Conor Gethins says he would love to become Nairn County manager

Conor Gethins says he would like to succeed Ronnie Sharp as Nairn County manager.

Gethins has been appointed caretaker player-manager after Sharp and assistant Michael Rae left Station Park on Wednesday.

The Wee County are inviting applications for the role and Gethins, the second top scorer in the club’s history, has revealed his interest.

The 38-year-old striker said: “I love the club and the job would interest me, I’m not going to beat about the bush.

“I’ve done my coaching badges for a reason, it’s something I want to get into.

“I’ve been in Scotland since I was 15, this is my 24th season and coaching or management is the next stage and why not do it at a club you really love?

“Right now we’re second bottom of the league and that’s not acceptable for Nairn County.

“We’ve got some good players, an amazing board and great facilities, so there will be so many applications for this job.

“I would love to take the job – I’m at the stage where I’m not going to play for much longer, so I would like to do it.”

Thanks to former boss

Gethins was sad to see Sharp leave Nairn.

He rebuilt County after taking over in the summer of 2016 and brought the Irishman back to the club from Formartine United last summer.

Gethins added: “I phoned Ronnie on Wednesday to tell him I’d been approached to take over the team for the next couple of games.

“And also to thank him because he took me back to Nairn at 37 years old and he believed I could help the team and make the team better.

“Not many managers would do that and I wanted to thank him because he’s been so good with me.

“If I needed to sit out training, it wasn’t a problem, and we spoke a lot about the team during the week because I had ideas and he had ideas.

“Sometimes we wouldn’t agree, but it was always good to discuss things with him, because we both love Nairn, so I wanted to thank him.”

Hard work required

Nairn don’t have a game this weekend, but have yet to win in nine fixtures in all competitions this season.

Gethins has called on the players to take responsibility moving forward.

He said: “The most important thing is that we need to work hard and get that installed back in the team.

“Nairn were always renowned for being really hard-working and not giving teams time on the ball.

Following the departure of Ronnie Sharp as first team manager, Nairn County FC is welcoming applications from any party wishing to be considered for the role.

If you are interested, please email info@nairncountyfc.co.uk by Wednesday 28th September.

— Nairn County FC (@NairnCounty) September 22, 2022

“We need to get back to that and sometimes when a manager leaves teams will find another gear because they’re trying to impress the new boss.

“I’m sure there will be plenty of people watching our games who will be interested in the job.

“It’s up to the players, because the manager puts in the work all week to set us up, as Ronnie did, but once the whistle goes there’s nothing more the manager can do in terms of work-rate and application from the players.

“That has to come from the players and they need to take control on the park.”