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Scotty

Of the candidates to emerge so far, who would you go for [more names may be added and you CAN change your vote]  

516 members have voted

  1. 1.

    • Brewster
      22
    • Warnock
      79
    • Malpas
      1
    • Robertson
      3
    • Pressley
      14
    • Coyle
      12


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And for the brew comments -"His departure was never fully understood, the fans directed their anger at him and I thought that was unfair.

"He never shafted this club when he left, he went only for one reason and that was that ICT got looked after."

"got looked after"....? By starting the process that culminated in Dods going to Yinited..?

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And for the brew comments -"His departure was never fully understood, the fans directed their anger at him and I thought that was unfair.

"He never shafted this club when he left, he went only for one reason and that was that ICT got looked after."

Bit late to be telling us this 18 months later  :023: Bit of spin doctoring perhaps?  :rolleyes02:

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I honestly cant believe we arnt considering Warnock seriously. I wont be attending any games with brew in charge until he proves he is the quality man ICT need in charge - this is NOT a boycott, but i dont believe the club will have made the correct appointment and until they prove me wrong im happy with setanta. :019:

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This is just getting worse and worse - none of our old managers should be in the running as there are better candidates who have publicly stated that they are interested! Well, OK there is ONE better candidate who has publicly stated his interest!

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Guest scrivster

if we take one of the old managers back i believe it shows a distinct lack of ambition by the club.  We need a quality manager and not one who has left us for other clubs in the past.

How much can a fanbase warm to robo or brew after they decided they wanted to move onto "bigger" clubs?

I will be totally disapointed with the board if brew is hired.  Just the fact that he is on the shortlist is disenchanting me with the club.

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So reading around various sites this morning, the candidates mentioned as of today seem to be as follows ......

Brewster

Warnock

Coyle

Pressley - doesnt seem to be in the frame at all

Paterson - not really mentioned much

Robertson - mentions of Robbo also dying down

Zenga - although the HN said he applied and he is an interesting name not a serious candidate I would think

McCall - mentioned in one article but first time I have seen his name come up as a candidate

Malpas - keeps being trotted out despite fans being almost unanimous that it should be anyone but him

Of the three names not excluded in my list, I have to concur with IHE (who, as some people have realised, does make interesting and insightful points when he is being sensible/serious) that we are being pushed along the Brewster route for whatever reason.

Coyle is probably the most "dangerous" choice seeing that he is a reasonably successful manager in the first division but has no SPL experience. I thought he did a good job at Falkirk when we were in the 1st. He looks to be continuing that at St Johnstone but you have to wonder whether he has reached a plateau ? He had a superb chance to overtake Gretna last season when they all but imploded towards the end of the season but just couldnt get it done. There is also the slight matter that the St Johnstone chairman said that he would be an absolute b@***** to deal with if someone came looking for his manager and I cant blame him for that.

Brewster seems to be the "safe" option. Appoint someone who has been at the club before and was reasonably successful. As we posted on the front page article however, "Brewster the manager" relied very heavily on "Brewster the player" and when he didnt have that assistance on the park he failed miserably (at DUFC). There may have been other factors at DUFC too, but that has to be something we should be concerned about. There is also the question of the fans ? Some fans will welcome him back, others will be very wary of him because he left or because of the manner in which he left (making comments about loyalty merely 2 weeks before buggering off etc), whilst there is also a group who will be dead set against him. The club have made comments about how he looked to get ICT the best deal when he left, of how he has always spoken highly about the club etc, but the simple truth is that none of that would have been necessary had he listened to himself when talking about loyalty.

Warnock is clearly the fans' choice and the "interesting" option. whether this is because of his experience, his reputation, or because we are flattered that a former EPL manager would even consider such a job is not clear - probably a touch of all of the above - but judging by comments made, the club seem to be making no effort to even talk to him. I cant help feeling that this might even be a bit of a publicity stunt. Warnock has said in recent days that he would welcome a call from Inverness. Today he is saying that no-one has even been in touch so how he can be on the shortlist is quite weird. One article I read this morning had a couple of lines that jumped out at me that suggested that even if we could meet his wage requirements, which may well be a stumbling block despite comments to the contrary, that our board might not consider him. See this SKY article [CLICK] .


.... Warnock has put his name forward for the role, but the ex-Sheffield United boss appears to be an outsider for the vacancy. Caley Thistle chairman Alan Savage said: "He is under consideration like everyone else, but at the end of the day the club is a success, we have again made a profit this year, we have maintained SPL status, so we will have to look at wage demands and any baggage that comes with someone. It is not all about football, but how people conduct themselves also."


so I guess, as IHE prophesises, we will probably have Brewster in place by the weekend or early next week and the fans will then have to decide how we want to react.

Talk of boycotts is ludicrous. We have to keep our feet on the ground. Unlike one particular poster, I think most of us realise that ICT will not be regular UEFA cup participants within the next two years or contenders for the SPL title in 20. Its a nice thought, but how are we going to do that when clubs with more considerable resources like Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Hearts, Hibs and Killie who normally take up the rest of the top half positions most years cant do that ! The realistic view is that we are a mid to lower end SPL side and every year our first goal must be to survive. Of course we should look to progress and hopefully be regarded as top half material in years to come but for now, staying in the SPL is paramount and anything else is a very enjoyable bonus. As they say, 'slow and steady wins the race'.

If Craig Brewster is named as boss then he will be in a position that no other ICT manager has ever been in, a position where the fans are highly skeptical of him and looking at him to prove himself to them from day one. If he is to be forgiven for his previous departure then results need to come and come quickly, humble pie needs to be eaten and the appearance of contrition has to be there. Anything else would be unacceptable.

I applaud the board for having the fans' forum last night, but if this meeting had any other purpose than to merely pay 'lip service' to current opinions then I would hope that it is confirmed somewhere along the line that they have actually spoken to Warnock as he is clearly the fans' choice. If they talk to him and wages or anything else is a factor in not employing him then so be it, but to have a man with such passion for the clubs he has managed express an interest and then to ignore him despite the fact that the fans favour him is not only disrespectful to both him and the fans but also reveals a deeper divide between "them" and "us" which is a trait I have seen "our" club develop over the last few years and is a trait I am not at all happy with.

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I think those being so hostile to any/all of our past managers need to look at the wider picture here.

Caley Thistle is probably in a fairly unusual situation for a football club in that we have three ex managers available who whatever their failings elsewhere proved themselves  at Caley Thistle and despite going back 5 years in the case of Pele, all 3 could still hit the ground running and know many of the players and other people at the club. Indeed we can still field pretty much a whole team made of players from Pele's era.

Given the unfortunate start to this season I can easily see where the board are coming from if they opt for one of the previous managers, rather than gamble on an unknown quantity who even if they turn out to be a good choice may take a period of time we don't really have to bed in and get to know the team. In all three cases Pele, Robo and Brewster basically left for a shot at their 'dream team', and I can't hold that against any of them. The fact they all got well and truly shafted by their 'dream team' means their also unlikely to repeat that move.

Better to regret that which you have done than that which you have not done. I can't help but feel if Brewster is appointed that Brewster now could well be a better ICT manager than the Brewster that never left, let the chance at Dundee United slip away and spent the past 18months wondering what if. 

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I think those being so hostile to any/all of our past managers need to look at the wider picture here.

In all three cases Pele, Robo and Brewster basically left for a shot at their 'dream team', and I can't hold that against any of them. The fact they all got well and truly shafted by their 'dream team' means their also unlikely to repeat that move.

The wider picture is that they all shafted us when looking to go to their dream team ! Whilst it is true to say that I cant hold the fact that they followed their own dreams against them, I can and do have a firm opinion that says thanks for what you did when you were here but "NEXT !!" ....

But lets be fair about this and look at something tangible .... each one of their SPL records !

Paterson (Aberdeen): P68 W23 D13 L32 - win% 33.82%.

Pretty reasonable, but not good enough for a team like Aberdeen who should be the third or fourth best team in Scotland given their resources and players.

Robertson (ICT): P14 W4 D2 L8 - win% 28.57%

Robertson (Hearts): P35 W13 D9 L13 - win% 37.14%

Terrible start to SPL life in Inverness and although better at Hearts you have to consider how much money and options were available to him there under Romanov.

Brewster (ICT): P50 W17 D18 L15 - win% 34.00% (18 games as player)

Brewster (DUFC): P30 W3 D11 L16 - win% 10.00%

Brewster's ICT record is not shabby. However, as many have said, a lot (most) of the good results came when Brewster the player was helping out Brewster the manager. When he got injured the results suffered and this continued at Dundee United where he made only 1 starting appearance in SPL (+ 3 from bench) .... notice any pattern here ? 18 games as a player for Inverness, 17 wins. 4 games for Dundee Utd as a player, 3 wins .....

and that is why I personally dont want any of them back. If one of them was appointed, I would still support my team and even the manager but as I said earlier, they would have to work hard to reverse my skepticism and natural reaction to be against them.

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Let us suppose that Brewster is not appointed, as it would seem he is really unpopular with the fans (at least most of those on here).  Personally, I don't believe we have a cat's chance of getting Warnock, probably largely due to wage demands.  Nor would I want him.  In my opinion he was a whinging loser with Sheffield Utd.  Who does that leave? Owen Coyle? A young, ambitious but largely untried manager. Surely not.   Pele and Robertson apparently not in the frame.  My own choice, Steve Perryman, not well known enough in Scotland.  So where does that leave us? Get over it guys, Brewster will get it. And, although not my choice, I'll get behind him and the team and wish them well.

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It does indeed seem that the shortleet consists of Warnock, Coyle and Brewster. For what it's worth, my views are as follows;

WARNOCK;  Still not convinced that he is a serious candidate but if he is my view is that he would be the best appointment out of the three. He is a vastly experienced manager who has managed at a very high level but also in the english lower leugues where the financial constraints and style of play are not dissimilar t the SPL. His lack of knowledge of our game in Scotland could be compensated for by retaining Donald Park as his assistant.

While he has never enjoyed spectacular success he has consistently achieved well over his long running career and would be a goo bet to lead us to mid table security or better.

Another big plus would be his enormously high profile which would project the club onto the UK stage and directly and indirectly generate income as a result.

There is a risk that he might not stay long but bear in mind that that's hardly without precedent since Pele left.

OWEN COYLE;    A close second in my view. He knows the game well in Scotland and will hae good contacts in the central belt.

His managerial record so far is very good especially in the cup competitions particularly given the financial constaints he is operating with inder Goeff Brown's tightly budgeted regime at St Johnstone. Despite that he very nearly pipped cach rich Gretna to the first division title and might well have done so had it not been for the extra strain of reaching two national semi finals both of which they played well in and could quite easily have won.

Coyle's teams also appear to play an entertaining style of football which might put a few extra bums on seats at the TCS.

I appreciate that he's untried as an SPL manager and that we would have to pay compensation to secure him but, in my view, his potential is so high that it would be well worth it.

CRAIG BREWSTER;  In my view, far and away the weakest of the three candidates. I've no problem with the fact that he left to "better" himself. By all accounts he conducted himself well and as a result helped the club secure maximum compensation.

What does concern me greatly is his record and ability as a manager. It's true to say that he did relatively well during his stint at the TCS but in retrospect his contribution was more as the best forward in our history rather than for his frankly often naive and one dimensional management skills. At the age of 41 he now has little to offer on the playing front.

I believe the true worth, or lack of it, of Brewster as a manager was exposed during his tenure at Tannadice. The fact of the matter is tha if Dundee United hadn't sacked Brewster when they did they would have been relegated. I very much fear that if ICT appoint him we will be facing the same prospect.

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I am a declared Warnock supporter and am accepting that he now looks to be the unlikely candidate. If that is because of cash then I would want that to come out later down the line and I could accept that.....probably just about although the risks between spending money on a good experienced manager and staying in the SPL need balancing against appointing a cheaper dodgy manager and getting relegated.

If Warnock has not been taken seriously and the Board have not pursued his interest with proper attention it shows the lack of ambition. We need now most of all given our start to the season, to get someone in to stabilise things right away. I don't think Brewster is the right choice. I will continue to support the team....that is what supporters do....and continue to voice my opinions....that is what this site and others are all about.

Who knows if Brewster is a success, I might have to eat a pie at the Stadium. :tic01:

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I don't think that either Pele or Robbo are on the short list.

Robbo must be on somebody's short list?  :023:

If he is to be forgiven for his previous departure then results need to come and come quickly, humble pie needs to be eaten and the appearance of contrition has to be there. Anything else would be unacceptable.

Interesting one Scotty. Results, yes of course, but how to perform the contrition? On bended knees before the main stand? It all seems a bit 'holier than thou'. 

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...

Better to regret that which you have done than that which you have not done. I can't help but feel if Brewster is appointed that Brewster now could well be a better ICT manager than the Brewster that never left, let the chance at Dundee United slip away and spent the past 18months wondering what if. 

Brewster is an intelligent chap. Intelligent people learn as they go. Brewster is bound to have a hard learning curve at Dundee Utd. He will also know that he is not going to last much longer as a playing force and will have to start using what else is around him. I think we may be in for a surprise if he comes back. One win on Saturday and the world will be turned upside-down...again.

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when looking at the stats for robbos record in the spl it has to be remembered that we played 11 games at pittodrie under his stewardship.

from all of our ex mamangers he has to have the best record doesnt he?  pele would be an emotional choice but potentially a fatal one and brewster steadied us up to secure bottom half spl mediocrity forever, the fittest and strongest team in the league will never go down

i wouldnt have any of them back

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Scotty's two posts in this thread are outstanding and reveal a clear understanding of the issues here. I completely agree with his summation of the Warnock situation vis-a-vis the fact that ICT do not even APPEAR to have approached him....man -oh - man, imagine that.

Kingsmills also has a good post.

And at the end Clacher Holiday is mentioned in despatches-- only if he reveals his age, though :002:...EH?

What bothers me is that Brewster's appointment smacks of desperation---or WHAT? It does not seem to be a reasonable choice so what is the reason for his possible consideration?

:024:

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If you look at the last 3 managerial appointments made the board took a chance on each one. Robbo and Brewster lacked experience as managers and CC lacked experience and had no real profile outside of Inverness. Surely if Warnock is even a remote possibility it's time to take a chance in the other direction and bring in someone high profile with bags of experience. We're not a diddy club from the Highlands enjoying a holiday in the big league now. We're an established SPL side. What we need is someone to take the club to the next level. I'm not a fan of a some of the things Warnock has done and said throughout his career, but one thing that can't be denied is that his teams go out and play with passion and fight for the cause. He has experience of taking teams with limited resources and pushing them on from the position they were at when he took over, and if there is a genuine interest from him then the club should be doing what they can to try and work a deal out.

Coyle would be the traditional risk that we've taken in the past as an inexperienced manager and so far, in varying degrees, they've paid off and we've had no disasters. Coyle or Warnock? For me it has to be Warnock if there is a choice.

Brewster would certainly not be my choice, and clearly isn't the choice of many on here. I have no problems with the fact he wanted to manage the club he supported. It was the loyalty speech beforehand that left the sour taste in the mouth. As many have pointed out Brewster the player helped Brewster the manager to have a decent record at ICT. The problem was that tactics revolved around Brewster the player, NOT making the most of the squad at his disposal. Surely at 41 (i think) that isn't exactly long term tactical thinking and without Brewster the player, his record at Dundee United doesn't really fill me with much confidence that "plan B" should have got much further than the drawing board.

At the end of the day it looks like it'll be Brewster (unless the board are using the ease of naming Brewster to fill the rumour sections while doing a deal on the quiet, which is unlikely) but whoever it is let's hope the fans get behind them until there is a reason AFTER the appointment for justified criticism

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Today's article in P&J makes pretty grim reading I'm afraid......

Aberdeen have given Caley Thistle permission to speak to Craig Brewster, but the former Inverness player-manager will not be in the dugout at Caledonian Stadium tomorrow.

Brewster, former Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock and St Johnstone manager Owen Coyle are the candidates in the running to succeed Charlie Christie, who resigned on Sunday.

Brewster's willingness to relocate gives him a clear advantage on his rivals, but Dons manager Jimmy Calderwood has told the 40-year-old forward he will be involved at Easter Road against Hibernian tomorrow even if he secures a return to the Highlanders following his meeting today.

Caley Thistle director of football Graeme Bennett admitted yesterday the chances of having a replacement on board before tomorrow's visit of Dundee United are slim.

Bennett said: "The speculation about the prospective appointment is not far away and I do not think there will be any surprises this time. It is becoming more unlikely we will get someone in place before Saturday. Donald Park will take care of the team on Saturday and whoever comes in will not play an active part on Saturday, it is more realistic something will happen on Monday.

"We have a shortlist, but we might come into problems with clubs, wages and compensation. It would be wrong to name individuals as we could fall flat on our face.

"We might find out certain candidates are not available and our list could be down to one. We are not ruling anyone in or out. There are no guarantees and if you look at Neil Warnock, there are a host of issues, not least relocation."

Should Brewster return to Inverness he will be able to register as a player provided an agreement is reached before the transfer window closes next Friday.

Aberdeen assistant manager Jimmy Nicholl fears the worst as Brewster's hopes of a return to his former club increase.

He said: "It is late in the week which is not very helpful for us, but it is a great chance for Craig. As a club we can't stand in his way."

If Brewster does return to the club which gave him his break in football management, his departure will be sorely felt at Pittodrie.

Nicholl, however, has urged Pittodrie forward Lee Miller to assume the mantle of the club's targetman in the veteran's absence.

He said: "You could see what Craig brought to the side last week and Lee Miller could learn a lot from him.

"The positions he takes up, the problems he gives defenders, his passing, everything is great.

"Lee Miller doesn't have the pace of Darren Mackie or Steve Lovell, and if the manager wants the balance of a targetman and a quick forward, Lee has to take the things Brew does on board."

Miller, Steve Lovell and Chris Maguire will be given the chance to fill the void if Brewster does return to Caley Thistle as player-manager.

Nicholl added: "Brewster's reputation in the game as a great player is a well deserved one, but we have forwards at the club who deserve the chance to fill his boots."

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