Paddy McCourt clear 'I love being part of this club' as Duncan Ferguson prepares to take over at Glentoran
Paddy McCourt says he has “loved” his interim spell in charge of the Premiership club – and believes there’s even more to come from the squad as speculation continues to mount over the potential appointment of Duncan Ferguson.
McCourt, who served as Declan Devine’s assistant, was placed in temporary control in mid-September alongside Tim McCann and has helped mastermind the Glens’ current unbeaten league run of five matches.
In what will likely prove his final game in charge of the east Belfast outfit, Daniel Larmour struck in the dying seconds to claim a dramatic 1-0 win over Limavady United on Saturday.
Ahead of kick-off, reports emerged that former Rangers and Everton striker Ferguson is set to make a return to management with the Glens and is expected to be at the helm for next weekend’s home clash against Ballymena United.
Ferguson has previously held managerial roles at Forest Green Rovers and Inverness Caledonian Thistle, while he served as assistant to legend Carlo Ancelotti at Everton.
While not addressing any speculation over the current Glens vacancy, McCourt insists he has enjoyed his time with the club and has full faith they can continue progressing after moving into third with Saturday’s triumph.
"I've loved it,” said McCourt. “Listen, I love being part of this football club.
"It's been two-and-a-half seasons now, we get treated brilliantly well by the people within the club and the people outside of the club, it's a real good club.
"I'm just glad that myself, Tim and the players could put some more points on the board after a difficult start.
"I'm proud of what the players have produced.
"I stand on the sideline and we've tried to set them up every week in terms of the opposition that we were playing.
"But I genuinely believe, even though we've picked up 13 points out of the last 15, I genuinely believe that there's a lot more to come from this squad of players...I think we'll get better as the season goes on.”
The Glens were forced to wait until second half injury time before finding a weekend winner – defender Larmour tapping home from close range after Ben Gallagher’s corner wasn’t cleared.
"We started pretty well first half,” added McCourt. “I thought we had a good couple of chances.
"We never really capitalised on the possession we had, and then the game went a wee bit flat.
"It took a set-piece at the end to win the game. We defended well when we had to and got a clean sheet.
"There’s positives to take and we’re delighted to get the three points.”