He is indeed an excellent manager, and in all honesty, if he returned I could see him getting us promoted this year. His teams are fit, well prepared, work hard, are very difficult to beat, and defensively sound. In addition, his time here began with a rift...he disagreed with Brown`s sacking, and as result there was, I feel, a chasm between him and the chairman right from the start. Yet he did his job professionally.....and I still get a shiver when I think back to the Derby games, and as the chant began..`We`re on the way....`...I believed.
And maybe that`s part of it. West Ham, Leeds...we failed. And that failure still hurts, and leads me to remember the darker side..the bore draws, the touting himself to a bigger club, the fact he inherited a talented but disorganised side from Pa Broon. I wonder how much of his success was also down to the players and managers that preceded him. I remember the acrimony when he left, and how he seemed to do everything he could to screw Preston North End.
I can handle him returning. I`d welcome it in many ways.And as a fan who wants the best for this club, which begins with us getting promoted to where we belong...yes, I agree, he is by far the stand out candidate. As I`ve said before, I can also see PR having the nous to use Billy and his talents for the good of the club.
It`s the possibility of him turning us down I can`t easily handle. Yes, foolish pride. But also something else too..I don`t believe,I don`t trust. Once before, I thought we were `on the way`. It will take a lot before I make that mistake again.