Neil Redfearn will remain in as caretaker boss for the next three games, as Ken Bates considers his options for the next manager, and he will get the chance to stake his claim to get the job on a permanent basis.
Bates told Yorkshire Radio that the club has been inundated with applications “from the cheeky to outlandish" including to an 11-year-old boy who claims to be very good at 2010 Playstation Manager Of The Year, and Sven Goran Eriksson. Bates has already turned the former England boss down, and his comments give an indication of his reasons for rejecting the Swede.
"Leeds United is a big club with a big fan base. It's a one-club city and any manager with ambitions wants to manage a big club. It also brings a wealth of unwanted applications for the wrong reasons and that's why we have to be careful. We don't want an instant miracle maker, although the fans think it's a good idea, but you rarely find one. It has to be someone who wants to come here for the right reasons”.
On the other hand, Redfearn has impressed Bates so far, and will continue as caretaker boss as “the club are in no rush to appoint a new manager. We have decided after the impressive start Neil has made, not just with the win but his presence and his attitude around Thorp Arch that he will be given his chance to demonstrate, a longer opportunity to demonstrate his abilities whilst we consider the matter carefully."
The news that Bates is considering the option of appointing Redfearn as the next permanent boss has led to a lot of comments on the messageboards that once again he want the cheapest option, but I think we have to give the man the chance to show what he can do. Redfearn has a lot of experience as a player and a coach, so why shouldn’t he turn out to be a good manager?
Certainly he was lucky to get the win at Ashton Gate on Saturday, as Bristol City had the better of the first 40 minutes before we scored against the run of play and they then had two players sent off. But the players seem to like Redfearn, whereas there had been suggestions that some of them had fallen out with Simon Grayson.
In 1961 the then Leeds board were accused of lacking ambition, when instead of looking for an established manager from outside the club they gave the job to a senior player by the name of Don Revie. OK, so the chances are that Redfearn won’t turn out to be another Revie, but that period does show that the cheapest option may not be the worst one.