Morning View: New football boss or new PM – let’s see delivery for NI

This week we saw the back of two leaders, after the pressure on them became too much.

Liz Truss resigned after just 44 days as PM, plunging Westminster into another Conservative leadership contest. Now, Boris Johnson and his supporters are seemingly planning a comeback.

Mr Johnson is a polarising figure, but some Tories believe he has a unique knack for campaigning and may offer a route to electoral recovery before the next general election.

Rishi Sunak remains the bookies’ favourite, though, and his backers claim he has the economic prowess to steer Britain through a financial crisis. Certainly, he commanded the support of more MPs than Liz Truss during the previous leadership contest. But his opponents argue that he was rejected ultimately by Conservative members.

These days, politics is more often decided on WhatsApp messaging groups than in smoke-filled rooms, but the UK’s future direction, and the fate of the NI Protocol, could rest upon a weekend of plotting and intrigue in London.

Northern Ireland football fansare lucky to have the option of ignoring this high stakes political game, and concentrating instead on who will replace their outgoing manager, Ian Baraclough. The Leicester native made an honest attempt to revitalise an ageing team, bringing in young players and achieving, initially at least, some credible results. Lately, though, unhappiness mounted among the Green and White Army, as the team struggled to perform against modest opponents. The Irish FA duly parted company with the boss yesterday.

The fans will have robust debates about whether high-profile names like Michael O’Neill, Neil Lennon or David Healy should now replace Baraclough.

Whoever becomes the manager, we hope that, like the new prime minister, they deliver for Northern Ireland.