McGlynn was 'a million miles away' from top flight

John McGlynn's Falkirk held off the challenge of Livingston to win the Scottish Championship title

Falkirk manager John McGlynn says a return to Scotland's top flight as a head coach felt "a million miles away" during his four-year stint away from management.

McGlynn, 63, was named PFA Scotland manager of the year for the second season running after leading Falkirk to the Scottish Championship title.

McGlynn beat Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers and Hibernian head coach David Gray to the honour after ending Falkirk's 15-year absence from the top tier.

"Everything, absolutely everything," he said, when asked what the prize meant to him. "To be in the company is amazing."

McGlynn is the first man to win the award three times, having first done so in 2011 in his first spell with Raith Rovers.

The 63-year-old then managed Hearts and Livingston - who he left in 2014 - before taking a backroom role at Celtic in 2015, working under Ronny Delia and Rodgers.

"I was a million miles away from here," he said, reflecting on his time at Celtic.

"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. 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."

McGlynn says those learnings have been hugely beneficial since his return to management with Raith Rovers in 2018.

"I had a connection with Raith Rovers, the job became available," he said.

"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."

'So proud of amazing players'

Having missed out on promotion with the Kirkcaldy club, he subsequently joined Falkirk in 2022.

His second season with the Bairns ended in promotion after an unbeaten League 1 campaign and McGlynn then swept to the Championship title at the first time of asking.

"I went to Raith Rovers and played the same kind of style [as Celtic], or tried to play the same kind of style with different players obviously," he said.

"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.

"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."