Well, here we are again. Hibernian FC is again a rudderless ship once more after just sixteen months with manager John Hughes being allowed to leave by ‘mutual consent’. In fairness the club had to act to counter an appalling recorded of just four wins in thirty-three games and nowhere would you have heard that proclaimed louder than from me. So now the usual lottery of choosing a new manager at Easter Road ensues and one wonders at the selections procedures that are used by Chairman Rod Petrie and his cohorts. One thing is for sure, the method of choosing a former playing hero of the club will not necessarily wash.
A person that has been mentioned yet again along with many others is former Forest and Notts County boss, Ian McParland I’ve been a big admirer of ‘Charlie’ in the past, both as a player and manager and have had the chance to watch him manage on both sides of the Trent at The City Ground and Meadow Lane
I see his name coming once more into the reckoning in various places and thought I’d just comment. Originally at Forest he was a somewhat reluctant caretaker manager being thrust into the job to hold the fort after Megson left, after around ten years of happily being a reserve team boss. At this time he was slightly taciturn with the media and tended to leave that stuff to his co-manager, Frank Barlow. It worked well and Forest played some great football before and had great results before Colin Calderwood was appointed manager (surprisingly to many).
He reverted back to his former role as reserve team boss before taking the manager role at Notts, who were ultimately enshrouded in the media circus that was Munto Finance and Sven-Goran Eriksson. The ‘millions’ that were promised for the club were found to be built on sand but in the meantime, Notts saw fit to part company with their relatively low-profile manager and acquire someone more ‘fitting’ with their new-found ‘prestige’ and image.
Apparently Charlie is reportedly is happily continuing his career at Ipswich as a coach and I’m not sure, considering, his past experiences, how much he wants to dip his toe in the water again. He has been reported as admitting to being a big Hibby and offered in the past that he’d love to manage at Easter Road one day though.
I like Ian McParland. i think he’s a real football man and loves his team to play with flair and pass the ball on the ground. At Notts he systematically went through the whole club top to bottom and repaired what had become a joke and a shambles of a club that nearly went out of the league. What you see is what you get with this guy – he doesn’t talk a lot compared to some but he talks straight.
All this wasn’t enough for some Notts fans who were split in opinion about him at the end. I think they had had their heads turned with talk of the likes of Roberto Mancini (yes, I kid you not!) coming to manage the club. It was a very silly time on that side of the Trent.
The main criticism you’ll hear Magpies fans make of McParland is that he ‘couldn’t change a game’ – does that sound familiar? It may be a fair criticism but for my money it’s becoming one of the great clichés of modern football, we hear it at a lot of clubs. Another factor is that Charlie is most definitely a Hibby – a Tranent lad who supported the club when he was younger but doesn’t shout about it a lot. That once was a factor in his favour but from what I hear nowadays wouldn’t necessarily be now – quite the reverse for some in fact.
Hibs fans – make your own mind up!
THE TEARS OF A CLOWN 