Glentoran legend Michael Halliday feels Duncan Ferguson's no-nonsense approach “might be just what is needed” at The Oval – and also believes it could be important for him to lean on those with knowledge of the Irish League as he settles into Premiership life.

Former Rangers striker Ferguson is set to take over the reins at the Glens, marking an end to the club’s month-long search for Declan Devine’s successor.

A cult hero in English football, Ferguson made 269 Premier League appearances across spells at Everton and Newcastle United, and earned seven international caps for Scotland.

The 54-year-old took on his first permanent senior management role at Forest Green Rovers in January 2023, winning just one of his 18 games in charge, and also spent a year with Scottish outfit Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

placeholder image — Duncan Ferguson (left) worked as assistant manager Carlo Ancelotti at Everton. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

After a two-year hiatus from the dugout, Ferguson is returning with the Glens in what will mark one of the Irish League’s most high-profile moves.

"As a personality, he might be just what is needed,” Halliday told the News Letter. “I don't know him personally, but the image that's painted of him is that he will a no-nonsense kind of manager...maybe that's what the club needs.

"He’s a big name, he obviously does a bit of punditry work and things like that, so he's well-known.

"I hope it works out well for him because it's a big name in the Irish League, so maybe that brings a bit of attention to it.

"He's like anyone who gets that job, you've got the potential to be a hero if you can turn it around and have a team that's competing.

"Maybe a set of fresh eyes coming into the league (will be good). If he doesn't know about the Irish League, he'll certainly get to know it in the first couple of weeks.

"It may not be what he's used to, but he's got plenty of contacts, plenty of players in mind to bring in and things like that.

"Maybe this is what's needed, a new approach to it all.

"You expect a bit of an upturn when a new manager comes in, you expect players to be busting to show him what they can do. It usually leads to an uplift in performance, uplift in results.

"It will be interesting to see what way he's going to go about it all.”

Glentoran coach Tim McCann confirmed he has been asked to meet with Ferguson alongside other members of the club’s coaching staff ahead of his Oval appointment.

With Ferguson likely unfamiliar with the Irish League at this stage, Halliday, who made 468 appearances for the Glens, believes there's value in leaning on those with prior experience.

"There's boys there that are experienced who have been around the club and know players and know teams in this league,” added Halliday. “It would probably be silly not to use that knowledge, certainly while he's trying to find his feet.

"I wouldn't have thought he’ll know much about (most of the clubs in the Irish League), so someone with a bit of Irish League knowledge might be, certainly in the early stages, very beneficial for him.

"There seems to be a bit of positivity about the club, it's not like he's coming in and having to lift all these players.

"They're winning games at the minute, maybe not convincingly, but they're winning games, picking up points. He's got something there to build on.”