TONY Mowbray officially became Albion's new manager on Wednesday, October 18 by signing a 12-month rolling contract.

He guided Albion to a fourth-place finish in the Championship that season and his side scored more than 100 goal in all competitions.

After beating fierce rivals Wolves in the play-off semi-finals the Baggies suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat by Derby in the Wembley final.

Mowbray made dramatic changes to his squad during the close-season, with ten players coming in and seven leaving the club permanently.

His new-look side quickly gelled and have become renown for their free-flowing attacking football.

And Mowbray's success was recognised in February 2008 when he penned a new-and-improved Albion contract to June 2011 - giving him the platform to try and fulfil his aim of establishing Albion as a Premier League outfit.

It proved a wise decision by the club as the Baggies won the Coca-Cola Championship title - their first trophy in 88 years - to give Mowbray his first crack at the English Premier League as a manager.

Mowbray also took his team to Wembley for the second successive season where they were unfortunate to lose 1-0 to Premier League outfit Portsmouth in the FA Cup semi-finals, and his men again chalked up another century of goals in all competitions.

The former Hibernian boss took his first step on the road to management by joining the Ipswich coaching staff after scoring the Tractor Boys' equaliser in their 4-2 play-off victory over Barnsley to win promotion back to the Premiership in 2000.

It turned out to be the last-ever game of his 20-year playing career, having enjoyed lengthy spells at Middlesbrough and Celtic prior to moving to Suffolk.

In a brief period as player/coach at Portman Road, Mowbray helped guide Ipswich to a euphoric fifth-place top-flight finish and qualification for the UEFA Cup in 2001, with then-boss George Burley earning the Manager-of-the-Year Award.

Mowbray officially hung up his boots in May of that year and was appointed first-team coach shortly afterwards.

The departure of Burley 17 months later saw him take caretaker charge of Ipswich for four games before continuing as first-team coach under new boss Joe Royle.

Hibs came calling in May 2004 and Mowbray jumped at the chance to cut his managerial teeth, replacing Bobby Williamson in the Easter Road hotseat.

He made an instant impact at the Edinburgh club, scooping the SPL Manager-of-the-Year Award in his first season after guiding Hibs to third place to earn a UEFA Cup spot. They also reached the League Cup quarter-finals and Scottish FA Cup semi-finals.

Mowbray's youthful team quickly built a reputation for playing attacking, passing football and the crowds came flocking to Easter Road.

Average attendances soared from below 10,000 to around 15,000 in his 29-month tenure, a figure that only superpowers Rangers and Celtic and neighbours Hearts surpassed in the SPL.

Hibernian claimed fourth spot last term to qualify for the Intertoto Cup as well as reaching a second successive Scottish FA Cup semi-final.

It was the first time in three decades the club had secured successive top-four finishes.

But the Baggies came calling five months later and he lefts Hibs four points off third place, boasting an overall record of 52 wins and 40 defeats from 110 games.

As a player, the Saltburn-born ace was a no-nonsense centre-half who started his career at home-town club Middlesbrough after signing schoolboy forms in 1978.

Bobby Murdoch handed him his debut as Kevin Keegan's marker in the North East derby against Newcastle at St James' Park, in September 1982, and he became captain when he was only 22 years old.

Mowbray never looked back. He became the lynchpin around which the Boro team was built as they rose phoenix-like from the ashes of the club's 1986 liquidation crisis.

Mowbray, nicknamed 'Mogga', skippered the Teessiders to successive promotions as they climbed from the old Division Three to the top flight.

Mowbray's reliability prompted then-manager Bruce Rioch to famously say of his captain: "If you were on a rocket ship flying to the moon, the man you would want sitting next to you would be Tony Mowbray."

It was a quote that saw Boro fans conjure up the club fanzine 'Fly me to the Moon'.

Relegation followed in 1989 and after two more full seasons at Ayresome Park, and a losing Championship play-off final to Notts County, he made a £1million move to Celtic in November 1991, having made more than 400 appearances and scored 30 goals for Middlesbrough.

Mowbray spent four seasons at Parkhead where under three different managers - Liam Brady, Lou Macari and Tommy Burns - he gained UEFA Cup experience and earned a Scottish League Cup runners-up medal in 1994.

He was also responsible for starting The Hoops 'huddle', now seen before every Celtic game, in July 1994.

Following almost 100 appearances for the Bhoys, he joined Ipswich in October 1995 for £300,000.

After three successive Championship play-off semi-final defeats, the club captain eventually led the Blues back to the top flight with a thrilling play-off triumph over Barnsley.

Mowbray's playing days ended with an overall career record of 661 games, 44 goals.

(LAST UPDATED ON JULY 15, 2008)