Neil Lennon

[Pagan Hibernia]

I personally don’t see why some people can’t praise Stubbs without getting a dig in at Lennon, and vice versa. I’d say they both contributed to what was a hugely enjoyable 4 years for Hibs fans

[calumhibee1]

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I'd say, to give others who were at the club fair credit, Stubbs was willing to work in a recruitment system that did not always see him calling all the shots. From the signings Lennon made, I think this system slowly ceased to exist under his management, with an increasing number of players being 'his' signings, as showcased by the number of players who were on the books of his good friend and agent, Dudu Dahan, or those who had connections back to his days at Celtic

Absolutely. Lennon toiled with signings at Hibs and looking at the squad he’s built at Celtic the same can be said there as well. It’ll be his down fall and probably what costs Celtic 10 in a row.

Stubbs embraced a great set up and it paid off spectacularly.

[The Modfather]

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The Cup run was extraordinary. Our league form was very often not so great. As i said - I liked Stubbs. But a lot of his praise is due to that Cup win (and rightly so)

For me the difference between Stubbs and Lennon is that Stubbs signed the core of a team that long outlasted him and one we’re still trying to replace. It was time for Stubbs to go when he did IMO, although in hindsight I think he’d have taken us up by default in our 3rd season as we didn’t improve any but there was a big drop off in our competitors.

Lennon took Stubbs’ team up another couple of levels in his second season but left an imbalanced mess for Heckingbottom/Ross.

Stubbs was far from perfect, but what sets him aside for me is he’s one of the few managers who when it was time to leave had left genuine foundations for the next man and not a cycle of rebuilds as we’ve seen.

[easty]

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I personally think Stubbs gets a much harder time for his ‘failings’ than he should. He was competing in a Championship which contained Rangers, Hearts and a Falkirk side that reached the Scottish Cup final. A feat which any of the ‘smaller’ sides in the Championship will next to never manage. 3 very good sides way above the standard of a lot of the sides that were in the Premiership that year. And this was having taking over the worst Hibs team I’ve ever saw.

The second season we made two cup finals, won one and finished 3rd, again behind a very decent Falkirk team and Rangers. Both seasons we had similar points totals to the one that got us promoted but in much harder leagues. It’s a bit black and white imo to just point out he never got us promoted without considering the fact we were never favourites to get promoted and what he took over from.

He was a cracking manager at Hibs imo whether that’s his signings or his ability to manage the team.

You are giving Falkirk far more credit than they deserve, especially in Stubbs second season.

[Northernhibee]

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You are giving Falkirk far more credit than they deserve, especially in Stubbs second season.

We really don't. They had an excellent young team which deserved to be up there battling for the league, in fact they only finished one point short of what we achieved the following season and having run a top flight team very close in the Scottish Cup Final the previous season.

They've not been able to keep that team and replaced their players very poorly but to say that a team like theres who had a lot less games than us to play are somehow less meritous in their final league position isn't true. They'd have been more welcome in the top flight than, say, Hamilton.

[calumhibee1]

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You are giving Falkirk far more credit than they deserve, especially in Stubbs second season.

They finished the league in Stubbs second season with one less point than we won it with the season after. They actually lost less games than Rangers who won the league. And that was whilst having to compete with ourselves and Rangers who had huge budgets compared to the rest of that league. We had nobody to compete with the season after and only gained 1 point more than they did.

They were a very decent side who would probably have been in and around top 6 in the top tier in Stubbs second season.

[Onion]

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I personally don’t see why some people can’t praise Stubbs without getting a dig in at Lennon, and vice versa. I’d say they both contributed to what was a hugely enjoyable 4 years for Hibs fans

They both did good jobs. Stubbs had the challenge of rebuilding the complete squad, brought back pride to ER and won us the Cup . Lennon gave us one of the most competitive teams we've seen at ER in decades, a real never-say-die attitude and took us into Europe with some vg performances.

They were both flawed in there own ways, but that's what a Hibs budget get you. If they weren't, they'd be nowhere near ER.

[MWHIBBIES]

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They finished the league in Stubbs second season with one less point than we won it with the season after. And that was whilst having to compete with ourselves and Rangers who had huge budgets compared to the rest of that league. We had nobody to compete with the season after and only gained 1 point more than they did.

They were a very decent side who would probably have been in and around top 6 in the top tier in Stubbs second season.

I find it very difficult to give any side with a plastic park any credit at all. Them having one aided them massively, home and at the away grounds that had one./

[calumhibee1]

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I find it very difficult to give any side with a plastic park any credit at all. Them having one aided them massively, home and at the away grounds that had one./

A different debate entirely but one I definitely agree with.

[wookie70]

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The fact he signed the vast majority of a team that won a cup, won a league and then competed so well in our first season back up as a Championship team just makes it all the more impressive.

It started going wrong for Lennon when more than half the team were his signings(I'm counting Allan as a Stubbs identified signing). He did pretty well with a team filled with someone else's signings. McLaren and Flo made a difference but both of those ended badly and he definitely had issues with both of those players. He certainly got a few right with Rocky and Efe in particular but most were pretty forgettable and difficult to see how they fitted into the middle/long term plan.

As mentioned by others I think what worked so well with Stubbs was he bought into the recruitment team and they seemed to be supporting each other. I never got that feeling with Lennon. When LD came in she was brilliant at communicating her vision. Style of play, three players for each position with the Dev Team providing one of those and playing in the same style as first team, Head Coach supported by recruitment team etc. I get the feeling that all started to fracture with Lennon which is possibly the most negative part of his legacy. Succession planning went out the window and we seemed to sign players without a clue about how they would fit into the team. Ross looks like he fits into a similar mould as Stubbs and I hope LD restates her vision as it was the correct way to go.

[calumhibee1]

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It started going wrong for Lennon when more than half the team were his signings(I'm counting Allan as a Stubbs identified signing). He did pretty well with a team filled with someone else's signings. McLaren and Flo made a difference but both of those ended badly and he definitely had issues with both of those players. He certainly got a few right with Rocky and Efe in particular but most were pretty forgettable and difficult to see how they fitted into the middle/long term plan.

As mentioned by others I think what worked so well with Stubbs was he bought into the recruitment team and they seemed to be supporting each other. I never got that feeling with Lennon. When LD came in she was brilliant at communicating her vision. Style of play, three players for each position with the Dev Team providing one of those and playing in the same style as first team, Head Coach supported by recruitment team etc. I get the feeling that all started to fracture with Lennon which is possibly the most negative part of his legacy. Succession planning went out the window and we seemed to sign players without a clue about how they would fit into the team. Ross looks like he fits into a similar mould as Stubbs and I hope LD restates her vision as it was the correct way to go.

Would definitely like to see us get back to the vision that Leeann had previously set out.

[neil7908]

I know this is hardly scientific but I'd definitely take Stubbs back as Hibs manager, despite the direction his head career has taken.

I wouldn't have Lennon back again, even with all the trophies he's won since he left us.

[J-C]

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It started going wrong for Lennon when more than half the team were his signings(I'm counting Allan as a Stubbs identified signing). He did pretty well with a team filled with someone else's signings. McLaren and Flo made a difference but both of those ended badly and he definitely had issues with both of those players. He certainly got a few right with Rocky and Efe in particular but most were pretty forgettable and difficult to see how they fitted into the middle/long term plan.

As mentioned by others I think what worked so well with Stubbs was he bought into the recruitment team and they seemed to be supporting each other. I never got that feeling with Lennon. When LD came in she was brilliant at communicating her vision. Style of play, three players for each position with the Dev Team providing one of those and playing in the same style as first team, Head Coach supported by recruitment team etc. I get the feeling that all started to fracture with Lennon which is possibly the most negative part of his legacy. Succession planning went out the window and we seemed to sign players without a clue about how they would fit into the team. Ross looks like he fits into a similar mould as Stubbs and I hope LD restates her vision as it was the correct way to go.

Lennon was never identified as a target, he was a manager and we were looking for a head coach like Stubbs, he offered his services and it was a case of being right person at the right time. Unfortunately he stood on too many toes, did things his way ignoring advice from the recruitment team, we moved away from the blue print of what we trying to achieve as a club. Heckingbottom came in similar to Stubbs but was no good, Ross is another up and coming head coach like Stubbs.

[Brightside]

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Would definitely like to see us get back to the vision that Leeann had previously set out.

The 3 players for every position has went out the window a bit due to cut backs / covid etc. Post Covid setup of the football dept is going to be interesting. If we get 4th with a limited playing squad do we think the CEO will want to invest more? Hopefully he will.

[WhileTheChief..]

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I know this is hardly scientific but I'd definitely take Stubbs back as Hibs manager, despite the direction his head career has taken.

I wouldn't have Lennon back again, even with all the trophies he's won since he left us.

I’d take Lennon back in a heartbeat but wouldn’t want to see Stubbs back at all!

[Dashing Bob S]

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I personally don’t see why some people can’t praise Stubbs without getting a dig in at Lennon, and vice versa. I’d say they both contributed to what was a hugely enjoyable 4 years for Hibs fans

Yes leave them both alone. They were, on balance, both absolutely great for us. Let’s not lose sight of the big picture.

[GRA]

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I personally don’t see why some people can’t praise Stubbs without getting a dig in at Lennon, and vice versa. I’d say they both contributed to what was a hugely enjoyable 4 years for Hibs fans

Agree. The period with Lenny was, for the most part, great. Got us promoted, pumping Hearts a few times, into Europe (past two rounds something not done since the 70s), competing in games against the Old Firm and the best midfield I've seen for a good few years. Just petered out towards the end as he went off the rails after the coin throwing Derby but don't regret having him as a manager at all.

[Phil MaGlass]

I enjoyed it when Lennon was with us, raised our profile any way you look at it. As already said, petered out towards the end, but, I did enjoy his time with us.

[Hakim Sar]

Neil Lennon was a great Hibs manager. I felt fearless going into every single game with him in charge and always felt he was a good guy to have in your corner.

I don’t care one bit if it was his players, stubbs players or whatever. We made a good call hiring Stubbs, and another good call hiring Lennon.

A time I will remember fondly from the Scottish cup win to the Asteras euro game.

Id buy Lennon and Stubbsy a beer anytime.

[Hibernia&Alba]

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I enjoyed it when Lennon was with us, raised our profile any way you look at it. As already said, petered out towards the end, but, I did enjoy his time with us.

I fully agree with this. However, if I were in charge at Celtic, I would punt him now. Just like his time with us, it's fallen apart and it looks like the time to part ways. If Lennon stays, Rangers win the league, IMHO.

[calumhibee1]

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I enjoyed it when Lennon was with us, raised our profile any way you look at it. As already said, petered out towards the end, but, I did enjoy his time with us.

I know people will just think I’m saying this because it’s NL but it’s not necessarily anything to do with Lennon as such, but in what way was our profile raised over that period? We won the cup before NL in quite spectacular fashion which was by far the biggest thing for our profile.

It seems to be something which has been said a lot on here but I’m not sure there’s any sort of substance to it. It’s not like he was a world class player or manager - say we’d appointed Ronaldinho, fat Ronaldo, Maradona etc then I’d understand where it came from. As it is though, NL is just another footballer who had a decent enough career of which there has been thousands. I’m not sure what part of his appointment or reign really saw our profile raised?

[Hibernia&Alba]

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I know people will just think I’m saying this because it’s NL but it’s not necessarily anything to do with Lennon as such, but in what way was our profile raised over that period? We won the cup before NL in quite spectacular fashion which was by far the biggest thing for our profile.

It seems to be something which has been said a lot on here but I’m not sure there’s any sort of substance to it. It’s not like he was a world class player or manager - say we’d appointed Ronaldinho, fat Ronaldo, Maradona etc then I’d understand where it came from. As it is though, NL is just another footballer who had a decent enough career of which there has been thousands. I’m not sure what part of his appointment or reign really saw our profile raised?

He is a big name in the Scottish game, having been a Celtic captain and title winning Celtic manager. All things being equal, he was just about the biggest name we could have attracted at the time. It was a statement of ambition from Hibs.

[calumhibee1]

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He is a big name in the Scottish game, having been a Celtic captain and title winning Celtic manager. All things being equal, he was just about the biggest name we could have attracted at the time. It was a statement of ambition from Hibs.

Whilst all that is true I’m not quite sure any of that equates to raising our profile though.

Winning the cup against the OF with a last minute winner for the first time in 114 years is a much bigger deal in Scottish football and especially world football than a managerial ‘big name’ appointment. Yet we never hear of Stubbs having raised our profile.

It seems to just be a soundbite that has caught on with no substance really.

[Hibernia&Alba]

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Whilst all that is true I’m not quite sure any of that equates to raising our profile though.

Winning the cup against the OF with a last minute winner for the first time in 114 years is a much bigger deal in Scottish football and especially world football than a managerial ‘big name’ appointment. Yet we never hear of Stubbs having raised our profile.

It seems to just be a soundbite that has caught on with no substance really.

The cup win was massive for our profile, and it got a huge monkey off of our back. Lennon's appointment built upon that; perhaps it cemented the idea of Hibs as a big club again. It was an exciting time, one which provided a superb platform for further progress. It's all part of building momentum. Both Stubbs and Lennon played their part; now we must kick on. We have a club capable of being Scotland's third force.

[J-C]

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He is a big name in the Scottish game, having been a Celtic captain and title winning Celtic manager. All things being equal, he was just about the biggest name we could have attracted at the time. It was a statement of ambition from Hibs.

Only a big name in Scottish football due to playing for Celtic, apart from that he was a bang average midfielder at Leicester and Crewe, he had a bit of an aggressive streak to game but was I'd say just a decent pro, there's many ex players over the country with the same credentials.

[Hibernia&Alba]

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Only a big name in Scottish football due to playing for Celtic, apart from that he was a bang average midfielder at Leicester and Crewe, he had a bit of an aggressive streak to game but was I'd say just a decent pro, there's many ex players over the country with the same credentials.

Yes, I also think he was limited as a player, but he's a big name in Scottish football. I don't think we could have attracted someone of a higher profile then. Overall I think he did job for us, though his ending was a mess. He did build upon the cup win and make reinforce the idea we are a big club in Scotland.

[Since452]

Hearts will be fancying their chances in the final with Lennon in charge

[Coco Bryce]

Celtic fans on Twitter wanting Dempster at their club, as she knows how to get shot of Lennon 😂😂

[Lancs Harp]

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Hearts will be fancying their chances in the final with Lennon in charge

Would have been fancying our own chances ....... if only.

[overdrive]

Just seen the post match interview with him on BT. A bit of a car crash. One word answers, refusing to answer questions, etc.

I think he’ll be gone soon.