PAUL Ince was appointed the new manager of Blackburn Rovers yesterday (June 23) and it was good to see him spare a thought for his original mentor, John Lyall, as he faced the press for the first time in his new role at Ewood Park today.

“I’ve played under several great managers, including John Lyall, Sir Alex Ferguson and Glenn Hoddle and I’ve learned a lot from all of them,” said Ince, who succeeds Mark Hughes following his move to Manchester City.

It is common knowledge that Ince owed his start in football to Lyall, who took a paternal interest in the youngster as he emerged through the youth ranks and just about stayed the right side of the law. Without Lyall's guiding hand and discipline, 'Incey' has always admitted that he would probably have become embroiled in a life of crime.

Rovers appointed Ince, 40, after gaining special dispensation from the Premier League, who have given the former West Ham midfielder more time to obtain the Pro Licence coaching qualification required at that level of the game.

Inevitably, most attention has focused on the fact that Ince becomes the first English black manager at Premier League level – Dutchman Ruud Gullit (Chelsea and Newcastle United) and Frenchman Jean Tigana (Fulham) are the only non-whites to have previously led teams at the highest level of English football.

But Ince, who was the first black player to captain England, seemed keen to play down this particular milestone. He said: “It doesn’t matter whether I’m black, white, yellow or pink, I’m just proud to be the manager of Blackburn Rovers and I appreciate the faith they have shown in me. Sure, it would be good to be a role model for other black people in management, but we’ll see.”

It is refreshing to see a Premier League club giving a chance to someone who is still relatively new to management and who has emerged rapidly from the lower divisions. Sam Allardyce and much-maligned former England coach Steve McClaren were both linked with the Rovers vacancy in recent weeks but the Blackburn board have turned to the inexperienced Ince.

He steered Macclesfield Town clear of relegation from the Football League in his first year in charge and last season Ince led Milton Keynes Dons to the League Two championship after guiding them to victory in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final against Grimsby Town at Wembley in March. A lot of former big-name players have entered management on the bottom rung of the ladder and disappeared quickly without trace, never to be offered a second chance after being associated with failure. Bobby Moore and Alvin Martin, who both found it tough going at Southend United, are obvious prime examples.

Ince has already shown that he can manage very successfully in the lower leagues. Now he has to prove that he can handle much bigger reputations and egos and maintain the good work achieved under Mark Hughes.

We wish him well.