St Mirren manager Craig McLeish has been named Scottish Premiership Manager of the Month, vindicating the Paisley club's decision to hand the 36-year-old the job on a permanent basis over the summer.
St Mirren have won three of their opening six league matches this season under McLeish, who first took charge on an interim basis in February after Stephen Robinson left to join Aberdeen.
McLeish steered the club to safety through the Premiership play-offs before being confirmed as permanent manager in the summer, a decision chairman John Needham admits was "not a universally popular decision" at the time.
Board's succession planning
Needham revealed the club's board had begun discussing what would come after Robinson roughly a year before the change was made, and around three months before Robinson went on to win the League Cup with St Mirren. Robinson had also led the club to three successive top-six Premiership finishes and a run in the Conference League, the club's first taste of European football in nearly 40 years.
"About this time last year we as a board were discussing what we wanted to do when Stephen inevitably left," Needham said. "He had been in the post three-and-a-half years at that stage and we knew he was nearer the end with us than the beginning. So, it was very much a case of asking, where do we go from here? And is the current approach sustainable or do we need to do something different?"
Needham said the club felt it was "spending the same money" on transfers "but not getting the same quality," and that recruitment in the last couple of transfer windows under Robinson had been "patchy at best," despite Robinson previously working "miracles" with chief scout Martin Foyle. The board decided to try to lower the squad's average age, sign players with greater potential sale value, and lengthen contracts.
"We drew up an identikit picture of what a future St Mirren manager would look like in terms of capability and what their focus would be," Needham said. "And when Stephen eventually went in February, we were set up in terms of succession planning, not with specific names in mind because you can't do that. But we had the type of person in mind we wanted."
McLeish's early pitch for the job
McLeish had worked for several years in St Mirren's youth academy and was well respected at the club, though Needham said few had considered him as first-team manager material until he raised the idea himself.
"The day that Stephen left, Craig actually came up to Keith [Lasley, chief executive] in the car park at Ralston and said, 'Look, I want this job'," Needham said. "That came a bit from left-field. We can't pretend otherwise. That was a surprise that he made that early pitch for it."
The club initially put McLeish in interim charge for a couple of matches before extending his role to the end of the season. Needham acknowledged there were "some really disappointing performances" during that spell, with the squad depleted by injuries, but described McLeish getting the team through the play-offs as "a real achievement."
The board also spoke to other prospective managers, including one candidate with considerably more experience, but Needham said there was a deal-breaking issue with that option. "With Craig, the only thing that he didn't have was experience," Needham said. "He interviewed really well, presented his ideas and his approach, and that aligned with where we wanted to go as a club. Yes, we got a lot of flak for appointing him at that time. But he's definitely stepped in and done a tremendous job. There's a real steel to him and an inner confidence."
A more attacking approach
Needham said the board had already told Robinson around a year ago that his pragmatic 5-3-2 formation had "run its course" and that the club wanted to play a more expansive style. Under that approach, St Mirren had beaten Aberdeen, Hearts and Hibernian and given Rangers and Celtic tough games, but Needham said it was less effective against teams St Mirren was expected to beat.
McLeish shared that view on arrival, according to Needham, who suggested the new manager had already been pushing for a more attacking style behind the scenes without gaining much traction under Robinson.
"Now on social media you can see people universally saying this is the right way to go," Needham said. "I think there is a real chance that we can get ourselves in the top six. And as a first step, that would be absolutely tremendous."
