Dick Campbell says his sights are set firmly on steering Forfar into the Championship after picking up the League One Manager of the Month award for October.
The 60-year-old has been involved with Scottish football in some shape or form for over four decades now and the larger-than-life character has seen a fair amount of plaudits come his way over the years.
In fact, Monday’s delivery from the SPFL was Campbell’s 25th Manager of the Month accolade, with the gong set to join the many other trophies that are now scattered around the Fifer’s house.
But with his Forfar side flying high in League One, the Loons boss is far from content to rest on his laurels.
“I want a go with Forfar upstairs, and so does my twin brother Iain,” he told Courier Sport. “We’ve done what we said we would do, stabilise the football club. But I want to take them up and more importantly my players want to take them up – whatever it takes.
“Don’t think for a minute we’re in there just to stabilise Forfar that’s done. You see the new pitch, the new stadium, the new hospitality and everything, and there’s no debt. I can hold my head high.
“I remember when I went into Forfar, I met Neil Wilson in the Hilton in Dundee and I said I’ll take the job for two years, I’ll address being bottom of the Third Division, I’ll address being in debt and I’ll try and do something about it.
“I said to him: ‘You won’t be that much in debt and you certainly won’t be bottom of the Third Division’. Then I think we got Rangers live on Sky about a month after I took the job and that cleaned the debt out!
“But we’ve got a good team, and I’m not being flippant about that. Whilst the players get all the pats on the back that are going, to be sitting top of the league with two full-time teams in the league is a compliment.
“It’s been well-documented that we’ve got a right good ethic at Forfar and a right good committee and chairman, and that’s why I’m still there.”
Campbell could have walked away from the game on a number of occasions.
Sackings at the likes of Partick Thistle and Ross County might have tempted him not to return, and his well-documented battle with kidney cancer almost four years ago could have done likewise.
Picking up his award though, Campbell paid tribute to Forfar for sticking by him.
“I think that’s reflective on the way the whole team works up there,” he continued. “All the directors work their socks off and I think we treat it lightly that clubs like Forfar and Brechin any others are not in debt. You cut your cloth to suit.
“Why I’m painting that picture about Forfar is why do we attract six full-time players to our club? Normally at a part-time club, and I’m well-versed on this, you’d maybe get one a year. But we’ve got six this year.
“That’s a reflection on Forfar, how they treat their players, and my job’s pretty straight forward. The type of players is what I look for.
“I’m talking about the Rab Douglas of this world. “Why do you sign Rab Douglas when he was 40 years old? Because he’s the best goalie in the league.
“Darren Dods? Darren Dods is a magnificent example to any young boy trying to win the game.
“It doesn’t matter how good a manager you are, believe me, it’s all down to the quality of the players. I’ve not got a magic wand.”
Despite his trials and tribulations of the last few years, it is clear Campbell’s enthusiasm for the game simply hasn’t wavered and that he’s not going anywhere any time soon.
“The doctors didn’t give me a long time four years ago,” he added. “I do get tired. I don’t drink any more, I play a lot of golf now, I’ve got to watch my weight because I’ve only got one kidney because they took the kidney out.
“I’m in my bed every night at 9.30pm/10pm and in at work at 6.30am every morning. But see if you are not enthusiastic about it, you don’t get anywhere.
“I’m still as enthusiastic as I was when I first started and I’ve no intentions of retiring, just as I’ve no intentions of retiring from my work either, because I’ve worked all my life and I’m just happy to be able to do all that.
“I can’t see myself not doing football. Who wants to go to Dobbies on a Saturday? I’m not a gardener, I’m not even a golfer at the weekend.
“I tried it. I’ve been sacked three times now in my career and the big difference between me and everybody else is that I was top of the league when I was sacked.
“But would you sit and watch Sky Sports and the football scores coming in? I’m a football guy.
“I do my homework, no stone is left unturned, I’ve got a great staff and we all work hard.
“I’m as busy as I’ve ever been and it’s just getting time to do it all. But you’ve got to want it.”