Donnelly is ready for his next step
SIMON DONNELLY had been in football for 23 seasons without a break when all of a sudden he was sacked by Dundee United in September of last year as part of Jackie McNamara’s backroom team.
He planned a three-month period of rest and to enjoy an uninterrupted festive season with his family.
But after five weeks, he got a call from McNamara and he was on his way to york City. Their task was to keep the club in league Two but they couldn’t deliver and the National league beckoned.
They had a supportive owner in Jason McGill but action was taken last month after some unacceptable results. McNamara moved to a role as City’s chief executive and Donnelly resigned to return home to eaglesham. He now hopes to get that period over Christmas and New year.
With the benefit of hindsight, the move to york was a wrong one but it has not dampened Donnelly’s enthusiasm. Highly rated as a coach after successful spells at Partick Thistle and United, he hopes not to be out of the game for long.
Donnelly said: ‘york was a difficult job and we tried our best. We’ve been in coaching and management for six years. Of that period, four and half years were successful.
‘We put down foundations for Partick Thistle to get out of the Championship. We then got a squad at Dundee United and worked with the players. Four or five of the boys got fantastic moves and we got into cup finals.
‘Then, we weren’t getting the results we wanted in our final season at Tannadice. We didn’t get the time to turn things around. We felt we could do it. But everything that happens in football is for a reason. you try to be successful and, successful or not, you learn from it all.
‘I don’t know if I’ll work again with Jackie. We’ve had six years together and had our playing careers as youngsters at Celtic and then finished at Partick. He has decided to take a different route and I wish him well. I’ll wait and see what’s next for me.
‘Do I want to be my own man? yeah, possibly. I’ve had a good look at it in the past few years, seeing what Jackie had to deal with. There isn’t the same pressure on an assistant. I may look at it as a career move further down the road.’
Donnelly has no doubt McNamara will be back in a managerial position if he wants to.
He said: ‘I have sympathy for Jackie. I’ve seen what he has put into the game and his job. It’s been above and beyond the call of duty. He cares about his players and cares about his job. I’ve seen him paying for things out of his own pocket when we’ve been away on pre-season.
‘So, when I see all the nonsense that happens to him, then it does get to you. listen, he has a great mentality. I’ve said often enough that you don’t play for Celtic and Scotland for ten years and not have an unbelievable mental strength. He also captained Celtic and was given the armband by Martin O’Neill. That speaks volumes.’ Intelligent and articulate, Donnelly, 42 next month, is relaxed and open in conversation. He’s enjoying being back in the family home and has settled back into it all. This period out will also give him time to reflect. He said: ‘My enthusiasm is the same. My passion remains. I’m not in management at the minute but I’m playing six-a-sides with other coaches and managers during the week, some are in the game and some are unfortunate to be out of work. ‘But football drives me on. It was the same when I was a kid. It’s what I wanted to be and that’s why I made sacrifices — and it resulted in me signing for Celtic when I was 17. I’ve been lucky to have had so many years in this sport. I want to be involved in it again.
‘I see a great desire in our kids in this country. I have three boys — Max, lewis and Oliver — and they want to become footballers. I’ve told them it’s one of the hardest things to achieve and the dedication that’s required to become a professional. They will have to make sacrifices. I try to educate my sons on it. I have told them to be 100 per cent focused and committed to succeeding. That attitude must apply to all walks of life.’
His application to his profession gave him a fine career with Celtic, Sheffield Wednesday, Partick and the 1998 World Cup squad with Scotland.
But nothing has given him greater joy than being involved in the progress of players such as Ryan Gauld, Andy Robertson and Stuart Armstrong.
He said: ‘I take a great delight in coaching. The one example I use all the time and one that makes me smile is Andy Robertson. At Dundee United, he treated every training session like his last and every game like his last.
‘He was rewarded with a move to the english Premier league and he has been doing well with Hull and Scotland. It’s just a pity he is injured just now. He has been excelling. To have played such a small part in his career has given me so much pleasure.’