Few if anyone questions Brewster' ability as a player. He may just about have been the best uncapped Scot of his generation. Added to that was the fact that he had experience of playing overseas and had worked under a number of competent managers both at home and abroad.
Further, the man was clearly very fit and self motivated managing to keep playing, and playing well, in the most challenging position on the field into his 40's.
All of that pointed to a man with some potential as a manager and a coach. I for one welcomed his initial apointment after John Robertson departed for Hearts.
The initial signs were encouraging and results began to flow but, with the benifit of hindsight, in my opinion, that positive impact was as a result of us having Brewster the player rather than Brewster the manager. That was demonstrated when he left and Charlie Christie, a man with no previous managerial experience, took the club to it's best ever league position with our highest ever SPL points total including a clean sweep of victories after the "split" whilst, at the same time, managing to to play atractive, positive and entertaining football.
At the same time as Charlie Christie was achieving this with players with enthusiasm but somewhat limited ability, Brewster was guiding more inately talented and vastly better paid players at Tannadice to the verge of relegation. Who seriously doubts that if the late Eddie Thomson hadn't dispensed with his services United would have gone down.
Since Brewster returned ICT have played poorly, players such as Rankin and Wyness have depated as a consequence of Brewster's lack of ability as a man manager . There's a strong susgestion that Donald Park went back down the road for the same reason. At the same time what we are witnessing on the field does not indicate that he's learing from his numerous tactical and coaching errors both here and at Tannadice.
As for him being "intelligent and articulate" he might well come across as such in private, I've never spoken to him in person and can only go by his media interviews which strike me as the least cogent and articulate of any current SPL manager and that's saying something !
Brewster may well be a decent, nice man. I'm sure that he is doing his best to manage our club but I have to say that I've seen little or nothing to suggest that that best is good enough.
I have to say that I am genuinely frightened that Hamilton will string a couple of victories together under their much more experienced and competent manager then this club of ours could be in very serious trouble indeed !