John McGlynn: I was a million miles away from getting back into top-flight role

Falkirk boss John McGlynn admitted he felt a “million miles” away from creating history and getting back into top-flight management during a four-year hiatus in his career as a head coach.

McGlynn became the first man to win the PFA Scotland manager of the year award for a third time when he edged out Brendan Rodgers and David Gray to take the trophy two days after leading Falkirk to back-to-back promotions.

The 63-year-old first won the honour in 2011 during his first spell in charge of Raith Rovers but chances to get a leading role dried up after stints at Hearts and Livingston, the latter ending in 2014.

McGlynn took a backroom job with Celtic but he then came close to leading Raith to top-flight promotion before enjoying an unbeaten William Hill League 1 season with Falkirk and then leading them to the Championship title.

When asked what it meant to win the PFA prize for a third time, he said: “Everything, absolutely, everything. To be in the company is amazing.

“Brendan Rodgers, who I’ve got a really good relationship with and respect him so much, he’s taught me so much.

“He’s actually helped the teams that I’ve worked with since then, since I left Celtic. I was in a scout role, an opposition analyst role, I learned so much there.

“I went to Raith Rovers and played the same kind of style, or tried to play the same kind of style with different players obviously.

“Raith Rovers played some amazing football, bit unlucky not to get to the Premiership one year and then going to Falkirk and managing to do what we’ve done is absolutely incredible.

“Very proud, very proud and I’ve got to thank the players enormously.

“We’ve got the right players in, do the right job, they’re playing attractive attacking football, the fans are loving it, they’re coming along, they’re getting entertained and for most of the time we’re winning.

“I’m so proud of the players, they’ve been amazing for me.”

McGlynn has been linked with the vacant manager’s role at Hearts, where he worked under difficult financial and ownership circumstances in 2012-13.

He is still celebrating Falkirk’s success though and planning their first top-flight season in 15 years.

Reflecting on his time at Celtic, where he started working under Ronny Deila, he said: “I was a million miles away from here. It’s always in you, as a football coach and manager that I was previously before going into that, it’s always in you.

“Whether I could have got back in, it was up in the air really, whether it could have happened or not.

“I had a connection with Raith Rovers, the job became available. I got an opportunity to go back and then managed to fulfil that ambition to play in that way, to play in that style, which was successful and then to take it to Falkirk.

“There’s no way I could have dreamt that could have happened but I’m delighted that it did. I’m sure a lot of Falkirk fans are happier that it happened as well.”