Former Glentoran captain Pete Batey hopes Duncan Ferguson will be the man to lead them out of “the doldrums” – and believes the appointment of the no-nonsense Scotsman could “be a wake-up call for some people”.

The Glens’ long wait for Premiership title glory will enter 18 years in 2027, and with Coleraine currently 11 points better off this term, it's likely that will extend further.

Ferguson’s arrival will mark Glentoran’s 11th different manager since they last lifted the Gibson Cup with five lasting less than a year at The Oval.

The 54-year-old enjoyed a successful playing career, winning silverware with Rangers and Everton, and remains a cult figure in English football.

placeholder image — Duncan Ferguson previously served as Everton's interim manager. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images)

His appointment marks one of the highest-profile in Irish League history with Ferguson’s first match in charge set to be Saturday’s league visit of Ballymena United.

Batey, who won four Irish Cups and a Premiership title alongside making over 250 appearances for the Glens, has thrown his full support behind Ferguson and hopes he can prove the difference.

"It's great...why not (appoint Duncan)?,” Batey told the News Letter. “The club has been in the doldrums for the last 20 years, it really has.

"We've had little glimmers of light, we won the Irish Cup six years ago, but to have won one league title and three Irish Cups in the past 20 years is not good enough.

"Ali Pour (owner) needs a statue built of him outside the ground...the amount of money he's throwing at this club is phenomenal, and I imagine Duncan is not coming cheap, so fair play to Ali for keeping going.

"He has put £5million in and got nothing back...I think he'd be well within his rights to walk away any minute he wants.

"Duncan coming in is going to raise the profile of the league, raise the profile of the club, there'll be a spotlight on us.

"I think we've had something like 12 managers since Roy Coyle and they barely get two years in the seat, so it's either something wrong with the transfer policy or something else, but at some stage the players are going to have to stand up and be counted.

"There's only so many managers you can blame. We have had some good managers, some who claim that the funds maybe weren't there when they were there, which is fair enough, others who had the keys to the castle.

"Duncan's an absolute legend of a man, of a player. People look up to him.

"I have no idea what he's like in the dressing room, but if he's anything like how he played, it's going to be a wake-up call for some people.”