There was one word which came up repeatedly when Scott Duxbury spoke to me a couple of weeks ago, and it’s a word that perhaps doesn't get the recognition it deserves for the part it has played in the most successful eras in Watford FC history: culture.

Culture is one of those things that you perhaps don’t know how important it is until you don't have it, by which time the lack of it has started a death spiral.

The Watford chairman stressed the need, repeatedly, during his interview for the club to have a cultural reset and get back to doing things in the right way, both on and off the pitch.

Therefore, it made sense to ask new head coach Rob Edwards what he thought of it.

“Culture to me is all about values,” he said. “The values that the club, me, my staff and the players live by. Respect and honesty are the big ones.

“Respect can mean many different things, but for me the thing to remember is that everyone is different, but everyone must be treated with respect. I treat people in a way I like to be treated.

“Being honest shouldn’t be a hard thing, but sometimes it is for people. But if we all show respect for each other then in turn that makes being honest a lot easier.”

The cultural shift that the club clearly know they need doesn’t need to involve huge things either, according to Edwards.

“I want people around the club to have a smile on their face, say hello to people they see and maybe take a few minutes to have a chat with someone you haven’t spoken to in a while, or talk to someone you haven’t talked to before. Things like that go a long way,” he said.

“It’s very important, I feel, for those of us who work in the football side of things to make sure we take the time to pop in and say hello to those in the admin side. We’re all part of the same great club and we’re all aiming for the same thing.

“If you can get that culture, that honesty, that respect, then when we do have tough times that will repay itself. When we’re united and together then everyone fights that bit harder.”

Edwards stressed that he will lead by example too.

“I just want to be a good person,” he said. “I want those around the training ground and at the club to be good people. Spend time with people, say hello, smile - it’s not hard stuff is it? Saying please and thank you, being friendly. Do all that, as well as honesty and respect, then we have a great foundation.

“Similarly I want to see the players giving back. I know this club has always done tremendous work in the community, and I believe it’s essential that the players take some of their time to give back to the people around us in the community. This club is very important to a lot of people and I want those people to see, by our actions, that they are just as important to us.

“Cultural change can take time and requires patience, but there also things that can happen very quickly. I hope already we’ve made a decent impression in the first few days back, and that will continue to happen because the right culture is very important to me and the club.”

Having been given his first taste of senior football by Graham Taylor at Aston Villa as a teenager, Edwards saw those characteristics he strives for in the former Watford manager.

Edwards said: “He instilled some values in me when I was a very young age, and I still hold them dearly now. In the position I'm in now at this club, they are especially important to me.

“Things like respect and honesty were very important to him too. When I was at Villa, me and my two housemates left the house we were living in very messy, Graham found out about it and he went mad at us, and rightly so. That has always stuck with me because he cared and he had standards, and he insisted upon respect.

“I will always be thankful for the opportunity he gave me as a young player, and that’s one of the reasons why I want to make sure our young players can see a pathway to the first team.

“He helped me understand the worth of values, but I was also very lucky to have two brilliant parents who brought me up in what I believe was the right way. I grew up with and around good people, and I’ve also played and worked with very good people in football.”