TWO of the game's leading managers, Arsene Wenger and Graeme Souness, are in trouble with the FA having been charged with improper conduct.

I have been a manager for only a short time but already I can understand how easy it is to become overexcited. When you are standing near the touch-line and the adrenalin is flowing, it is difficult to keep cool. Things are said and done which only become regrettable when the game is over and you start to think more clearly about what happened.

Most of the incidents which get managers into trouble happen in the heat of the moment, but there is no excuse for speaking out of turn 20 to 30 minutes after the final whistle when things have calmed down.

On Saturday, not for the first time this season, a manager was critical of my team after the Leyton Orient game while talking to the media.

I think it is out of order to criticise a fellow manager's tactics. Martin Ling, the Leyton Orient boss, obviously didn't approve of our way of playing and other managers have had a go at our striker Cortez Belle.

I have reported them to our own body, the League Managers' Association, and I will be interested to see

what comes of it. Managers should concentrate on their own team. I am still learning my new role but I have made it a rule not to criticise my opponents. I will obviously have opinions about the opposition's tactics but I will be keeping them to myself.

It is all about self-discipline. At Chester City we have a strict code of conduct aimed at making the players behave professionally, so we should strive to set an example.

Judging by the reaction of some of the players at Chester, I can only assume the measures I have introduced are new to them. But they were in place at Liverpool when I was there and that club was well known for its disciplinary measures.

For instance, kicking a ball when training has finished is banned. What's the point of doing something unnecessary which could cause an injury?

Players arriving late for training are fined and noone is allowed to use a mobile phone on the premises before a game. Anything which affects focus and concentration on the game has to be discouraged.

The money collected from fines goes towards the club's Christmas party and on the evidence of what we have collected so far, it should be a good do! nOur draw in the LDV Vans Trophy against Wrexham has already created a lot of interest among our supporters and I am sure it will be one of the highlights of the season.

Everyone knows Wrexham have their problems at the moment and while I appreciate the rivalry between the fans can be bitter at times, I hope I speak for everyone when I say I hope the club survives its crisis.

Wrexham are a big club with a terrific set-up and if they were to close, it would be a huge loss to the local community. A lot of people, supporters, staff, senior players and the dozens of youngsters who wear the

club's colours at junior level, including my own son, would be affected.

Derby matches are the lifeblood of the game and supporters from both camps would be sorry if this particular contest disappeared from the fixture list. nI was delighted to be named the Coca-Cola League Two manager of the month for October. You always remember your first honour and after the first you always want more.

This award is my first in management and I hope it won't be the last. But it is really an honour for everyone on the staff who have worked so hard to achieve the results which made it possible. nI was sad to hear of the death this week of Emlyn Hughes. He left Anfield as I was arriving, so I didn't play alongside him for Liverpool, but we did play together a few times some years later in his charity team.

His death is a massive blow to the game. He was a character and there are not many characters left in football. He was well known for his enthusiasm which rubbed off on his team-mates and often got them through games when the chips were down.