More candidates for Hartlepool United Manager

By Albatross
June 3 2003

The third batch of people who have been linked or mentioned for the Hartlepool United hotseat can be found here. I have to say I'm not too sure about most of these; but see what you think about Martin Scott, Roy Evans, Joe Kinnear, Chris Waddle, Lou Macari and Niall Quinn.

I have doubts over several of these, as you'll discover; some are unlikely to be interested, others I'm simply not convinced they'd be capable of doing the job for us. A fith of people that have taken part in the poll want Nigel Clough, the same number want someone not listed. The letters will hopefully have started arriving at the club today, but on past history we're unlikely to find out who has applied unless the candidates say so themselves. Anyone for whistling in the dark?

Martin Scott

Scott has the advantage of knowing the squad and the setup at Pools already, and acted as Assistant Manager before the arrival of Kevin Sheedy. He's done a great job with the youth team, and would provide some continuity with the Turner era. As a manager though he's an unknown quantity, which counts against him somewhat. If he doesn't get the job, whoever does may well find his advice and knowledge of the squad invaluable.

Pros: Knows the squad; good record with the Youth Team

Cons: Unknown quantity as a manager

Roy Evans

Mentioned by one or two people as a possible, Evans is of course best remembered for his spell at Liverpool. He has managed in the second division as well though, with a three month spell at Swindon in 2001; his record was not overly impressive there - 27 points in 21 league games - but included a victory over Pools in the FA Cup. He's not been in management since, and it's debatable whether he'd be interested anyway.

Pros: Experienced; well-known; contacts

Cons: Not a good record at this level; might not be interested

Joe Kinnear

The outspoken Kinnear is a larger than life character, and has a great record in management. He consistently kept Wimbledon in the Premier before leaving due to health reasons, then lead Luton to promotion and an upper mid-table position in Div2. Luton fans were amazed when he was sacked by their new owners. He was possibly the best paid manager in Div2 last season though, and wouldn't come cheap; he may also be looking at vacancies at bigger clubs.

Pros: Good record; good contacts; big name in UK

Cons: Might want a higher profile job; likely to want high wages

Chris Waddle

It's no secret that Waddle wants to get back into management, and he's apparently been applying for pretty much every job going. There are even rumours that he's been sighted in the town. He hardly covered himself with glory in his solitary season at Burnley though, and it's been five years since then. He'd be high profile, but would he be successful?

Pros: High Profile; Contacts; North-East connections

Cons: Struggled at Burnley

Lou Macari

Macari has managed a number of clubs, most recently Huddersfield. After seeing them relegated, he then guided them to the 2nd division playoffs the following season despite a very tight budget before surprisingly being sacked. He's not been successful everywhere he's been; but some of his best times have come in Division 2 and coupled with his ability to work to a budget this may make him worth looking at - assuming he's interested of course.

Pros: Experience in Div2; good at working to a budget; can get best out of players

Cons: Might not be interested; not always been a success

Niall Quinn

The former Sunderland and Republic of Ireland striker has been mentioned for the job, but his limited coaching experience may count against him. He comes across as someone that thinks about the game, and is popular with many in the Football world, but I'm not sure if he'd be interested in the job at Pools; and he himself may feel that he needs to get more experience in coaching before taking the hotseat somewhere. When he retired as a player he also claimed not to be interested in coaching anyway.

Pros: Reputation; thinker; contacts

Cons: Lacks experience of coaching/management; may not be interested anyway