Locke key man for Hearts

Football columnist

Sunday 10 June 2012

THERE is no shortage of excellent candidates out there to be the new manager of Hearts, but I just don't know if Vladimir Romanov will go for one of the likely lads.

Gary Locke should be given the chance of managing Hearts, says Billy Dodds Photograph: SNS

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Billy Dodds

The first thing he has to decide is whether to pull a rabbit out of the hat and go for another foreigner that no-one else has heard of, or go for a cheaper option.

They need someone who can handle the football side of things on a certain budget, someone who can work with the youth and still have an eye for a player, a bit like the way Peter Houston has been running it at Dundee United. No-one would love it more than me if they promoted a young Scottish coach because there aren't enough getting their chance these days.

John McGlynn probably deserves to be the front runner because he has certainly proved he can do it at Raith. Even though they struggled this year, staying up by the skin of their teeth, they went so close to promotion a season previously. He knows the young players from his previous time at the club, and managed to part on good terms with Mr Romanov.Colin Cameron has also shown potential in winning the Second Division at Cowdenbeath, as has Paul Hartley in taking the Third Division title at Alloa. Steven Pressley's credentials are brilliant, but I can't see Romanov going for him due to his involvement in the "Riccarton Three" affair, and you could probably say the same for Hartley. You never rule anything out completely with Romanov, but although he has allowed Andy Webster to return to the club, he does tend to hold grudges and remember everything that is said about him. It doesn't look like he is going to shell out the big bucks and if they are going down the cheaper financial route then I would vouch for Gary Locke. He is a great boy, he is at the club already and I know he was away recently getting his pro licence sorted. He has great experience from having learned from Jim Jefferies at Kilmarnock and Hearts and now he has picked up a few tips from a modern European manager in Paulo Sergio.Locke said he learned things from Sergio that he would never ever have thought of. Although playing for the club doesn't make you a great manager, he deserves his opport-unity. I have not seen him first hand on the coaching front, but he should have a chance certainly. There is a new structure at the club under director of football John Murray, and his namesake, the current under-19 coach Darren, has been linked with making the step up. Everybody deserves a chance but for me that might be one cutback too many. Whatever happens, Sergio will always be a cult hero at Hearts for winning the Scottish Cup and he can leave with his head held high. He handled everything that was thrown at him and on a budget he still won a trophy – which is the most teams such as Hearts, Aberdeen, Hibs and Motherwell, can expect these days. To come to another country and fit in so well takes some doing and it shouldn't be hard for him to land another job. Someone might even give him a go at championship level, which would be deserved. Valdas Ivanauskas was the last manager to win the cup at Hearts but he never had to deal with players routinely being paid late. It is ironic that Hearts are cutting back just when they might have more chance of winning things given the turmoil at Rangers. However, you could also look at it the other way and say they could have ended up like Rangers with the way they were spending. As much as I would love to see Hearts kick on and sign a few big names, you have to balance your costs. For me, Romanov was throwing too much money at it. We know the players weren't all on big wages, but there were boys on £10,000 or £15,000-a-week there in years gone by and that is madness at a non Old Firm club. It is madness even for Rangers just now as well.People always asked how long could Romanov sustain it. The answer was that he couldn't. As much as I don't have a lot of time for him, he has at least recognised that. It might not be doing the right thing as far as Sergio is concerned, but it is at least the sensible thing. If you put your very existence as a club in danger you are going down the wrong road, as Rangers have proved.SERGIO isn't the only successful member of an SPL backroom staff who finds himself out of work this morning. The Alan Thompson situation just shows that football can be a brutal game; you can be in and out before you know it, even if you are winning things. I played against Thompson loads of times, and he is a good lad, a real winner. He will get another job because he is a decent coach, but he must be wishing he had kept out of the limelight a bit more. He has made enough money and he will be fine, but it is not about financial gain. He was doing well, he had just won the title, one of his best pals was manager, and he was going great guns. I think he'll regret the way his time at Celtic has ended for the rest of his life.

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Locke key man for Hearts

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