Linlithgow Rose boss Brown Ferguson reveals his ambitions for club

Brown Ferguson has taken the reins at Linlithgow Rose. Pic: SNS

New Linlithgow Rose boss Brown Ferguson has revealed his plans to take the Prestonfield outfit further up the leagues.

The former Stenhousemuir manager was unveiled as the East of Scotland Premier League club’s new chief earlier this month and has a long-term vision for Linlithgow, starting with a bid for promotion to the Lowland League.

Ferguson this week announced his backroom staff, with Rose striker Colin Strickland appointed as a player-coach alongside former Bo’ness United manager Stevie Kerrigan as his assistant, while Myles Hogarth has been brought in as goalkeeping coach.

“I said to everybody when I first came into the club that it is hopefully a journey for myself and Linlithgow,” said Ferguson ahead of their visit to Tranent on league duty on Saturday.

“We hope as many people as possible can be on that journey, but ultimately it is down to the players and how they perform on a Saturday that is going to determine them being part of the club moving forward.

“There’s not that many opportunities in the game when you think of the amount of people looking for them and actually finding a club that you feel you can move them forward from where they currently are was a big attraction.

“The location is good for me. it is just five minutes from me and I do have historical family connections with the club as well, which meant I know what the club is all about. I wasn’t coming into the unknown in terms of Linlithgow Rose. I know the size of the club and the ambition that they have. After discussions with the committee, their ambitions are certainly in line with what I am after. There is backing there to go and do it and there is a plan in place to go try and do it. Everything is pointing in the right direction.”

He continued: “Hopefully, given time, we will be able to show progression and I’ll be able to take Linlithgow further than where they currently are. Linlithgow, from a fan base perspective first and foremost, have got people that want to come and watch them; they have a strong history of community and support. They have got a great stadium and they are a well run club who have always been respected. Bonnyrigg [Rose] and Kelty [Hearts], you can quite clearly see how well they are doing this year, and I think Linlithgow can do that. Not just Linlithgow, there will be other teams who will have similar ambitions.

“With time, we have all the tools there to pull together a strong squad that can take Linlithgow on a journey and that’s ultimately what my role is.”

Tomorrow’s match is Ferguson’s third in charge after a Scottish Cup victory over Stirling University was followed up by a horror show last week when they lost 5-1 at Camelon.

Ferguson added: “In general I have been really pleased with how the players have responded in training. Their attitude to training has been good and they’ve responded to the work we’ve been doing in a positive manner.

“In terms of actually on the field, our first game against Stirling Uni was a really good game for us in terms of the outcome and the performance was pretty solid. It was probably the exact opposite of that against Camelon at the weekend there. it was a very, very poor performance from our perspective and Camelon were better than us in all departments.”