Duncan Ferguson has been named manager of Glentoran, and the BOYLE Sports Premiership has just got a whole lot more interesting.
The Everton legend was unveiled at The Oval on Monday 19 October after agreeing a multi-year deal, in what is one of the most high-profile appointments the Irish League has seen.
Extensive Experience
Extensive Experience
Ferguson has always been a firecracker, but behind the fiery reputation is a man who has spent the best part of 15 years learning the game from the inside.
Following his retirement, “ Big Dunc ” returned to the club he loved, rising from academy coaching to the first-team staff. Along the way, he served under some of the best coaches of recent decades, as assistant to Carlo Ancelotti and Rafael Benítez, and also under Roberto Martínez.
That is a coaching education very few managers in any league could match.
He’s also no stranger to top-level management. He had two caretaker spells at Goodison Park, and the first brought a win over Chelsea and draws with Arsenal and Manchester United.
More recently, he has taken on some tough gigs. Forest Green Rovers were bottom of League One when he arrived, and his time at Inverness was cut short when the club went into administration.
At The Oval, he joins a far more stable club and brings with him a trusted ally, with former Dundee United teammate Gary Bollan coming in as his assistant.
Ferguson becomes the fifth former Everton player to manage the Glens, following David Reid, James McIntosh, Alex Young and Tommy Jackson.
The Drought
The Drought
Glentoran last lifted the Gibson Cup in 2009. Seventeen years without a league title is a long time for the second-most successful club in Irish League history.
The frustrating part is that they have not been far away. The Glens have finished in the top three in five of the last six seasons, haven’t finished outside the top five since 2018/19, and ended last season just six points behind champions Larne.
Can Duncan Ferguson Take Them to the Summit?
Can Duncan Ferguson Take Them to the Summit?
Ferguson certainly thinks so. On his first day, he said Glentoran “should be challenging for the title and every cup and shield we enter.”
There was no talk of a rebuild or lowering expectations – just trophies.
He was a winner as a player, lifting the FA Cup with Everton in 1995, and he demands the same standards from those around him. That presence could be the difference in the tight, high-pressure games that decide titles.
He also takes over a side in decent form. Caretakers Paddy McCourt and Tim McCann picked up four wins and a draw from their five league games, so the momentum is already there.
Tough Start
Tough Start
It’s straight in at the deep end. Glentoran travel to league leaders Coleraine on Friday 30 October, a perfect early chance for Big Dunc to lay down a marker.
The Betting
The Betting
Glentoran trail league leaders Coleraine by 11 points. But with around two-thirds of the season still to play, a man oozing charisma may be exactly the person to spark a run, and who knows where that could take them come April.
The Oval has waited 17 years for a league title. Big Dunc might just be the man to end it.
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Bill is as passionate about Irish football as they come, with an agonising longing to see his country grace a World Cup stage. A League of Ireland devotee and lifelong Man United fan, he knows better than most what sporting heartbreak feels like, and brings that perspective to the BOYLE Sports Blog. With roots in greyhound racing and a curiosity spanning politics, snooker, WWE and beyond, there is rarely a sporting conversation he cannot add to.
