MANAGER

 Ian Baird

Took over the role of manager in October 2007 after leaving fellow Blue Square Southern Division side Havant & Waterlooville.

A highly rated striker in his playing days Ian had spells with Southampton (24 apps/5 gls), Cardiff City (12/6), Newcastle United (5/1), Leeds United (192/57), Portsmouth (22/1), Middlesborough (76/21), Bristol City (64/12), Heart of Midlothian (79/19), Plymouth Argyle (29/7) and Brighton & Hove Albion (42/14). Ian also played for Salisbury City and Farnborough Town before having gained managerial experience with Interdict (Hong Kong) and the Hong Kong National XI. Born 1^st April 1964 in Rotherham.

Steered Eastleigh to their highest ever league position (6th place in the Blue Square South), in his first season at the club narrowly missing out on a play off place.

Baird then guided the Spitfires to an all time high with a 3rd place finish in the 2008/9 season. Unfortunately this fantastic season for Ian and his players ended in heartache as Hayes & Yeading United overturned a 4-2 win in the first leg of the playoff semi-final to miraculously win 4-0 at the Silverlake Stadium and in so doing ended the promotion dream.

The season which followed, 2009/10, saw the Spitfires finish a disappointing 11th place in comparison to being on the verge of promotion for two seasons running in previous years. Having a smaller squad and losing key players to injury throughout the campaign inevitably played a major role in how the season panned out.

In the 2010/2011 season Eastleigh finished 8th in the Blue Square Bet South. Ian Baird reflected on the campaign: "We know we've failed in our objective. We've got a good set of lads and they'll be disappointed to have fallen at the last hurdle. But, at the end of the day, the sides who've finished above us are all bigger clubs with bigger budgets."

Looking ahead to the 2010/11 season, which sees the club embark on a new chapter with youth development becoming more of the focus, Baird has gone on record saying: "It’s an interesting and exciting project but, believe you me, it’s going to be a very, very difficult year," said Baird.

“I’ve used the old adage of climbing Everest in a pair of flip-flops!

"On the positive side, we’ve got one or two good young players who can hopefully progress in the same way as Aaron Martin, Brett Williams, Damian Scannell and Mark Marshall and go on and have professional careers.

"The young players we’ve got have a fantastic attitude and it’s a case of starting with a clean sheet and trying to develop.

"I’m seriously up for the challenge. Next season is going to be a survival season. It will be a roller-coaster, but I feel very positive about it."