But Jimmy Bullard’s arrival as Leatherhead boss had caused a stir in the Non-League ranks and with the Tanners heading down to Cheriton Road for his first game in charge, it seemed only right I followed him and the story down the M20.

After the game, I spoke to Bullard where he gave me ten minutes of his time, speaking passionately and intently about his new job. The happy-go-lucky outlook that had made him a household name away from the confines of a football pitch was still there, but he was determined to talk about the ‘serious business’ of football management. The comedy path he had chosen through various reality TV roles was no more. I believed him. Twelve months down the line and Bullard’s career in the dugout seems all but done. I’m not going to be critical of him for changing path. All credit; he took on a difficult job at Leatherhead and steered them away from the drop zone in the Ryman Premier. He did what a lot of former ‘top’ players would never have done by dropping down to that level and taking on a job in the mud and the nettles.

But something must have told Jimmy that management just wasn’t for him, and there’s a message here for others who think their pedigree as a player is enough to not only get their foot in the door, but keep it there. Managing in the lower leagues is brutal. Aside from the obvious restrictions on budgets, there is little of the protection that managers enjoy higher up the pyramid.

There are no press officers to swat away those pesky journalists (thank goodness) and what many would term a part-time job very quickly becomes full-time. It’s little wonder some managers just don’t have the stomach to stick around.

There have been some criminal cases of superstars dropping down in Non-League football, and some should have left their egos at the door. Think of Paul Gascoigne and Paul Davis at Kettering, Tim Flowers at Stafford and Kidderminster, and don’t even get us started on the bizarre tenure of Edgar Davids at Barnet, where the former Netherlands ace refused to travel to away matches that required an overnight stay.

I have no doubt Bullard put his heart and soul into his stint at Leatherhead, but too many ex-players use Non-League as something of a PR exercise to christen their coaching badges. It’s a fantastic breeding ground for gaffers, but it’s a serious business first and foremost.