Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Old enough to Young enough
DUNDEE’S search for a new manager saw a number of different names emerge as serious candidates.
Some were experienced, for example Jack Ross. Others, like Shaun Maloney, were nearer the rookie stage.
Previous managers at Dens tended towards the greener end of that scale with James McPake and Neil McCann in their first jobs and Paul Hartley in a first full-time gig as manager.
Jim McIntyre and Mark McGhee had much more experience but were short-term and, ultimately, unsuccessful.
Now, though, Dundee managing director John Nelms and his technical director Gordon Strachan feel they’ve found the perfect mix in new boss Gary Bowyer.
The 50-year-old has plenty of know-how picked up over 10 years as a manager in England.
“Experience is very important,” Nelms said.
“We have gone back and forth over the years, we have tried to develop young managers and taken chances on inexperienced managers.
“But they absolutely knew the game and we thought they would do a good job.
“In this case, we wanted an experienced manager who could go into the matches having been there and done that.
“So he’s not learning and making mistakes on the job and can focus on working with the players.
“We want to create a culture within Dundee that is a winning culture.
“We want to play reality football to win us games and get promoted.”
Crucially, Bowyer’s time spent as a youth coach at both Blackburn Rovers and Derby County spoke of an ability to develop young footballers.
And development is the cornerstone Dundee chiefs are hoping to lay towards their future.
“Gordon and I started to put together a programme to modify how we do things at the club a few months ago,” Nelms added.
“Gary ticked all the boxes of what we want going forward. We want someone with experience, we want somebody to focus on, not just winning, but development. If you look at Gary’s stats, 66% of the time he collects points but while he is doing that he is developing good young footballers.
“At Dundee, we are now in a position where we are bringing through a lot more talent through our academy.
“We need to keep developing them. That’s something Gary has done over his career.”
Though developing players is a big part of the job for Bowyer going forward, it is clear promotion from the Championship at the first time