Hibs Cup-winning hero's managerial hopes - Exclusive as McGregor recalls early coaching days with gaffer Gray
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Darren McGregor freely admits that he only went along to that first coaching course almost as a box-ticking exercise. The former centre-half will also confess that, after being fast-tracked through the UEFA B Licence, he completely forgot about the whole business.
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Hide AdIt’s as much of a surprise to the man himself as it is to anyone else, then, that he’s now talking about a future in football management. Not immediately. But some day. Definitely.
Currently in charge of the Hibs under-18s, the Scottish Cup-winning defender is learning the ropes as he tries to balance the twin demands of developing talent with producing winners. It’s given him a taste for leading from the sidelines. One that will only be sated when he becomes a gaffer in his own right.
Recalling how he joined current Hibs boss David Gray, Liam Fontaine, Lewis Stevenson and Paul Hanlon on that first adventure in the SFA coach education system, McGregor revealed: “I never really planned it, to be honest. It wasn’t my first train of thought, when I was playing, to move into coaching; I probably thought I was going to play forever and nothing else really mattered.
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Hide Ad“I did my B Licence and then my A almost to fill a criteria from the club’s point of view. I always remember (then-head of football operations) George Craig needed a certain number of B Licence coaches.
“So me, the gaffer, Fonts, Lewis and Paul all did our B Licence. I did that and put it away, forgot about it. We were lucky, having played in the top league, we got an accelerated path to the B. That was relatively quick.
“Aye, the gaffer was on the B with us. It’s difficult all the way back then to see that someone is definitely going to be a manager.
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Hide Ad“But he got the opportunity to go and work with Jack Ross. He’s had loads of experience under good managers. You can tell now that he’s very assured, knows what he wants. With time and attention, you get better.”
McGregor sees a similar path opening up for himself at some stage, declaring: “I want to hopefully one day climb the ladder and become a manager. That’s my aspiration.
“You get to a point where you want to test yourself. I still feel like I’m very much in the learning phase, and I want to learn as much as I can.
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Hide Ad“But I do feel that one day, given the opportunity, it would be good to get a role as manager somewhere. For now, I’m just looking to add value to myself every day.
“It might not get noticed when you’re a coach. But all the work you do every day is adding value to yourself. When you do get the opportunity, then hopefully I’m ready because I’ve been working hard and working diligently.
“I’m always asking where I could be better. A lot of the time you are failing and making mistakes to be better. To be successful, sometimes you need to fail, pick the bones out of failure and go from there. It’s not all rosy all the time, is it?
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Hide Ad“When I did my A Licence, the gaffer had already moved on a couple of steps, so I think it was just Lewis and Paul who were on it with me. But I started to enjoy it, began to understand the game a bit differently.
“When I played, it was just me versus my opponent, and I wasn’t too fussed about formations, patterns of play, whatever. I just used to think: ‘If I can get the better of this guy, I’ve done my job.’
“When you strip it back, football is still a lot of one-v-ones, regardless of shapes and formations. But obviously you go on courses, get exposed to other people’s ideas.
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Hide Ad“I’ve learned a lot from guys here, as well, people like Gareth Evans and Guillaume Beuzelin, Steve Keane when he was here as well. They give you motivation to be the best you can be.
“If I’m asking the young lads to be the best version of themselves, I have to do the same. That means constantly evolving, constantly learning, constantly looking for feedback and looking to make myself better, so I can improve the players.”
McGregor is completely committed to his current role, of course. The enthusiasm he has for coaching the next generation, the kids hopefully just one giant leap short of making the first team, shines through in conversation; he’s definitely one of those coaches you’ll find hanging around for hours after a game, raking over the things that went right and wrong.
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Hide AdAnd, of course, his eight seasons as a Hibs player mean he carries a certain authority. When he speaks, the youngsters know he’s been there, done that, even worn the Scottish Cup Winners 2016 T-shirt.
The 39-year-old explained: “I do use a lot of things I’ve experienced in my playing career, trying to pass things on to young players. But a lot of the time they need to learn it themselves.
“You can give them a wee bit of perspective, but they need to feel it themselves. Exposure to certain circumstances makes you grow.
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Hide Ad“My career path was completely different. I never made it until I was 24. At the age they’re at, I was still playing boys’ club football.
“A lot of these boys are in performance schools, they’re in here three nights a week and they’ve been in here since pre-academy days. They’ve got ability, they’ve got a work ethic.
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Hide Ad“It’s a difficult job, under a lot of pressure, so they have a lot to learn. Do you need to be blessed with a bit of athleticism and technical ability? Of course you do. And you need to work hard on that.
“I just demand 100 per cent effort. Every day, in every training session, every game.
“We try to build the team around a work ethic that will stand players in good stead, whether they make it as a footballer or end up as a tradesman. Be punctual, be respectful, get the work done.
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Hide Ad“People say it’s common sense, but it’s not common practice. You need to practice it every day.
“They can’t get above their station or think they’ve arrived because we’ve won a couple of games. You should always be questioning yourself, always giving everything you’ve got.
“I tell the lads that the top players still make mistakes. They just make them less often. So it starts by identifying the mistake, then limiting how often you make that mistake. That’s the pathway to success.”