King Kenny Posted June 22 Report Share Posted June 22 Fair enough article and the draw of playing at the top level whilst giving him more family time must be very appealing. Agree that it’s odd to comment on it being a “head coach” role, that was very obvious that was the role for months. He did also add numerous punditry roles etc to his busy day job so can’t put all the blame at Thistle’s door for that one! Time to move on, we got good service out of Graham and he did well out of Thistle. Good luck to him, I’ve a feeling we might end up happy with how Mark Wilson does. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenziejag Posted June 22 Report Share Posted June 22 Everybody puts their own spin on things to justify the decisions they take. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAG1970 Posted June 22 Report Share Posted June 22 5 hours ago, jlsarmy said: He’s talking absolute nonsense, Ian Barraclough had already started as Sporting Director so he knew what the template was before he was interviewed. Given that Barraclough’s initial online introduction was less than clear on his specific roles and responsibilities - something that was commented upon by many posters on this forum - even to the point that Barraclough himself didn’t seem entirely sure, then maybe BG wasn’t 100% clear until his interview. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Dastardly Posted June 22 Report Share Posted June 22 5 minutes ago, JAG1970 said: Given that Barraclough’s initial online introduction was less than clear on his specific roles and responsibilities - something that was commented upon by many posters on this forum - even to the point that Barraclough himself didn’t seem entirely sure, then maybe BG wasn’t 100% clear until his interview. Or maybe he knew what the head coach role would be, but hadn’t decided if it was the right role for him or not, so followed the process. It was only after the offer was made that he decided he was not ready to hang up his boots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allyo Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 (edited) The decision was entirely Brian Graham's to make. These things are never easy, I'm sure he had a lot to weigh up. But he doesn't have to justify it to anyone. Good luck to him. No one can deny that he worked really hard for Thistle. He gave it everything and that's all we can ask as fans. He was a very good striker for us, and had a huge positive influence on the women's team. If he's decided it's best to move on then that's the right decision for everyone. Edited June 23 by allyo 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordanhill Jag Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 On 6/22/2025 at 10:41 AM, jlsarmy said: He’s talking absolute nonsense, Ian Barraclough had already started as Sporting Director so he knew what the template was before he was interviewed. I doubt he was aware of any details of how it would operate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fifexile Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 1 hour ago, Jordanhill Jag said: I doubt he was aware of any details of how it would operate Why do you doubt it? Im sure all the candidates would have had a job spec in clouding reporting lines and key performance indicators before they were interviewed so they can weigh up the pros and cons of the role. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordanhill Jag Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 1 hour ago, fifexile said: Why do you doubt it? Im sure all the candidates would have had a job spec in clouding reporting lines and key performance indicators before they were interviewed so they can weigh up the pros and cons of the role. How are you "sure" what they were given ? Graham was offered the job ~ he rejected it ~ strange decision Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fifexile Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 2 minutes ago, Jordanhill Jag said: How are you "sure" what they were given ? Graham was offered the job ~ he rejected it ~ strange decision Because that's how the recruitment process works as I'm quite sure you know. Graham was offered & he rejected it...hardly strange if Falkirk offered him more money as a player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laukat Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 Graham's comments are interesting form different perspectives. Its difficult for any ex-pro to get a managers/head coach position. So to reject one can't have been an easy decision. His interview mentions its Head coach and not the actual manager. I wonder if one of the things that maybe played on Graham's mind was that between Doolan being fired in February and Barraclough being appointed in April, Graham was the de facto manager as there was no Sporting Director. He had signed players in February and had undertaken all the aspects of the role. So when he's offered the Head coach position and its clarified what his remit was going to be was it in effect a demotion in his mind? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambies Lost Doo Posted June 23 Author Report Share Posted June 23 23 hours ago, JAG1970 said: Given that Barraclough’s initial online introduction was less than clear on his specific roles and responsibilities - something that was commented upon by many posters on this forum - even to the point that Barraclough himself didn’t seem entirely sure, then maybe BG wasn’t 100% clear until his interview. The link to the Sporting Director role is here at the bottom in pdf format. https://ptfc.co.uk/ptfc-news/partick-thistle-are-looking-to-recruit-a-sporting-director/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodstock Jag Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 (edited) Worth remembering that James Cairney did specifically interview Brian Graham about the Sporting Director/Head Coach dynamic at the very outset back in early April. https://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/25081630.graham-expects-change-thistle-summer-following-baraclough-chat/ Quote "Brian Graham is looking forward to working with Partick Thistle’s new sporting director Ian Baraclough – and the striker, who is one half of the Jags’ interim management team alongside Mark Wilson, says there is already a good understanding between the pair. Former Motherwell and Northern Ireland manager Baraclough was unveiled as the William Hill Championship club’s first-ever sporting director earlier this week, and the 54-year-old has wasted little time in getting to know Graham and Wilson. The centre-forward believes Baraclough will take some time before stamping his authority on the team, but he expects the Englishman to enact change over the summer. “I was in a meeting with Ian for over an hour on Monday morning, just when he was announced as the sporting director,” Graham explained. “He came across really well. “He's got bright ideas for the football club. He's not going to come in and start saying this, that and the next thing right now. He's been watching from afar, he's seen it's been going well." “He's trusting myself and Mark to continue to do so. There will be changes come the summer. Us as a club, we'll try to work together and get the best possible outcome for Partick Thistle Football Club. “We knew there was a sporting director coming in and the week before myself and Mark were having those conversations. Is he going to come in, does he want to play a certain way? It was quite refreshing. “He's been at a few games - he was at the Livingston game a few weeks back. He sees how we're playing, he's coming in and we’ve got full support from him. Keep doing what we're doing, we're doing well. Keep at it, we've still got the aim of trying to get to the Premiership. He's fully on board with that, so it was pleasing to hear that aspect of it. He's just trusting us to do our job. That's what me and Mark will continue to do. “One of the first things he said to me was, ‘I'm not in here to be a football manager. I'm in here to be a sporting director’. He said, ‘I'm not going to tell you how to do your job. Anything you need from me, you can come and ask questions’. I felt that was really good. “There was that understanding between both of us. If I need to go and speak to him in regards to football things, he's willing to help. He said he'll not be at training every day. He’s not wanting to stand over us and think he's being a football manager. He's got other things to do, other things to concentrate on.” Edited June 23 by Woodstock Jag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Dastardly Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 I don’t see why Brian has to justify his decision to anyone. He applied for a job, was offered it and in the interim was offered another job which he thought was more beneficial to his future. Why all the fuss ? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaggy Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 4 minutes ago, Dick Dastardly said: I don’t see why Brian has to justify his decision to anyone. He applied for a job, was offered it and in the interim was offered another job which he thought was more beneficial to his future. Why all the fuss ? Because some have their own agenda and love to speculate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodstock Jag Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 1 minute ago, jaggy said: Because some have their own agenda and love to speculate Just as a bit of an example of why this rumbles on... the interview with PLZ has people commenting on Facebook saying that Brian Graham turned it down because he didn't want to give up playing. Which is bizarre, because he still had a year left on his Thistle contract and what he was offered was a combined head coach and playing role. No one was asking him to give up playing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Kenny Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 It seems to rumble on because for the last 3 or 4 days he's been in the media talking about it. It's boring now to be honest. He was offered the job, he knocked it back which he is perfectly entitled to do and he's now moved on. He's got a good move to a Premier team and we've got an interesting management team in place. No hard feelings on either side, time to move on and look forward to a new season. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlsarmy Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 5 hours ago, Jordanhill Jag said: I doubt he was aware of any details of how it would operate Not sure about that , think everyone knows the remit of a Sporting Director within football Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stolenscone Posted June 23 Report Share Posted June 23 1 hour ago, King Kenny said: It seems to rumble on because for the last 3 or 4 days he's been in the media talking about it. It's boring now to be honest. He was offered the job, he knocked it back which he is perfectly entitled to do and he's now moved on. He's got a good move to a Premier team and we've got an interesting management team in place. No hard feelings on either side, time to move on and look forward to a new season. This. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allyo Posted June 24 Report Share Posted June 24 On 6/23/2025 at 4:53 PM, Woodstock Jag said: Just as a bit of an example of why this rumbles on... the interview with PLZ has people commenting on Facebook saying that Brian Graham turned it down because he didn't want to give up playing. Which is bizarre, because he still had a year left on his Thistle contract and what he was offered was a combined head coach and playing role. No one was asking him to give up playing. It's not bizarre at all if he thought that playing and managing together wasn't a good option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allyo Posted June 24 Report Share Posted June 24 (edited) On 6/23/2025 at 3:28 PM, Jordanhill Jag said: How are you "sure" what they were given ? Graham was offered the job ~ he rejected it ~ strange decision It's not a strange decision at all if he decided he'd rather play in the Premier League, perhaps even for more money. Edited June 24 by allyo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allyo Posted June 24 Report Share Posted June 24 There is literally nothing about this that I find weird. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlsarmy Posted June 24 Report Share Posted June 24 6 hours ago, allyo said: There is literally nothing about this that I find weird. I find everything about our Club just now totally weird over the last few months Supported our Club for over 50 years and this season ahead must rank as one of the most uninspiring in that time . At this moment not a lot to look forward to. Surely it would have been better to get some good signings in for the pre season and that would have given us a little bit of hope and into the bargain would have pushed along the Season Tickets Sales. Has apathy set in ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenziejag Posted June 25 Report Share Posted June 25 12 hours ago, allyo said: There is literally nothing about this that I find weird. The really weird thing is that this thread is still going nearly 4 weeks after we appointed one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fifexile Posted June 25 Report Share Posted June 25 3 hours ago, Lenziejag said: The really weird thing is that this thread is still going nearly 4 weeks after we appointed one. It will go quiet until we win or lose a few games on the bounce & be resurrected by those saying the appointment was visionary or a disaster depending on the results. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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