Former Englandshire manager Steve McLaren is in the news again as he aims to get his managerial career back on track. Given the flack he's been getting back home in England, a return to club football there would have been next to impossible. In Holland, where press intrusion on the scale seen in the UK is considerably less, he's hoping to get a chance to rebuild away from the spotlight and has taken over at FC Twente Enschede, the club that former Aberdeen player Scott Booth also spent three years at.
In the few interviews McLaren has given so far, he has said that one of things that convinced him to move to Holland was the talks he held with another former England manager, Sir Bobby Robson who, for two years managed top side PSV Eindhoven. As chronicled in Simon Kupers excellent "Football Against The Enemy", Robson had a pretty torrid time of it in the Netherlands. Though he had a squad of supremely talented players available to him (including Brazilian legend Romário), Robson found the Dutch 'polder model' way of running the team (where decisions are made by the group, usually after lengthy debate) at odds with the British style of football management, i.e. the one which has the manager in charge of all tactics and decisions. Robson won the Dutch Premier League in the two seasons he was there, but left shortly afterwards.
Perhaps Steve McLaren would have been better off talking to current Aberdeen boss Jimmy Calderwood, who spent more than twenty years playing, as well as managing in the Dutch Leagues. Calderwood joined Sparta Rotterdam (the oldest professional football team in Holland) in 1979, before moving onto Willem II and Roda JC, for whom he made over one hundred appearances. He coached at FC Zwolle, Cambuur Leeuwarden and Willem II, teams probably closer in comparison to FC Twente than PSV Eindhoven. Calderwood then managed Willem II (where he coached an up-and-coming Jaap Stam) and NEC Nijmegen between July '97 and December '99 when he returned to Scotland and Dunfermline. His managerial stats - P 82 W 26 D 13 L 43 Pts 91 suggest he didn't exactly have a great time in Holland either, but at least he'd have been able to advise McLaren of what life at the rough end of Dutch football would be like.
Hearts
Stephen Frail looks set to continue on as Hearts "manager" for a bit longer. Vladimir Weiss is expected to give his final answer about the vacancy at Tynecastle on Thursday. Meanwhile, former Russian international Andrei Zygmantovich is also said to be (or should that be "told to be") interested in the Hearts job. No great surprises there; Zygmantovich is currently assistant coach at Kaunas (aka FC Vladimir Romanov).
Division 3
The five clubs hoping to join the fun in the Scottish League have now all been visited by the SFL committee. Early reports indicate the toilet facilities at Preston Athletic are the worst out of the five clubs (requiring a major upgrade apparently), while the floodlights - or rather, the lack of floodlights - at Annan Athletic are causing some concern. If successful, the club plans to ground share with Queen of the South at nearby Palmerston Park until the lights are installed, currently scheduled for the end of August.
Fellow applicants Cove Rangers have gone hi-tech in their proposal: they've only gone and made a video and then emailed it to each of the 29 members of the SFL! The five-minute production describes details of their proposed new stadium at Calder Park, and has Cove's top flight neighbours Aberdeen FC backing the Highland League club's bid. A number of clubs up and down the North East have all pledged their support and backing for the Cove bid, including the chairmen of Peterhead, Ross County, Elgin, Forfar, Arbroath and Brechin, who are probably all hoping they wont be having to travel to the back of beyond (read: Annan) for away games.
Cove chairman Keith Moorhouse is keen to promote Cove as a go-ahead club and he hopes the video will help reinforce that. We trust the 542Mb file won't fill up the in-boxes of the clubs concerned. It's a pity that Cove's high-tech policy doesn't extend to the making of an official club website, but you can't have everything.
Lobbying will now start of the SFL member clubs in order to gain preference in the vote taking place on 3rd July. In a first past the post system, the first team to get fifteen votes will be declared the winner, culminating in a puff of white smoke from the chimney and SFL Chief Executive David Longmuir proclaiming "Habemus Restituo" from the balcony at Hampden.
The BBC has profiled the teams in the race to be Club 'X'. Go to their website for more details.
Transfer News
Former Kilmarnock striker Paul di Giacomo has moved a few miles up the M80 to join recently promoted First Division outfit Airdrie United. Di Giacomo had been released last week by Kilmarnock. Striker Gary Wales, released along with Di Giacomo is still without a club. Wales, 29, had previously played with Hamilton and Hearts.
Andy Barrowman opted for Inverness CT rather than play in the Championship. Barrowman scored 29 goals last season to help Ross County to promotion back to the First Division. He's signed a three-year deal at the Caledonian Stadium.
In Dundee, Alex Rae is not happy. Not at losing another player (the £500,000 Dundee received in Scotland U-21 international Kevin McDonald's move to Burnley will come in handy), but rather at McDonald's agents. Rae claims bigger clubs came in for McDonald at the last minute and feels he should have waited before putting his thumbprint on the dotted line. Clubs bigger than Burnley. Is that possible?
It's Gala day at Dumbarton as former Kilmarnock and Partick Thistle midfielder Stevie Murray signs up for two years. Dumbarton are gearing up for next season having already made 12 purchases over the summer including 2 goalkeepers, 3 defenders, 4 midfielders, 2 forwards, 1 striker and a partridge in a pear tree.
Ryan McCann has opted to move to Coca-Cola Football League Two side Morecambe. The 26-year-old, proud owner of an 84-yard screamer against Dundee in the Scottish Cup last season turned down the opportunity to play UEFA Cup football to join Morecambe. Which begs the question, why?!?
Former Falkirk player Alan Gow is considering a move to championship side Norwich Currently signed to Rangers, Gow, 25 is frustrated at not being able to claim a first team place at Ibrox. He has previously played for Clydebank and Airdrie. Norwich finished 17th last season.
John Gemmell, the want-away Albion Rovers striker has signed a two year deal with Cowdenbeath. Scoring 12 goals in 22 appearances, Gemmell had been transfer-listed at his own request. "John will offer us a physical presence up front and knows how to put the ball in the back of the net", according to Blue Brazil manager Danny Lennon.
Finally...
The BBC website today has the full itinerary of the SPL teams on their pre-season tours. Inside Left will be in Deventer for Aberdeen's game against Go Ahead Eagles on the 2nd August and is hoping to catch a few words with Jimmy and the team before they return to Scotland.
Ok, that's it. We're back tomorrow with profiles of the teams promoted from the various divisions in Scotland last season. In the meantime, questions, comments and bribes to the usual address please.
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