THE RSC may hold a special place in his heart, but Alan Reynolds will not be able to count on the support of even his kids tonight.
Reynolds has spent a combined 16½ years with Waterford, as player, player-manager, manager and, most recently, assistant manager.
His time with the Blues saw him win three First Division titles — two on the bench and one from the dugout — as well as leading them to an FAI Cup final when he was combining both roles.
And there was a fourth promotion last season when he assisted Keith Long as the club overcame Cork City in the play-off final.
Reynolds had rejected the opportunity to succeed Long at Bohemians in late 2022.
But, when the Phibsborough club were looking for a new manager again in March, he decided to take the Gypsies up on their offer.
This evening, he returns to his old stomping ground for the first time since the switch.
But he is not expecting his sons Robin, 11, or 10-year-old Charlie to be rooting for him.
Reynolds said: “I think the reception will be OK, I left on good terms. But you never know, I’ve gone to another club who Waterford are now playing and it probably all depends on how the game is going for us.
“It’s a special place but my kids will be there and they’ll be supporting Waterford for sure.
“They want me to do well obviously but they’ll be definitely wearing the Blues’ colours for this.
“The whole family support the club and it’s a special place for me.
“It was tough to leave in March because we had won promotion, kept some of the players who had helped us do it and brought in some really good players on top of that.
“But Bohs offered me the chance to go back to being a manager in my own right and it was a good opportunity that I didn’t want to turn down.
“I’ve been back to the RSC with other teams before as a player or assistant manager but this will be the first time as a manager.
“And I’m looking forward to it but it’s not about me and I just need to concentrate on the game itself.”
There is plenty for him to focus on there with Waterford one point and one place ahead of Bohs in the Premier Division table.
Reynolds believes Long has assembled an impressive squad.
And he is hoping to do likewise having taken stock of the panel he inherited at Bohs which has produced some good but inconsistent results.
TRANSFER TALK
He said: “Waterford have really good players and having the help from Fleetwood Town makes things easier on the recruitment side.
“We know we need to strengthen but the summer window is a difficult one because our season ends in November so players can be reluctant to come here.
“Let’s be honest, if you’re a player in England then you want to stay there. Ireland isn’t top of your list.
“And the fact that there isn’t much of the season left makes it less attractive.
“So many over there are released but, even so, it might not be until late in the window that you might be able to get someone because they want to look at their options there first.
“They could be going on trial at other clubs and they want to see how that pans out.
“It’s not as easy as saying you want to bring players in because it’s tough to do, even when a club is supporting a manager.”
In the meantime, Rennie has been reasonably happy with the reaction to back-to-back defeats to Galway and Derry, claiming a 3-0 win away to Sligo Rovers followed by snatching a draw at home to St Pat’s.
He said: “We deserved a draw. I’m not saying it was a brilliant game but the performance wasn’t bad and we deserved a point.
“The pitch is good down in Waterford so it should be a decent game.
“The league has been competitive but I wouldn’t say the quality is brilliant, including ourselves.
“Shels have been outstanding but on any given day it could go either way, it’s really tight.”