Ian McCall Appreciation Thread

[MrDust]

He was top of my list to replace Houston, you get attacking football from him but if your defence is shit, his teams will struggle as his emphasis is on attack, which isn't a bad thing for this league, the top league you have to have a bit more about you.

Owen Coyle, Lee Miller and Collin Samuel....we ended up shoehorning all three into that team he managed and all three I think getting around 20+ goals each.

I said at the start of the season Ayr could be a dark horse and don't see them finishing in the bottom 2 slots.

 

[Jeff Venom]

I remember McCall's Falkirk team looking ridiculously good.
Also recall he took a bunch of misfits and journeymen at cash-strapped Airdrie to the top end of the old division one and challenged for the league if I recall.

[Poet of the Macabre]

23 hours ago, Rugster said:

I know. In fact it was 4-0 after half an hour. Unbelievable. I remember Levein making subs after about 25 minutes, Maybury off I think.  I'm pretty sure that was Craig Gordon's debut too. Surprised he recovered. The old lady was rocking indeed. Fucking sublime day. 

I remember watching that game on Sportscene on the Saturday night. Couldn't believe it as I'd only ever seen Dunfermline playing in the top flight and had no idea about any of the lower league clubs at that point.

As an aside, I'm greatly enjoying the Ayr confidence atm. It happens every few years and they get all excited before being bodied to a hilarious degree and sent back to their natural habitat of the seaside leagues.

[ayrmad]

6 minutes ago, Poet of the Macabre said:

I remember watching that game on Sportscene on the Saturday night. Couldn't believe it as I'd only ever seen Dunfermline playing in the top flight and had no idea about any of the lower league clubs at that point.

As an aside, I'm greatly enjoying the Ayr confidence atm. It happens every few years and they get all excited before being bodied to a hilarious degree and sent back to their natural habitat of the seaside leagues.

Nah, this is a whole new level of excitement.

[Panda Pies]

I remember watching that game on Sportscene on the Saturday night. Couldn't believe it as I'd only ever seen Dunfermline playing in the top flight and had no idea about any of the lower league clubs at that point.
As an aside, I'm greatly enjoying the Ayr confidence atm. It happens every few years and they get all excited before being bodied to a hilarious degree and sent back to their natural habitat of the seaside leagues.

Shut it, bucket shaker.

[Walter]

Yesterday's arsehole, today's genius and no doubt tomorrow's arsehole again.
Such is the life of a football manager.

[Shandon Par]

[steakpiegravy]

Pretty sure when he was manager of Clydebank (playing home games at Boghead) there was an incident where the QOS Team bus was involved in some sort of incident on the way to a midweek game and only arrived about 15 min prior to kickoff. McCall apparently vetoed any discussion of delaying the kickoff to allow Queens to warm up and we went on to lose the game. Never been a fan since then.

[AyrTroopMajor]

16 hours ago, Poet of the Macabre said:

As an aside, I'm greatly enjoying the Ayr confidence atm. It happens every few years and they get all excited before being bodied to a hilarious degree and sent back to their natural habitat of the seaside leagues.

An Ainsley Harriott meme away from being virginton-esque pish patter. Not what I've come to expect from you PotM.  

[ayrmad]

1 hour ago, steakpiegravy said:

Pretty sure when he was manager of Clydebank (playing home games at Boghead) there was an incident where the QOS Team bus was involved in some sort of incident on the way to a midweek game and only arrived about 15 min prior to kickoff. McCall apparently vetoed any discussion of delaying the kickoff to allow Queens to warm up and we went on to lose the game. Never been a fan since then.

I would stop supporting Ayr if we lost to Clydebank.

Thankfully, due to Bill Barr, we got to keep them.

[DAFC.]

On 8/6/2018 at 13:22, ayrmad said:

Wish fans would stop saying nonsense like this, this team should only be concentrating on elbowing their way into the mix at the other end of the table, 8th would be massively underwhelming after the buzz they've created.

Worst case scenario, I'll take it but I'm looking for/expecting far more this season.

Our first season back we had a truly horrendous start but picked up the pace around the festive period and only ended up 4 points off a play-off place. If Ayr can continue their good run, keep Shankland and the core of their squad fit, then I think they've got a great chance of getting in to a play-off place. 

[ayrmad]

34 minutes ago, DAFC. said:

Our first season back we had a truly horrendous start but picked up the pace around the festive period and only ended up 4 points off a play-off place. If Ayr can continue their good run, keep Shankland and the core of their squad fit, then I think they've got a great chance of getting in to a play-off place. 

I don't see any reason why we're not up there pitching for the top 4, I'll enjoy our play while it lasts.

I can see a lot of 3-2's and 4-3's either way this season, it should be well worth the entrance fee most of the time.

[John MacLean]

He spoke about the restructuring of Thistle being a 5 year plan when he became manager at Firhill. If promotion was the culmination of that plan then he was just one year out but the day we won the league at Falkirk he was there working for Radio Clyde and not Partick Thistle. 

He inherited a bit of a shambles at Firhill but bit by bit he turned things round. He is a shrewder manager than many realise and although a bit bombastic at times he knows his limitations. For example the better the assistant he works with the better things tend to go. He's got a good eye for a player and is prepared to give them a chance. Although it was others (Bobby Dinnie) that spotted them it was McCall that signed Doolan and Erskine for us. He also signed Harkins and Twaddle and dear only knows where we would be now without the transfer fees we got for them. We certainly wouldn't have spent five years in the Premiership. 

He was unlucky that his time at Firhill didn't coincide with a Board that could have supported his plans for the Club  financially they way that his successor was.  The financial limitations that he worked under at times (and we were perilously close to going under during that period ) really hamstrung him and halted the progress that he was making. 

But for his off field problems I think he could well still have been Thistle boss right now. Like any manager he's not without his flaws but with the right backing, and McNamara and Archibald got that, I'm sure he would taken us to the Premiership. Thistle and McCall seemed to be the perfect fit just as Ayr seems to be a good place for him right now. 

I've a lot of time for him and I'm pleased things are going well at Ayr. He was good at making people, on and off the pitch, feel part of things and valued. That was certainly my experience. 

I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up back at Firhill in some capacity at some point in the future though maybe not any time soon. 

[Superhursty7]

He spoke about the restructuring of Thistle being a 5 year plan when he became manager at Firhill. If promotion was the culmination of that plan then he was just one year out but the day we won the league at Falkirk he was there working for Radio Clyde and not Partick Thistle. 
He inherited a bit of a shambles at Firhill but bit by bit he turned things round. He is a shrewder manager than many realise and although a bit bombastic at times he knows his limitations. For example the better the assistant he works with the better things tend to go. He's got a good eye for a player and is prepared to give them a chance. Although it was others (Bobby Dinnie) that spotted them it was McCall that signed Doolan and Erskine for us. He also signed Harkins and Twaddle and dear only knows where we would be now without the transfer fees we got for them. We certainly wouldn't have spent five years in the Premiership. 
He was unlucky that his time at Firhill didn't coincide with a Board that could have supported his plans for the Club  financially they way that his successor was.  The financial limitations that he worked under at times (and we were perilously close to going under during that period ) really hamstrung him and halted the progress that he was making. 
But for his off field problems I think he could well still have been Thistle boss right now. Like any manager he's not without his flaws but with the right backing, and McNamara and Archibald got that, I'm sure he would taken us to the Premiership. Thistle and McCall seemed to be the perfect fit just as Ayr seems to be a good place for him right now. 
I've a lot of time for him and I'm pleased things are going well at Ayr. He was good at making people, on and off the pitch, feel part of things and valued. That was certainly my experience. 
I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up back at Firhill in some capacity at some point in the future though maybe not any time soon. 

Very good point about a good assistant went a bit tits up for us when John Hendry left for Blackburn and now Sandy Stewart us on the coaching staff we are looking better than ever.

[Marshmallo]

1 minute ago, Snafu said:

Wasn't he the manager that kicked over a tin of paint in the corridor outside the dressing rooms?

If it is he likes kicking things a lot. Saw him booting the dugout window up here while Falkirk manager.

He booted a bottle that hit a ballboy when we conceded an equaliser up in Dingwall as well.

[TheScarf]

4 minutes ago, Snafu said:

Wasn't he the manager that kicked over a tin of paint in the corridor outside the dressing rooms?

Yeah think that was a few seasons before.  Our first in the old 2nd Division in 1997-1998 season.  1-1 draw I seem to recall.

[Rugster]

10 minutes ago, Marshmallo said:

He booted a bottle that hit a ballboy when we conceded an equaliser up in Dingwall as well.

I remember that really well. Some photographer started getting involved and trying to make more out of it. All you could see was McCall right in his face screaming "Shut it ya fucking w**k!"  

[Parkhouse]

Think that was Gary Mackay when he was Airdrie manager that was jumped on?

[Skyline Drifter]

On 8/5/2018 at 18:08, palmy_cammy said:

Pros:

• Turned around a 12 point deficit to Stranraer saving us from almost certain relegation.
• Signed the majority of our squad that reached the Scottish Cup Final.
• Was the man responsible for bringing Stephen Dobbie to the club.

Just on this, whilst the 12 point thing is true, and widely quoted, we were only about 3 or 4 points behind them when he actually took over. It got worse before it got better. We were 12 points behind at the end of January when they thought they were safe and sold Allan Jenkins to Gretna though.

He did sign the majority of the cup final squad, give or take. A few pre-dated him and Chisholm brought in Harris and MacFarlane but he signed most of them.

Bringing Stephen Dobbie here is certainly the pinnacle of his signings but I'd also throw in the signing of Stevie Tosh as something very praiseworthy too, albeit circumstances assisted in that one.

[Northfield 53]

1 hour ago, Skyline Drifter said:

Just on this, whilst the 12 point thing is true, and widely quoted, we were only about 3 or 4 points behind them when he actually took over. It got worse before it got better. We were 12 points behind at the end of January when they thought they were safe and sold Allan Jenkins to Gretna though.

He did sign the majority of the cup final squad, give or take. A few pre-dated him and Chisholm brought in Harris and MacFarlane but he signed most of them.

Bringing Stephen Dobbie here is certainly the pinnacle of his signings but I'd also throw in the signing of Stevie Tosh as something very praiseworthy too, albeit circumstances assisted in that one.

McCall has made Shankland into a £250,000 player .McCall signed him when no other manager was interested .

McCall has faults like the way he had to leave Partick but he is seems to be a good man manager he really did get Dobbie going again .