Neil Warnock admits the adrenaline rush of the game lured him back as he saw his new club Torquay United salvage a 2-2 draw against Farnborough on Tuesday evening.
The 77-year-old, who has been serving as a football advisor to the club's board since May 2024, accepted the role of caretaker manager following the dismissal of Paul Wotton on Sunday.
The match marked Warnock's 1,627th game in professional football and his first time in the dugout since an interim spell at Aberdeen in early 2024.
Torquay fell behind early when Wes Fonguck scored for the visitors in the 11th minute. The Gulls equalised an hour into the match through Sonny Blu Lo-Everton whose corner flew directly into the net.
Farnborough regained the lead shortly after when Mason Bloomfield capitalised on a lapse in the Torquay defence, but an 88th-minute equaliser from Exeter City loanee Kieran Wilson secured a point for the home side.
The result leaves Torquay in fourth place in the National League South, nine points behind league leaders Dorking Wanderers. The club has now gone six matches without a victory.
Speaking after the game, Warnock admitted the "adrenaline" of the dugout lured him back.
"You can only go to the coffee shop so many times, you can only feed the chickens and the ducks so many times," Warnock told BBC Radio Devon.
"It gives you that edge. I had the heart pumping, nervous before the game... I even feel quite stiff if I'm honest, and I'm not really doing much running, but it's the adrenaline."
Warnock, who first managed Torquay in 1993, indicated that he does not expect to remain in the role long-term.
He confirmed that the club has been "inundated" with applications to succeed Wotton, who was sacked despite being named the division's Manager of the Month for January.
"I think they've got to be looking to get the next manager in to have a look between now and the end of the season," Warnock added. "I've enjoyed it, it's as simple as that."