Hartlepool United manager Dave Challinor reflects on FA Trophy win with AFC Fylde and pays tribute to former Leyton Orient manager and Tottenham Hotspur full-back Justin Edinburgh

With Challinor currently preparing his Pools side to face Halifax Town in the third round of the Trophy at The Shay on Saturday (3pm kick-off), he reflected on his successful run with AFC Fylde during the 2018-19 season.

And 19 months on, he has the unusual distinction of being the last manager to have won the competition with the 2019-20 FA Trophy final still yet to be played.

The 1-0 win over Leyton Orient at Wembley Stadium back in May 2019 is one of the highlights of Challinor’s managerial career but it was also a game that served as a poignant reminder to the current Pools boss.

“It’s a competition that I have great memories in,” he told The Mail.

“I’m still the last manager to go up the steps and lift the Trophy.

"Also that game put a lot of things into context for me because opposite me on the touchline was Justin Edinburgh for Leyton Orient and that was Justin’s last game as a manager."

Less than three weeks after the 2019 FA Trophy final, Edinburgh sadly passed away after going into cardiac arrest.

Despite losing in the Trophy, the former Tottenham Hotspur full-back had just guided Orient back to the Football League by being crowned National League champions in his first full season at the club.

And for Challinor, it was a period that helped remind him of what is really important in life.

“I’ve got that picture of [me and Justin] on the touchline at Wembley on my laptop home screen,” the 45-year-old said.

“It’s something that really contextualises football for me. As a manager, it’s stressful, it can be pretty depressing at times and there can be massive highs and lows to go alongside that.

"Those memories are something that make you reflect and look back and recognise yes we want to do well and we want to be successful but it is a game and it’s a job. In the grand scheme of life, there are bigger things out there.”

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