Sorry fall from grace of a Hibs legend

IT WAS the appointment every Hibs supporter had demanded.

The only man they wanted to fill the considerable void left by Alex McLeish’s departure to Rangers.

But, when the Easter Road board unveiled Franck Sauzee as their new manager on December 14 last year, just three days after McLeish’s defection to Ibrox, chairman Malcolm McPherson conceded it was a gamble to hand the untried French legend the task of taking Hibs forward.

The 36-year-old had proved an inspira-tional figure as a player and the swiftness of his appointment took everyone by surprise.

The board were confident, though, that the fans’ favourite was the man to put the smile back on the face of Easter Road.

“There is a risk appointing anyone as manager,” McPherson said at the time. “But there is no question Franck carries a huge amount of credibility from his playing career.

“You can learn coaching skills but Franck has shown leadership. You are born with that, you cannot teach that.

“There is a risk in any appointment but I don’t feel it is a greater risk than anyone else.”

However, McPherson and his directors have had a major change of heart with the Hibees languishing perislously close to the dreaded drop zone.

While Sauzee’s appointment was fast-tracked by the board, the 36-year-old’s fall from grace has been just as dramatic.

The man himself admitted that the job could prove beyond him, jokingly stating when he accepted the post that he could be the worst manager in the Premier League.

And how, just over two months after taking charge of the Hibees and with just one solitary win during his reign – a Tennent’s Scottish Cup third-round replay victory over Stranraer – those words have come back to haunt him.

Eleven league games in charge failed to produce a victory.

With SPL bottom dogs St Johnstone defeating high-flying Livingston at McDiarmid Park on Saturday, Hibs’ 1-1 draw at home to Dunfermline left the Leith club nine points ahead of the Saints.

Although the teams meet at Easter Road a week on Saturday in a match which could have a major bearing on who stays up, it would take a continuation of the Hibees’ dismal run of results to see them return to the depths of the First Division.

Sauzee said he would walk away from the job if things went wrong.

But haunted by that spectre of relegation, the club have taken the decision for him, today’s decision to ask him to stand down is a reflection of their concern at the situation.

But perhaps it was the shock defeat at the hands of Ayr United in the CIS Cup semi-final at Hampden Park which was the final straw for the board, Sauzee looking a lonely figure on the sidelines as his side were outfought and outplayed by Gordon Dalziel’s minnows.

It is all a million miles away from the day the European Cup winner was unveiled under a blaze of camera lights at Easter Road.

It was announced that Sauzee’s No. 2 would be former youth coach Donald Park.

But the pair got off to the worst possible start in their first game in charge, although defeat at Dunfermline failed to dampen the supporters’ faith in their new leader.

The East End Park match was the start of a worrying trend for Hibs, with goals soon to prove at a premium.

The following weekend saw Hibs and St Johnstone share a goalless draw at McDiarmid Park while just days later the Leith side went down 3-0 to McLeish’s Rangers despite a plucky performance.

The festive derby with Hearts on December 29 at Tynecastle appeared to many to be the game which should have proved to have been the turning point for the new regime.

The Jambos looked to be on course for a rare triumph until Easter Road skipper John O’Neil popped up with a 90th-minute equaliser.

However, it proved to be false dawn with defeats in the following weeks to Dundee United at home and again away to Dundee as 2002 got off to the worst possible start.

Things had got to the stage when Sauzee admitted his belief in his squad, was being put to the test.

On Saturday as Hibs took on Dunfermline, he said: “We do have injuries to contend with but I have always maintained that we have enough quality in our squad to cope with problems like these.

“Recent results have shaken my belief and it is now up to the players to prove to me that they have the quality for Premier League football.”

Sauzee signed for Hibs on a free transfer in 1999 and made his debut against Falkirk, quickly being handed the captain’s armband by McLeish.

He helped the Hibees win the First Division title and, at the first time of asking, they jumped back into the SPL.

Last season he was a key figure in the side which reached the Scottish Cup Final and also qualified for Europe by finishing third in the SPL.

The Frenchman also helped Hibs to bury their derby jinx, never finishing on a losing side against Hearts.

But his presence from the team through injury was badly missed this season, Sauzee resisting the temptation to pull his boots back on after he was appointed as boss.

Fans were unstinting in their support for the likeable Frenchman, who they believe was not entirely responsible for the shocking league form.
They maintained that numerous problems were inherited by Sauzee from the Alex McLeish era.

Time and again they stated they were prepared to give him time to turn things around and put his stamp on the side.

Clearly, the board did not share their confidence.

Taken from the Scotsman