IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT THE MONEY FOR MULRANEY

AMAN rarely lost for words, Mike Mulraney is temporarily nonplussed by the question. Asked to recall the highest fee shelled out for a player, the Alloa chairman has to pause for thought.

‘I’m not sure I’ve ever spent anything,’ he tells Sportsmail. ‘Maybe £5k in compensation, but I’d have to think…’

Celtic visit Recreation Park on Scottish Cup duty this evening and, for Ange Postecoglou, there’s a decision to be made over the inclusion of new £1.5million signing Matt O’Riley.

For Alloa, a part-time club languishing in eighth place in Scotland’s third tier, it’s a quandary unlikely to rear its head any time soon. The modest financial boost provided by the visit of the League Cup holders will change little.

‘Financially, these games are important and beneficial,’ adds Mulraney. ‘But they are not the fantastic revolutionary change for lower-league clubs people seem to think.

‘That doesn’t change the fact that, for the town of Alloa, they are important dates.

‘We have loads of guests coming to our town. We have loads of guests coming to our club.

‘I’m sure they’ll enjoy themselves and the town will derive some benefit, but it’s not a game-changer financially for a club like Alloa. Our capacity is 3,100 and that doesn’t change whoever we play.’

A 2-1 defeat to Raith Rovers in May brought to an end Alloa’s three-year stay in the Championship and the tenure of manager Peter Grant.

Mulraney, who handed managerial breaks to Paul Hartley, Jack Ross and Jim Goodwin — and strongly influenced the appointment of Steve Clarke as Scotland boss in his role as vice-president of the SFA — raised eyebrows with the appointment of Barry Ferguson from Kelty Hearts.

Without a win in their last six league games, Alloa’s last victory of any description was a 5-0 rout of Lowland League side Bonnyrigg Rose in the last round of the cup.

‘It has been a tough campaign because the aftermath of relegation is always tough,’ adds Mulraney (pictured). ‘The manager has to put a new team together and he needs the time to do that. That’s what we are giving him.

‘It sounds like an excuse, but there are loads of games we could have got more from where we didn’t.

‘We have been impacted by injuries and Covid like everyone else, and Barry has had to put together a new squad.

‘That takes time and, while it hasn’t been a bad season exactly, neither has it been the season we would have wanted.

‘Ultimately, Barry is my manager and giving it 100 per cent and he is not getting the results I think his efforts deserve. But that sometimes happens in football.’

Title favourites at the start of the season, Ferguson’s relationship with the Alloa support has been fraught. A touchline spat with fans leaked on to the internet after a lacklustre draw with Dumbarton in September, but caused no sleepless nights for the chairman.

‘I understand that Barry has a reputation for being fiery, but so have many managers,’ says Mulraney. ‘It’s not something I think is an issue and it’s not something I find personally.

‘Everybody has a different personality and Barry is a winner. When he is not winning, he gets upset and that’s fantastic for me.

‘Why would a chairman want a manager who accepted losing games? He gets upset when he is not winning and I think that’s wonderful.’

A key member of the SFA and SPFL Joint Response Group who guided Scottish football through the Covid crisis, Mulraney’s time is split thinly between a young family, thriving business interests and football.

Asked how much energy his hometown team takes up in the face of all this, he replies: ‘More than it should. But we are really lucky we have a fantastic team running the club along with us.

‘There are employees and volunteers and I am certain Alloa would continue to operate well even without me.

‘Hopefully I add a little bit because I do give it a bit of time.

‘It’s wonderful when you can invest time in something that is a hobby and a labour of love as well as part of your business.

‘We are very lucky at Alloa because the board is supported by the community and by the town and is the only club in the county of Clackmannanshire.

‘If we are not the firstchoice team of everyone, then we are certainly their second. ‘It’s a big advantage for us and we have a great team both within the club and outside in our

community.’