Elgin City boss Allan Hale says the League Two club lacked leadership, soul and spirit when he arrived at Borough Briggs in December.
However, after guiding the Black and Whites away from the relegation trap-door which Stranraer fell through last week, he sees room for cautious optimism.
Hale and his assistant Stefan Laird were recruited amid a winter of discontent, with Elgin having already by bossed by player/manager Ross Draper then, for two months by Barry Smith.
Draper, who replaced Gavin Price last summer, opted to return to playing in September after a tough start to the campaign.
Ex-Alloa Athletic and Dundee gaffer Smith left the post in November when increased work commitments forced his hand.
Careful consideration was given by the Moray club’s board who opted for Huntly boss Hale and his assistant Laird as their next management team.
Having had a close call with the danger-zone in 2023 under Price, Hale became this season’s third City boss.
The team were just five points above rock bottom Clyde, who had just made Ian McCall their new gaffer the month before.
Clyde’s 3-0 win at Elgin last week kept them up at the expense of Stranraer who face the pyramid play-off, but Hale’s men were already safe as they gathered 29 points to take them to 40 points overall, enough to secure seventh spot.
Players Player of the Year 2023/24 – JAKE DOLZANSKI 🏆
Jake Dolzanski was awarded Players Player of the Year last night, every dressing room needs characters and personalities and they don’t come much bigger than Jake! pic.twitter.com/xBDAzpN2Nw
— Elgin City F.C. (@ElginCityFC) May 5, 2024
City players responded from day one
Hale told the Press and Journal the immediate issues on arrival ran deeper than having to improve on-field results.
He said: “When we came in, the future looked very bleak, not just with the football side of things, but the club as a whole.
“It was lacking leadership and direction. There was no soul, no spirit. The players on the pitch were severely lacking confidence.
“All credit to their players because we became their third management of the season, all of whom have come in with different ideas, asking them to play in different ways, and that’s not easy for the players to adapt to every three months or so.
“Since we’ve come in, I can’t ask any more from the players in terms of what they have given.
“The last two months in particular were not easy because we had lots of injuries as well as suspensions added into the mix, but we still accumulated enough points.
“The only disappointment was the final performance on Saturday. We had the opportunity to finish in the top six, which would have capped off a remarkable turnaround.
“But we just couldn’t cap off what has been a strong second half to our season. We let ourselves down on the day, but overall, we have got to be more than satisfied.”
Competitive results in League Two
Despite being hampered by low player numbers in the last two months, Hale’s side showed form overall of a team at the upper end of the division. That seems to have set a standard, according to the manager.
He said: “We got 29 points since arriving in January, so if you say we’d have 58 points over the course of an entire season going at that rate it would be enough to take us into the promotion play-offs (the tally achieved by third-placed Spartans).
“That shows in the second half of the season our form has been up there with the best sides in the league. That gives us encouragement and optimism going into next season.
“We now want to recruit well and try to take another step forward next year. We want to give the squad more depth and provide more competition for places.”
Daniel makes his debut ⚽️!
Last weekend v Dumbarton, 16 year old, local lad, Daniel Fraser came on making his Elgin City debut! Daniel also came during Saturdays game v Clyde, Daniel looked very composed in both of his appearances in midfield and came close to scoring v Clyde! pic.twitter.com/mCPpAlgR4e
— Elgin City F.C. (@ElginCityFC) May 6, 2024
‘Tough’ winter window worked well
Hale was barely through the door at Borough Briggs when he had his first transfer window to deal with and he oversaw plenty of ins and outs, including seven new players.
However, he explained that it took meticulous work to get all the parts in place.
He added: “January was tough. The budget constraints were extremely difficult. It had been reduced from where it was at the start of the season, so there was little scope in the budget to do anything.
“We managed to move nine players on, some permanent as a couple took a release which allowed us to free up wages, and we put another six or seven players out on loan, which freed up their wages.
“Then we were able to bring players in on loan as well as Lyall Booth and Michael Dangana in on permanent transfers (from Huntly). We were delighted with what we did in January, but the budget will be tight again this year.
“We will look at ways where we can be creative and see where we can improve the squad.
“Over the next couple of months, we will build a squad and make additions that not only make our starting 11 stronger, but make the squad stronger.
“Hopefully we can have a good pre-season and try to take a step forward again next year.”