CHRIS Lucketti hopes he can recreate the glory days at Bury – and lead the club back towards the Championship.

As the lynchpin of Stan Ternent’s Shakers in the mid-nineties, Lucketti became a talisman at Gigg Lane, helping the club from the bottom reaches of the league to back-to-back promotions and survival against the odds.

But the 46-year-old knows expectation is high as he takes charge of his first game as manager on Saturday against Northampton Town.

Bury’s squad has failed to live up to their billing thus far in League One and currently prop up the table, three points from safety.

After seeing a glimpse of their potential by beating league leaders Shrewsbury Town in midweek, Lucketti is looking to make an immediate impact on his return.

“It’s great to be back – I’ve got nothing but love and affection for this football club,” he said at his official unveiling today.

“I know we have got a great group of players here and the result on Tuesday will give everyone a lift. They are the standards they have set and we can’t come off them now.

“I’ll be straight into it from the off. It’s a great position to be coming into after the three points against Shrewsbury.

“There’s always pressure. I put pressure on myself, so does the chairman because that’s the type of guy he is.”

Lucketti had served for five years as Graham Alexander’s assistant at Scunthorpe United and Fleetwood but says the lure of returning to the Shakers, 18 years after he left as a player, was too strong to resist.

“The time I spent here as a player was unbelievable,” he said. “I played at every level from non-league to Premier League but I regard my time at Bury as the best because when I joined we were at the lower end of the old fourth division, we got to the play-off final, got beat, got promotions, then stayed in the Championship.

“To be a part of this club at the time was very special. It’s something I’ll never forget.

“I didn’t hesitate. When the call came there was no better place to come back to.”

Bury chairman Stewart Day confirmed Ryan Lowe, who had been caretaker manager, would be retained in a coaching capacity.

Despite admitting it was “not the right time” for the Liverpudlian to take the number one role, Day feels he could one day manage the Shakers in a full-time capacity.

“Both Ryan and Chris have a burning desire to make this club successful, so do I, and you can’t have enough of those people in the building,” he said.

“He’s got to go in a similar career path to Chris, be in a coaching environment and learn the trade. Chris has been an assistant manager for five years and he knows this level very, very well.”