What now for Kilmarnock after Alex Dyer departure?
- Published
'Alex Dyer has not been short of a battle or two' - Sportscene analysis
It was an unlucky 13 months in charge of Kilmarnock for Alex Dyer, who on Saturday left the manager's job "by mutual consent" after a 3-2 home loss to St Johnstone.
Dyer, 55, had led Kilmarnock to just two wins in their last 11 matches, with the Rugby Park club ninth in the Scottish Premiership and just five points clear of bottom-club Hamilton having played a game more.
What went wrong for the Englishman, who took over from Angelo Alessio in December 2019?
And what next for the Ayrshire club as they begin the search for their 11th manager in 11 years.
Was Dyer 'rushed into job'?
Dyer first arrived in Scotland in October 2017 when he answered the call from Steve Clarke to be his assistant manager. Together they led Kilmarnock to fifth in the Scottish Premiership, then followed it up the following season with third - their highest league finish since 1966 and a return to Europe for the first time since 2001.
When Clarke left to become the manager of Scotland, Dyer combined roles as assistant to Clarke and to new Killie boss Alessio. But after the Italian was sacked, Dyer was first made caretaker for three games, then given the job until the end of the season, before signing a two-year contract in June.
However, he won just 13 of his 43 games in charge - the worst points per game record of any Killie manager since promotion to the top flight in 1993.
Sportscene pundit James McFadden said: "I love listening to him speak, he's always so honest, he never gets too up or down. I think he was rushed into the job, even when he was caretaker."
And Motherwell full-back Stephen O'Donnell, who worked with Dyer at Rugby Park, agreed.
He said: "It was a very difficult time for any manager to come into that dressing room. It was a tough environment. He took it and did his best and he did well.
"Obviously Covid has upset a lot of people's season's and maybe his recruitment wasn't what he would have liked it to be, but certainly Alex Dyer has not been short of a battle or two."
'Kilmarnock haven't looked the same'
Season 2018-19 under Steve Clarke compared to this season
Kilmarnock have not had their troubles to seek this season. They had high points at the beginning of the campaign - holding Celtic to a draw and thumping Dundee United 4-0.
But at the end of September six players tested positive for Covid-19. Days later they were forced to call off a match with Motherwell after the whole squad had to self-isolate. Motherwell were awarded a default 3-0 win which was later overturned. They did though have to forfeit a League Cup tie with Falkirk and promote under-18s to fulfil other fixtures in the competition.
Eamonn Brophy was sent out on loan after signing a pre-contract with St Mirren, with Dyer saying he wouldn't pick him anymore "because he doesn't want to be here".
And on Friday, on the eve of their match with St Johnstone, it was announced that two more players had tested positive for Covid.
Sportsound pundit Julie Fleeting said: "Gary Dicker has been missing for a good number of games, and they miss him. He formed a good partnership with Alan Power. They miss his composure on the ball, they miss his leadership and Kilmarnock haven't looked like the same as they have in previous years."
Killie look to Livingston for inspiration
Former Kilmarnock player Gary Holt is currently sporting director at Falkirk after leaving Livingston earlier in the season, but could be tempted back to Rugby Park. Tommy Wright, Craig Levein and Stephen Robinson have recently left jobs in Scotland.
And former Scotland Women's manager Shelley Kerr, who herself laughed off suggestions she would be in the running, believes the Ayrshire club will go down the tried and tested route.
She told BBC Sportsound: "When you're down at that end of the table usually clubs look for a bit of experience to stabilise and make sure that you avoid the drop. They're not in a great position but they're still okay just now.
"It's the big picture as well. Short-term you want results but how do you build on previous success? It's going to be hard."
Livingston captain Marvin Bartley says the success of his club under David Martindale, who has gone 13 games unbeaten and led the West Lothian side into the League Cup final, may also have been a factor in Dyer's dismissal.
"They probably have a similar budget to us," said Bartley. "We're sitting in fifth place and their chairman is probably thinking 'why can't we be the same?'
"Obviously our manager resigned earlier this season as well and we've had a bounce back from that so maybe that's what Kilmarnock are hoping for.
"It's a new manager with new ideas, and for players it a clean slate. The standard of training does go up a little bit and it pulls the best out of players. But there has to be something long term otherwise managers won't want to go in there, as they'll think 'I'll be there for six months then be out of the door'."