Zach top of treble targets for Robbo after Caley victory
cycling, rugby, basketball or baseball. I read about the mindset of various coaches and leaders.
“Basketba l l coach Phi l Jackson’s book Sacred Hoops, deals with how to get a superstar in Michael Jordan to help his team-mates become better and by doing that creating more room for himself to excel around them.”
Former Chicago Bulls coach Jackson believed in constructing a team to serve the ‘we’ instead of the ‘me’ – but building that takes time, something no manager has these days.
But it also takes an eye for the right player to complement what you have – and McCann admits this is the first time his has been put to the test.
He is, however, confident, that those he’s already brought in – Scott Allan, Rory Deacon, Lewis Spence and Dutch winger Randy Wolters – will add a dimension to his team missing from their bottom-six struggle last term. He said: “Every manager stands or falls by recruitment – and it’s a hard thing. This is the side of management no-one tells you about. “I never used to answer my phone to numbers I didn’t know before – I answer all of them now. You never know. It might be the lead for the perfect player for you. “You see it as a player, you see managers setting up a training session and then the next minute they’re away with the phone stuck to their ear in a corner of the pitch. “Jim was constantly on the phone, and he had a real knack of producing class players from nowhere. Think about Pasquale Bruno, Stephane Paille, Stephen Adam and Gilles Rousset. “I’m hopeful we can do the same. I used the phrase ‘stop the bleeding’ last season and set us up so we were hard to beat. “We might need to do it again this year but in my recruitment I knew we were short in the front areas of the pitch, creativity wise, where you can go and dominate and put teams on the back foot, which is why the first four signings were like that. “Spencey can play in front of the back four but Scotty, Rory and Randy are game changers. “People were maybe shocked by Lewis. ‘He couldnae get a game for Dunfermline…’, but I battered Jim to get him in that team to the point where he thought I had a bet on him making his debut!
“When it looked like he was going to go to Brechin, I thought I’d give him a chance. He might be a superstar for our team. I have to trust my judgment.
“Rory is so two-footed, he can play the 10 role or out wide, go both ways, he’s quick, powerful. I remember watching Lubo Moravcik taking corners with both feet – this kid can do that.
“Randy is a left winger and I’m so excited I got him – he’s going to be explosive. I did my homework, watched a lot of footage.
“I’m lucky because I played with some of the best footbal lers Holland has had to offer in recent years, Arthur Numan, Gio van Bronckhorst, the De Boers, Mikey Mols – and I spoke to all of them. It was all very positive. Not a bad set of recommendations.
“I see wee bits of myself in him. I also see a bit of Jonny Hayes. A guy who’s been one of the best in the league for the past few years by a mile, a guy Celtic just paid over a million for, and I see this boy having similar attributes.
“He also has that wee bit of Dutch confidence they all seem to have as well.
“Scotty as well, what a player. It just hasn’t happened for him at Celtic but he’s embracing it here.
“I didn’t have a great time at Southampton, I doubted myself and my confidence was low there, so I understand where he is. I want to give Scott the confidence to go and play, and be expressive.
“One of my big influences was Dick Advocaat and his philosophy of balance, of five who can win the game and five who control the situation if you lose the ball. I put some of that into the side last year and now I want to drive it home.” John Robertson hopes to complete three new signings this week with ex-West Brom winger Zachary Elbouzedi top of his target list.
The new Inverness Caley Thistle manager put seven trialists through their paces yesterday in a 1- 0 friendly victory at Highland League side Forres Mechanics.
Thistle made tough work of their first outing of the season with former Hearts defender Brad McKay’s late header the di f ference between the two sides at Mosset Park.
All eyes were on Robbo’s prospective new faces, with Elbouzedi, a Dubliner with a Libyan father and Irish mother, among those out to impress the new boss.
The 19-year-old has been rated as one of Ireland’s brightest emerging talents after rising through his country’s youth ranks with caps at every level from under-15 to under-19 level.
But he is now considering his next move after being released by the Baggies.
Robertson said: “I would expect to have at least three new signings by Wednesday.
“We’ve brought Zac up and we’re very keen to offer him a contract. His agent is quite keen for him to come.
“He has another couple of options but we feel, at this point in time, Inverness would be the best place for him to play his football.”
Supporters also got a glimpse of former Hearts and Partick Thistle keeper Mark Ridgers, who is close to agreeing a deal with his hometown club af ter impressing on trial.
Ex-Airdrie midfielder Jack Leitch, son of Motherwell hero Scott, started the game along with former Celtic defender Joe Chalmers.
George Oakley – who was released by Wimbledon AFC – was also given a chance to shine up front but never tested Forres keeper Stuart Knight.
Scott Davidson, a freescoring Highland League trialist recently with Fort William, also started but hobbled off injured after an hour of action.
Midfielder Ivor Lawton, a 21- year- old who was released by Coventry, appeared from the bench with McKay netting the only goal when he headed home a Liam Polworth corner in the 78th minute.