Shaun Maloney’s Hibs appointment WAS a risk admits Ron Gordon as he details direction of managerial search
RON GORDON admits he took too big a risk making Shaun Maloney Hibs boss.
Now the Easter Road owner has vowed to play it safe and not make the same error twice.
Ex-Belgium coach Maloney, 39, was axed on Tuesday after just four months in the job.
Gordon and his board spent the last two of those fearing the worst in a famine of wins, goals and performances.
And he revealed not even a Scottish Cup semi victory over Hearts at Hampden last weekend would have been enough to save the gaffer.
US-based Gordon says he takes his share of the blame for the mess, having also axed Jack Ross in December.
Read more Hibs stories
And he confirmed the club will now look for an experienced man to steady the ship after the end of this campaign.
Gordon said: “I don’t know if we can take that risk again.
“We need to take risks from time to time but that one was a little too ambitious on our part.
“It could have gone the other way. Shaun could have done a fantastic job and we could be celebrating a terrific season.
Most read in Football
“It didn’t pan out, that’s the beauty and challenge of football. How much risk do we want to take? I don’t know.
“We’ll cast our net wider in terms of recruitment of coaches and players and the kind of football we want to play.
“We don’t want to limit ourselves. We have a list of potentials which has a little bit of everything, but many are from the UK.
“They’re here, they understand the game and the dynamic, so there’s some comfort in that.
“I still believe Hibs is a phenomenal opportunity for the right manager.
“It’s a club committed to succeeding and the right manager will see it’s a great club with an infrastructure that can deliver high-end performance — but we need stability.
“The one thing I’m disappointed with is we haven’t got the football management right.
We’ve made too many changes and I wish we hadn’t had to make them.”
Maloney’s last game was Saturday’s 2-1 Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Hearts.
It was Hibs’ second loss to the Jambos in a week, the first dumping them into the bottom six.
And Gordon admits even a Hampden win may not have saved his skin.
He said: “I’m not so sure. It would have made the decision a little more difficult.
“But the truth is the trend was not good. You have to look at the body of work — and I know four months isn’t enough.
“But the board didn’t see enough of where things were going and felt it was better to make a change and reset.
“Some say it’s not enough time, some say we should have done it yesterday. I don’t know.
We’ve made too many changes and I wish we hadn’t had to make them.
“But the reality of it is the consensus was very definitive.”
Maloney’s dismissal makes Gordon’s decision to axe Ross earlier this season all the more bewildering.
But despite all that has happened since, the Hibs owner maintains he did the right thing.
He said: “I think we made the right decision at the time. We took a risk in terms of bringing Shaun in.
“The whole idea was to continue to improve and build and unfortunately it didn’t pan out.
“I have to take full responsibility for that. I can look at myself in the mirror and say, ‘What are you doing? It was an exciting risk when you look at Shaun and his track record and pedigree as a coach.
“I want Hibs to be a club that is innovative and taking some risks.
Having someone like Shaun with the history he has of coaching at a very high level, though never as a manager, the risk was it was the first professional team he had managed.
“I do think Shaun gave it 150 per cent and worked hard and was committed to succeeding and doing the best he could.
“Ultimately the results were not there and the trend was not in the right direction.”
Hearts’ win on Saturday also ensured the Jambos a £3million Euro jackpot with group-stage football assured next season.
Gordon conceded Hibs had “missed the boat” by making so many changes, but vowed the club will NOT be left behind.
He said: “This was a year for us to be in the top six and competing for a European place — the fact we are not in it is a major disappointment.
Read more on The Scottish Sun
“We missed the boat. It was the wrong season not to perform so I am a little disappointed.
“Kudos to Hearts because they have had a terrific season and it will be obviously very beneficial to them.
Read more on the Scottish Sun
“But I don’t think we are going to be left behind.
“We won’t let ourselves be left behind.”
Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page