Rod Petrie wants new manager Pat Fenlon at Hibs for long haul

The 42-year-old Irishman has agreed a contract to the end of the 2013-14 season and Petrie knows that, having just appointed their ninth manager in the last ten years, Hibs are desperately in need of some stability.

“He’s a very positive guy with strong leadership qualities and he’s very much a winner,” the chairman said of Fenlon, who won five League of Ireland titles with Shelbourne and Bohemians. “He is a determined character. He will do things his way. He is a leader, a winner. He became a manager at the age of 33, which is quite young and quite unusual, but he has achieved success at different clubs in different ways.

“You can understand how he has achieved what he has achieved at different clubs in different circumstances, sometimes in challenging circumstances. He’s come through all that.”

The circumstances at Easter Road have proved too challenging for a host of bosses in recent years. Colin Calderwood lasted just over a year before being sacked at the start of the month; his predecessor, John Hughes, was in his post for 16 months.

The rapid turnover has had its effect on the playing squad, an ill-assorted group in need of serious overhaul. Petrie wants Fenlon to be at the club long enough to carry out that overhaul, and has committed the board to doing everything in their power to assist him. “It would be fantastic if he was here for the long haul,” he continued.

“We’ve got a great platform, rock-solid financially, completed the stadium, training centre. All these things. People will look at that and oversee the sporting outcomes – three cup semi-finals, six top-six finishes in the last seven seasons, winning a cup, playing in Europe. These things get eclipsed. If you put down on one sheet of paper what the key performance indicators for your football club were, those statistics would be higher up the list than the number of managers. The fact we’ve had a stable platform has enabled managers to be appointed and to give their best. The changes have happened in different circumstances. Our job is to look forward and take the club forward, and I think we’ve made the right appointment.

“I think it’s a fabulous opportunity. A large, well-respected football club, one of the biggest jobs in Scotland. We’ve got a tremendous support, we’ve got tremendous facilities. There’s a tremendous enthusiasm and appetite to recreate some of the successes we’ve had in the past. Of course there are challenges, opportunities. If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always had. So I’m sure there will be some changes and we’re very keen to understand what Pat will want to do. He’s got great experience and leadership qualities, and we’ll do everything we can to support him and the development of our football club.”

With Hibs just two points off the bottom of the SPL, Fenlon accepted he has a task on his hands to take them close to the recent achievements numerated by Petrie. “It’s a big challenge,” he said.

“It’s one of the reasons I’ve come, that I firmly believe we can get them up the table. It’s not a position they should be in, but that doesn’t matter in football – you get what you deserve. We’ve got to work hard to get out of this situation and get up the other end of the table. There is obviously a lack of confidence at the moment, especially at home. We need to rectify that.”

Fenlon will take a seat in the stand for Hibs’ match at home to St Johnstone this afternoon, leaving Billy Brown to take charge of the team. The caretaker manager’s future thereafter is uncertain, however. Although neither the new boss nor Petrie has said anything publicly about bringing in new assistant coaches, it appears likely that the Irishman will recruit at least one next week. Having been interviewed for the job but turned down, Brown could, in any case, decide that the time has come to leave, and look elsewhere for a managerial post.