Manager signs new contract
Tuesday, 26th Apr 2016Dunfermline Athletic are delighted to announce that Allan Johnston has signed a new contract with the club.
Dunfermline Athletic are delighted to announce that Allan Johnston has signed a new two year contract with the club.
The manager admitted that after one season at East End Park, he had told the Board that Dunfermline was where he wanted to be, so he was delighted to sign a new two year contract at East End Park.
"It's good to get it over the line and get it sorted. This is a club that's going in the right direction. You can see that everybody wants to be successful.
"You just need to look at the directors and especially Ross (McArthur)'s vision for the club and where he wants to take it. I'm delighted because I want to be a part of it."
Allan shares the board ambitions and that is what made him want to stay:-
"I want to be successful and that's why I'm signing here. If I thought we were going to be struggling down the bottom of the league then I wouldn't have signed. The board want that as well. They want to be challenging, they want to be up near the top of the league and not struggling down the bottom of the league. It's a good fit."
Next season the manager wants to be up near the top end of the league. He revealed his aspirations:-
"It would be amazing if we could get into the play-offs in our first year back in the Championship. That would be the target but we know it's going to be difficult, because there's a lot of quality teams.
"It depends on who stays in the league or who goes up or maybe who comes down, but it's going to be really difficult. But there's no reason, with the quality players we've got, and the players we're trying to bring in as well, that we can't be up there challenging."
With a few of the current squad still to agree new contracts, fans will hope that the manager's new contract will encourage more players to re-sign. The manager was modest and uncertain if that would happen.
"It's a difficult one that, because players look after themselves; they've got to because they've got such a short career. But you can see with a lot of the boys who have already signed, they want to be a part of what's happening at Dunfermline and that's why I signed as well.
"We can see the club wants to be successful, the fan-base they've got, the size of the club, the work that goes in helping out the club to do that wee bit extra. I want to be a part of that as well."
Having struck on a winning formula Allan Johnston claimed that he didn't want to change too many players:-
"Obviously we're stepping up a division and we will need to strengthen as well and to try and get a wee bit of added quality in as well, to try and push us on. The last thing we're going to do is dramatically change the team.
"You can see that we've signed a lot of the key players already, which is a major bonus but there's still a lot more of the players we want to sign up as well."
The manager might have been expected to be on the look out for more experience but confessed that he didn't mind what age a player is, as long as they're a good player:-
"You can see the players I've tried to bring over the last season, guys like Marc McAusland with a wee bit of experience as well, maybe guys who have played up a level. It doesn't matter, as long as they are good players.
"I'm not really wanting a massive squad, I'm wanting a small squad, but with every person able to play in the first-team." He hinted that he thought his League One squad had been about the right size and did not need to be any bigger a squad in the Championship than this season. "I think it's been about right. If you start getting more than that it causes more problems."
The manager is keen to retain his current backroom staff he continued:-
"I've spoken to Sandy and Potts as well, and Kenny and Mo and Gary as well, so everybody knows we want to keep it the same and hopefully that will get done within the next couple of days as well."
John Potter was in place before Allan Johnston and Sandy Clark arrived but the gaffer made it quite clear that he definitely wants to keep the Under 20s coach as part of his team.
"He's been a massive part of what we've done as well, not just with the young boys but with the first-team as well. He puts a lot of work in and we're delighted to have him."
Sandy Clark would remain on the same terms allowing him to continue his part time job at Cumbernauld College.
"I think it is a good fit for him. He gives us that wee bit of experience, because he's been there and done it and has probably a lot more experience than the two of us together."
His new contract delighted Allan Johnston who summed it up:-
"It's a massive club and I wouldn't be signing if I thought we were going to be down there struggling. I want to be up there, I want to be successful, first and foremost as an individual and it's a good club to be at, I think we've got a right chance of doing well."
When Allan Johnston joined Dunfermline Athletic on 8th May 2015 he arrived having already proved that he was a young, forward thinking manager. After successful spells with Queen of the South and Kilmarnock the DAFC Board were convinced that he was the man to take Dunfermline onwards and upwards.
His record in his first season at Dunfermline has been just what was wanted; promotion as League One champions and good cup runs in which much promise was displayed with impressive performances against Premier League opponents in the shape of Dundee, Dundee United and Ross County. Twice this season his efforts have been recognised with Ladbrokes League One Manager of the Month Awards.
Allan has 26 years’ experience in the game as a full time player, coach and full time manager. As a player he represented his country on 18 occasions and has experience of playing at the highest level in Scotland, England and abroad.
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