Allan McManus will take the first team for the last time tomorrow as the arrival of new manager Jack Ross, who takes over on Monday, bring’s Allan’s time as caretaker gaffer to a close. Allan is looking forward to tomorrow’s IRN-BRU Cup tie at Easter Road against Hibernian and he expects it to be a real test for the Buddies.
“It’s going to be a tough game but it is a game that we look forward to. I think that we can see that there has been improvement over the last two weeks and the boys have a bit of confidence about them and they are comfortable enough to go and pass the ball under a bit of pressure.
“They have worked so hard again this week and I can’t ask for anymore from them but we are fully aware that the game on Saturday will be a difficult one, but it is one that I believe that we are prepared for. If the boys are composed and they work as hard as they have been doing then they can get a positive result from the game.”
One school of thought is that when things are not going so well in the league campaign that cup ties tend to take off the pressure a bit, Allan believes that all forms of competition bring their own pressure.
“At the end of the day we are a professional football club and any game that we are involved in we want to win. We’re taking part in a competition and it is a competition we want to go and see how far we can go in it. So I certainly wouldn’t be playing the game down, as I say it is an opportunity for the boys involved to continue taking the team forward and improving.
“There would be nothing better for the club and for the team than to get a result on Saturday and it means that when the manager comes in on Monday that everything is upbeat and we’re ready to kick on and move up the table.”
Allan already knows new manager Jack Ross and he is looking forward to building a good working relationship with the new gaffer.
“I’m fortunate enough that I know the manager. I spoke with him several times before and I have played against him. I’m looking forward to him coming in, it’s exciting times. With everything changing at the club everything is looking positive and it is going to be. From my own personal point of view, it will be great to be part of that moving things forward.”
Allan will be continuing his work at the Academy but he declares that he is more than happy to help out the new management team whenever they need him.
“I have absolutely loved everything that I have done here. I’ve to speak to the manager about one or two things and maybe there is an opportunity to still assist him in some way, whether that be in match days or at training we’ll just have to wait and see about that, that will be his decision.
“Back at the Academy we will continue to do what we are doing there and keep moving things forward. Things are going relatively well there as well, we’ve got a lot of good promising young players and ultimately that is my job to try and get them in and about the first team. But if the manager wants me to assist him in any way then I’ll be delighted to do so.”
A new manager is a fresh start for everybody, something the squad of players are being made aware of.
“They obviously know who the new manager is but at the end of the day we’re saying it is a fresh start for everybody as I’m sure the manager will come in with an open mind. It’s up to the players to show him that they are good enough to start. I’ve said to them that we have a squad here of around 22 players, at the end of the day the manager can only start eleven at any one time. So with how they have went about their business so far they have got to keep that work rate and that work ethic whether they are starting the game or coming on as a sub or they’re not taking part at the moment. They have got to continue to work hard and the ones that aren’t starting have got to work that bit harder to force their way into the manager’s plans. That is ultimately what it will be as everybody is just going to have to work as hard as they can to try and get that starting jersey.”
Looking ahead to tomorrow’s match at Easter Road, Allan has a full squad at his disposal but he reckons he has a few tough choices to make.
“No major concerns at all, we have a full squad to pick from. The boys did particularly well last week albeit they didn’t get the three points. The guys who haven’t started have been absolutely fantastic so we have a few selection headaches for the weekend because some boys who haven’t started are certainly showing the right attitude and possibly deserve to be involved more than they have been recently.”
