Skipper Sean Welsh admits Billy Dodds would be a good fit to be the next Caley Thistle boss – but stressed he has no preference.
Interviews have been taking place for the head coach role after it was confirmed that John Robertson would be returning to the club as sporting director.
That move comes on the back of the ICT boss having a few months off on compassionate leave.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club are inviting applications for the position of Head Coach.
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— Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC (@ICTFC) May 13, 2021
Ross County first-team coach and former Caley Jags midfielder Don Cowie has been linked to the job, but Dodds, who assisted interim boss Neil McCann last term, remains the favourite.
McCann and Dodds helped to lift the club out of the lower reaches of the Championship into fifth spot, just one win shy of the play-offs.
Welsh told the Wyness Shuffle podcast: “I have no idea whether Robbo will still be around the players or how that will work. We will see that when we go back for pre-season.
“There will be a new head coach in place to take the day-to-day running of the team. It will be interesting to see who it will be.
“I don’t have any preferences as to who it will be. I don’t mind. I am just looking forward to getting back in and getting started again.”
Energetic and positive Dodds
When asked about Dodds, 31-year-old Welsh said: “Billy done well when he came in. He’s a good character with good energy, positive and enthusiasm.
“If it is Billy, it will be good for the group because they will know what they are getting.”
The experienced midfielder also praised McCann, who is not in the running for the job.
He said: “Neil just brought a freshness when he came in. He was enthusiastic and energetic towards the job.
“He wanted to push us on and help us reach the play-offs if possible, but we were in a difficult situation at that stage.
“It was a different voice and he gave a fresh enthusiasm towards our push.”
Players adapted to Robertson’s time away
When told in February that Robertson needed time away, Welsh explained the squad reacted sympathetically and professionally.
He said: “It was very difficult. I hadn’t experienced anything like that in football before. We had Ayr away on the Saturday. On the Sunday, I got the heads-up that Robbo might be having time off because he needed it.
“As footballers, you adapt and deal with whatever is put in front of you. We felt for the gaffer, but he needed time away to make himself better.
“Our thoughts were with him at the time. We adapted to the situation.”
Bitter pill to miss out by three points
Missing out on the top four was a blow to ICT, but Welsh admits that, given the challenges they faced, it has to still go down as a relatively successful term.
He added: “If you’d offered us fifth when we were second-bottom, we would have snapped your hand off for that.
“But when we put a good run of results together, we put ourselves back in contention (for the play-offs). Not making it in the end was a bitter pill to swallow.
“The overall feeling was one of disappointment that we didn’t get into the play-offs. It was a relative success given where we ended up after all those games we had to catch up on.”
The former Partick Thistle man praised the young players within the club for learning in a tough environment after a horrible opening to the campaign when injuries bit hard into the senior group.
He said: “Right at the start of the season, over a period of three to six weeks, you looked into the stand and you had an experienced starting 11 out injured watching on, so that was difficult.
“That stems back to a crammed-in pre-season. We were back too late and boys picked up muscle injuries because it was a rushed pre-season.
“The young boys got chucked in and I thought they done brilliantly and more than held their own. I remember our 1-1 draw at home to Ayr and we destroyed them that day with such a young team.
“The boys stood up to the challenge brilliantly. It shows that Roddy MacGregor established himself and Dan Mackay got a move to Hibs. It was a good young group which really kicked on this season. Fair play to them.”
