huddersfield manager, who would have succeeded Frank Burrows at Ninian Park had the Clive Sullivan take-over deal gone through last season, helped the Yorkshire club gain promotion from the Nationwide Conference.

But Billy Ayre could also be short-listed for a return to the club he managed between 1986 and 1990.

Leading Wales bookmakers Jack Brown were yesterday inundated with bets on Ayre succeeding Lillis.

Three of their shops between Cardiff and Swansea were asked to take Ł100 bets on Ayre who recently stepped down as City’s manager to become assistant to Bobby Gould, said Jack Brown spokesman Karl Williams.

Meanwhile Leo Fortune-West, City’s Ł300,000 signing from Rotherham, is 9-2 to score City’s first goal tonight.

And Jack Brown are offering 25-l on what Williams described as “the worst scenario” - Fortune-West opening the scoring and Rotherham equalising for a l-l draw.

Fortune-West was not signed in time to play in the Bluebirds’ 1-1 draw with Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday and watched the match from the stands at Ninian Park.