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St Johnstone chairman says new manager must be willing to take on a community role

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St Johnstone chairman Geoff Brown says the club will not be rushed into appointing a new manager despite Saturday’s disappointing defeat at home to St Mirren.

He also revealed that when the successor to Derek McInnes is finally named the decision will have been taken not just by himself but by a new generation of directors who are keen to see their manager put down roots in Perth with a remit to increase the club’s profile in the local community.

The latest main contender for the vacant post, former Northern Ireland international Steve Lomas, is believed to have impressed during an interview on Friday and he has been installed by the bookies as the new favourite to take over at McDiarmid Park.

However, after a previous move for Sligo Rovers boss Paul Cook foundered in the full glare of the media spotlight, Brown is preferring to remain cagey.

He said: ”We have no shortage of candidates and calls are still coming in. I have applicants coming out of my ears but it is a matter of getting the right guy in.

”We are not quite ready yet but we are definitely keen to move things on. It is inevitably a slow process and a few people have to be taken into consideration.

”Hopefully it can be done fairly quickly. We have two or three candidates right now that we could appoint immediately but it’s important it is the guy we believe will be the best for St Johnstone.

”For that reason, I’m not putting any time limit on it. I don’t want us to find ourselves under pressure, because football has a tendency to do to just that.

”Do I want someone in quickly? On the evidence of the performance against St Mirren at the weekend, I would have to say yes. It’s not ideal for any club to be without a manager. But this is a crucial appointment.”

Brown’s last two managers, Owen Coyle and McInnes, both earned high-profile moves to England on the back of what they achieved with St Johnstone but neither man lived in the Perth area while in charge of the club something Brown is keen to change.

He added: ”Results are the be all and end all of course and Del did exceptionally well for us. But one of the criteria now is getting a manager who will get out and about in the local area more than any previous manager. Youngsters in particular have to be able to relate to the football club, so that will be an important aspect of the job.

”As a board, we see a full-time set-up here and more has to be done to bring people into matches. The new manager will be out and about in the city and beyond.”

As well as Brown, his son and vice-chairman Steve, and directors Stan Harris and Charlie Fraser are all having a major input into the selection process as the chairman plots a steady succession plan.

He said: ”This is all new to me. Any manager coming in will be working more with these guys, and Steve in particular, than me on a day-to-day basis going forward. So this call isn’t just mine.

”I won’t be dealing with the new man as much as all the other managers here since I got involved with the football club.”

Caretaker boss Alex Cleland, who confirmed he had already met for talks with Steve Brown, is also keen to see a new manager officially confirmed.

He said: ”The players remain focused but obviously the longer it goes on the more chance there is that it could start to affect them.

”Various people have been linked with the job but I got a chance to speak to the vice-chairman on Friday about my own ideas. So it is a case now of wait and see.”

Reflecting on the single-goal defeat from St Mirren, Cleland admitted: ”It was a missed opportunity for three points and there seemed to be a nervousness about us in the first half. We didn’t create enough and it was a second game without scoring. The players and myself are disappointed with that.

”We want to win our home games. We have been good enough to get into fourth place in the SPL and we should be taking confidence from that.”

Cleland revealed that the dead leg suffered by Frazer Wright on Saturday is unlikely to prevent him facing the Dons next Monday, while Jamie Adams is edging back towards full training after a hamstring injury and long-term casualty Sam Parkin will join the under-19s in training later this week.