Brian Flynn, (born 12 October, 1955) is a Welsh football manager and former Welsh international player. He was a midfield player and, at 161 cm (5'3")[169193], one of the shortest professional football players of modern times.

He is currently in charge of all Welsh youth level teams including the Under-21s. During this time he has been extremely successful, coming close to taking Wales to their first major championship in 57 years.

Playing career

Flynn turned professional with Burnley, then in the old First Division, in 1972 and was a regular member of the first team from 1974. Burnley were relegated to the old Second Division in 1976 and, in 1977, he was transferred to Leeds United. He returned to Burnley from 1982 to 1984 and thereafter played for a succession of clubs; Cardiff City, Doncaster Rovers and Bury before joining Wrexham in 1988.

He earned 66 full Welsh caps between 1975 and 1984.

Management career

At Wrexham he was given the manager's job in December 1989 and held it for the next 12 years, establishing a long-running managerial team with Kevin Reeves and Joey Jones.

When Brian Flynn took over at Wrexham, they were probably the weakest side in the Football League. His first full season as manager (1990-91) was easily the worst in the club's history. They finished bottom of the Fourth Division and their league status was only saved because the league was to expand to 93 clubs for the (1991-92 season) - although the size of the league was soon reverted to 92 clubs following the resignation of Aldershot and Maidstone.

During 1991-92, Wrexham improved dramatically. They finished well up the table and achieved a shock win over defending league champions Arsenal in the Third Round of the FA Cup. More success came in 1992-93 when Wrexham finished runners-up in the new Division Three and won promotion to Division Two. A run to the FA Cup quarter finals followed in 1996-97, but the Welsh Dragons never mounted a serious challenge for promotion to Division One and by the time Flynn's reign ended in October 2001 they were heading for relegation.

A year after leaving Wrexham, Flynn made his comeback to the game by accepting the manager's job at Swansea City. The Swans were bottom of the league for much of the 2002-03 season and also on the verge of going out of business completely, just over 20 years after they had finished sixth in the old First Division. But Flynn turned the club around and victory on the final day of the season ensured their safety. Brian Flynn left Swansea City midway through the 2003-04 season.

Flynn joined the Welsh national set-up in 2004 as under-21 coach. His management of the Welsh under-21 side has seen some of the best results in its history. Flynn came agonisingly close to taking the Welsh team to the 2009 UEFA under-21 Championships, guiding the side to the top of a group containing France and Romania, including a superb away win against the latter. Unfortunately, competition rules stipulated that even group winners had to go through a two-legged play-off round in order to qualify, and Wales were knocked out 5-4 on aggregate against their neighbours, England.

In the current campaign, Wales have continued their good form under Flynn, remaining unbeaten in their first five matches and leading the group with 13 points. Their closest rivals, Hungary, have six points, with Italy and Luxembourg a further two points behind on four each. Hungary and Italy, have, however, played just three games each.

References

External links

• Biography from official Burnley FC website