Gerry Francis Returning to Football...Ex-QPRs: Allen, Impey and Walton Sharing Birthday

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The Apparent Return of Gerry Francis to Football is being noted:

Gerry Francis who made his QPR debut forty years ago (coming on as a sixteen year-old sub against Liverpool at Loftus Road); spent two periods as a player at QPR and two periods as manager at QPR, is poised to return to football coaching, at Stoke City. Amazingly, it's seventeen years since Francis started his first term as QPR manager - and a decade since he started his second stint. And just to note it was 39 years ago today, that Francis made his full QPR debut against Portsmouth, away. QPR won 3-1 with Fancis scoing (along with Dave Clement and Barry Bridges)

The Sun - Gerry back after seven years out
TONY PULIS has handed former Tottenham boss Gerry Francis a route back into coaching.
Stoke chief Pulis also warns the current influx of foreign owners is creating a lost generation of British managers.
Francis is set to take up a part-time role at City seven years after he left his last management post at Bristol Rovers.
Pulis, whose side host Everton tomorrow, said: “Without question, if there are more foreign owners coming into the game then there will be more foreign managers.
“There are a lot of very good British managers who are out of the game and shouldn’t be.
“We invest an absolute fortune in development in England and there are some fantastic people with great experience.” The Sun

The Mail/Jeremy Butler - Stoke boss Pulis appoints former Spurs manager Francis to Potters back room staff
Stoke boss Tony Pulis has appointed former Spurs and QPR manager Gerry Francis to his backroom staff
Tony Pulis believes Barclays Premier League clubs are missing a trick by letting football’s old guard grow grey in their armchairs.
In a week when Gianfranco Zola became the fifth manager from outside the British Isles to take charge at a top-flight club, Pulis employed Gerry Francis to assist him at Stoke.
Pulis, whose side entertain Everton ,wants to tap into Francis’s experience as a manager at Tottenham and Queens Park Rangers.
The Stoke boss said: ‘There are a lot of managers out of the game when you look at people like George Graham, Terry Venables, Joe Royle and John Gregory.
‘Guys like that should be put to better use and that is what I’m doing with Gerry.
‘We have invested a fortune to develop kids and there are people that, given the chance, could improve the set-up.’ The Mail

BBC - Francis hopeful of Potters role
Francis could be returning to football at Stoke
Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Gerry Francis is hopeful of joining Stoke City as a coach on a part-time basis.
Francis has already helped the Potters' boss Tony Pulis coach the side at their training ground and hopes to make the role more formal.
The 56-year-old said: "Obviously Tony has gone into an area he's not been in before and wants me to do some coaching for him with his staff."
Francis was last in football management seven years ago at Bristol Rovers.
He started his playing career at QPR back in 1968 and went on to score 53 goals in 295 appearances at Loftus Road.
Francis, who also had spells with Crystal Palace and Coventry, won 12 England caps, eight of which were as captain.
When he finished playing in 1987 he went into management, including a three-season spell in charge at Tottenham for three seasons and two spells at both Bristol Rovers and QPR. BBC

Stoke Sentinel/Martin Spinks - Stoke City: Francis trains with City
FORMER Tottenham manager Gerry Francis is hopeful of joining Stoke as a part-time coach.
Francis, who helped out with training sessions at the club's Michelin ground this week, says the arrangement could become more formal.
He told Sky Sports News he was happy to be helping Tony Pulis.
He said: "Obviously he has gone into an area he's not been in before and wants me to do some coaching for him with his staff.I did that on Tuesday and Wednesday. It would be part-time from my point of view and it is just a matter of seeing if we can sort something out."
Former England and QPR midfielder Francis, left, broke into management at Exeter and took change of Bristol Rovers and QPR before getting the Spurs job in 1994.
He was in charge for three years at White Hart Lane before having second spells at QPR and Bristol Rovers. This is Staffordshire


Birthdays Today for Three Ex-QPRs: Bradley Allen & Andy Impey and Simon Walton- Also birthday of two-brief QPR Loans: Lloyd Dyer and Keith Lowe.

- Bradley Allen - Turns 37 Born September 13, 1971
Brother of Clive Allen...Son of Les Allen...Cousin of Martin Allen...Uncle? of Oliver Allen Bradley Allen See also Bradley Allen/Wikipedia
See Also: Grimsby profile of Allen

- Andy Impey Also Turns 37 Today - Surprisingly enough, also born September 13, 1971
Andrew Impey See Also: Wikipedia/Andrew Impey

- Simon Walton turns 21 - Born September 13, 1987.Signed last season; injured in a pre-season game and a few weeks ago, was sold to Plymouth.
Simon Walton See Also Walton/Wikipedia

Also: Birthdays for Two brief Loaned QPRS:
Keith Lowe - Holloway's loan signing from Wolves just before he was axed. Lowe turns 23. And Lloyd Dyer loaned from WBA, turns 26.