PETER Cook sent up football managers in an all-to-brief cameo on a Clive Anderson show. Paul Whitehouse's Ron Manager is never as sharp or amusing as it could be. Now is the time for Gaffer!, Chris Chibnall's study of tracksuit management in the age of bosses in Hugo Boss suits.

Playing at The Studio, York Theatre Royal throughout November, this Southwark Playhouse premiere introduces George, manager of Northbridge Town, a team languishing in the mire in the manner of York City.

"Gaffer! is about one man's journey and what he discovers about himself," says the writer. "He happens to be a football manager and he's an heroic figure in a world that's rapidly changing. It gave me the chance to make lots of cheap jokes and comments about the football world but I hope it's a universal story where you don't need a great knowledge of football to enjoy it."

What brand of manager is George? "He's Everton's David Moyes, Bolton's Sam Allardyce, he could be Kevin Blackwell at Leeds," says Chris. "He was a player and he's become a manager, and he's that new young breed of manager, but because he was a traditional British player, he's slightly unfashionable."

Gaffer! is a one-hander, in which north eastern actor Deka Walmsley creates all the characters and action around him.

"Doing it this way gives us the chance to be both theatrical and confessional on stage. We can create that huge football world in a theatre, create a little bit of magic, have some fun and let the audience's imagination run riot. The audience becomes as crucial to the piece as the actor," Chris says.

Chris was inspired to write a one-man play after a conversation with Barrie Keefe, writer of The Long Good Friday. "He said the only reason to write is to write great parts for actors, and I thought, 'all right then, I'll write a play with a massive, huge, all-encompassing part'."

There is a more serious aspect to the play: the prevalence of homophobia in football, a matter that comes to a head after George is photographed in a celebratory kiss with his goal-scoring teenage striker. "I guess the central question is, why are there are so few gay players? In 100-plus years of British football, why has there been only one openly gay footballer, Justin Fashanu, who ended up hanging himself?

"It's interesting that the only apologetic comment in Brian Clough's autobiography is that he says 'I got it wrong over Justin Fashanu'. He felt culpable that he could have handled it better."

Gaffer!, The Studio, York Theatre Royal, running from this week until November 27. Tickets: £3.50 to £9 on 01904 623568.

Updated: 16:08 Thursday, November 04, 2004