Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich stay ‘massive’ – Cameron Burgess

Identity was the word that kept being repeated as Jon Walters sat down with local and national media to unveil Stoke City’s plans for a new £12 million training ground facility. It was about forging and emphasising the club’s identity when it came to everything from building work to transfers, coaching in the academy to the commercial side of the business.

Walters has kept reiterating the importance of drive and energy, with a dash of flair, since returning to the club as sporting director and it is obvious that he wants those words to become synonymous with Stoke in the long haul.

But he insists it will not be a one-man show to get there, working with chairman John Coates and head coach Steven Schumacher for starters to forge expectations and standards.

Walters said: “We’re building that. In my head I have an idea but it’s not that my way is the only way. It’s a collaboration. You’ll see guidance from the ownership group, what they want to do and what they want to see. Then there’s Lee (Darnbrough, head of recruitment) coming in, the head coach, the academy. You have a process where everyone’s involved, you make a decision on what you want to do and there’s a buy-in.

“I know what I want, I know what John wants and the owners want. It’s a case of leading people but getting their input and you’re all part of it, you’ve all bought into it. It’s not a dictatorship where you’re told this is what you’re doing. I don’t think that works. I think that is probably where this club’s gone wrong in the past. Someone comes in and tries to control and manage everything rather than saying, ‘Actually, you know, we’re all in this together.’

“There’s a family feel to it. You want to grow a community within the club, you want everyone to be a part of it. I’ll run that, I’ll lead it but there’s a bit of work to be done on it.”

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So what is, or what should be, the Stoke City identity?

There was a nod in Walters’ answer to the projects being taken on at the stadium to improve supporter experience and engagement, from installing a fan zone and introducing a standing section to moving the away end so that Stoke fans will line both sides of the tunnel and asking for input on the kit design.

“I think we’ve probably lacked it over the last few years,” said Walters. “There was a real strong identity when I was here as a player, even if there were different playing styles under different managers. I always felt there was a real togetherness and connection between players and staff and fans. We had that.

“From the outside it’s hard to say why or what’s been lost but coming in I didn’t think that was there. But I’ve seen the work from Simon King and what he and his team are doing, really engaging with fans. There has been a huge turnaround on that side of it. That’s all bubbling under and there’s a hell of a lot of good work going on there.

“My job is then to bring that to the football side of it and create something with the head coach and all departments, creating something that fans want to see. If you look at the city, it’s about hard work, never giving up, it’s united strength is stronger. We need that feeling that that is what we are back and you link that in with making sure the team on the pitch is representative of what the fans are, hard working, having each other’s backs no matter what.

“There’s an identity you need to bring on the pitch. I know what it is and what is the minimum we expect. You have that with a bit of flair. You can be god as a player but if you don’t bring the first part of it, you’ll be quickly dismissed. If we can get that back and the intensity and action on the pitch then the rest will grow with all the good work that is going on behind the scenes.”

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Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich stay ‘massive’ – Cameron Burgess

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