Scotland's greatest export?

By Keir Murray

It is striking that three of the candidates being touted for the managerial role at West Bromwich Albion, vacated by Tony Mowbray on his departure for Celtic, are Scots.

Preston North End's Alan Irvine, St Johnstone's Derek McInnes and Darren Ferguson at Peterborough United are young managers attracting the attention of club chairmen in England.

All landed their first managerial job in 2007 and have quickly made an impact.

Preston North End's Alan Irvine spent 15 years as a coach, most notably at Everton from 2002, before joining the Deepdale club in 2007 when they were one spot above the relegation zone.

In his first full season in charge, Preston lost to Sheffield United in the Championship play-off semi-final.

McInnes, 37, won the Scottish First Division with his Perth side, leading them to an unbeaten league run of 21 matches, the longest in Saints' 125-year history.

And Darren Ferguson has proved he has some of his famous father's managerial acumen in his DNA by leading Posh to promotion on two consecutive seasons, most recently into the Championship.

In last season's Premier League, Sir Alex Ferguson's continued success at Manchester United, David Moyes' stewardship at Goodison and Ricky Sbragia's efforts in retaining Sunderland's top-flight status have helped to maintain the good reputation of Scotland's coaches.

What the coaches learn at Largs sets the framework for their future development Alex Smith, chairman of Scottish Managers and Coaches Association

And two of the three clubs who clinched promotion from the Championship are managed by Scots - Alex McLeish at Birmingham City and Owen Coyle at Burnley - while Billy Davies was lauded for his efforts in guiding Derby County to the riches of England's top tier two seasons ago.

Forty years on from the reigns of Sir Matt Busby, Bill Shankly and Jock Stein, is Scotland punching above its weight in producing more successful managers than other small nations?

Alex Smith, chairman of the Scottish Managers and Coaches Association, is a highly respected figure in the game, having been in charge at St Mirren, Aberdeen, Dundee United and various Scotland teams.

For him, culture, appetite for self-improvement and loyalty are major factors in the production of successful managers.

"There is something in our culture that encourages us to want to manage, to want to lead, to be willing to take on that responsibility. You see this in politics and industry too," said the 69-year-old, who is expected to be named director of football when Eddie May is unveiled as Falkirk manager on Tuesday.

"These managers are people who want to go up front, football fanatics who start well in the game and who use it to get on. They want to achieve as individuals.

"Crucially, they have a willingness to learn from others and, once in position, they are very loyal to their clubs."

Sir Alex Ferguson with one of Scotland's best managers, Jock Stein

Most aspiring coaches in Scotland complete the courses for "B" and "A" licences at the Scottish Football Association's training centre in Largs, taking three years to do so.

Frank Coulson, Craig Brown and Andy Roxburgh were key figures in the development of the programmes in the Ayrshire town, which in turn, Smith says, shaped coaching courses at Uefa, where Roxburgh is now technical director.

Jose Mourinho gained his "A" licence there and speaks fondly of the experience, while England boss Fabio Capello and former Italy manager Arrigo Sacchi are among other notable alumni.

"What the coaches learn at Largs sets the framework for their future development," says Smith.

"It's a more practical course than others. In England, for example, the courses concentrate more on theory.

"But it really is just a start. We encourage the coaches to learn from one another.

"David Moyes and Sir Alex Ferguson, for example, are terrific in the way that they welcome new coaches who go to learn from them."

But surely it is not at all surprising that some successful managers are Scottish, just as others who have done well are, say, English, Welsh or Irish.

After all, Scots make up around 10% of the UK population so one should expect to see some representation in senior clubs.

As things stand, one in five English Premier League clubs will enter the new season with a Scottish manager (Birmingham, Burnley, Everton and Manchester United).

In the Championship, we have Davies at Nottingham Forest, Irvine at Preston, Ferguson at Peterborough, Paul Sturrock at Plymouth and newly appointed Malky Mackay at Watford, with three aforementioned Scots possible replacements for Mowbray at the Hawthorns.

These ratios suggest that, relative to other nations' coaches, Scots are doing better than most.

And, if Scotland produces so many fine coaches, why do two of the 10 Scottish Premier League clubs with managers have non-Scots at the helm?

And why are Lawrie Sanchez and Luc Nijholt front-runners for the Motherwell vacancy, and not some Scottish hopefuls?

One reason is that successful coaches north of the border have a desire to prove themselves at a higher level.

In the past, a step up from Scottish football would have meant a move to the top teams in England but, with television money changing the landscape, increasingly a move to a Championship club is seen as career progression.

Ferguson at Aberdeen, Davies at Motherwell, McLeish at Rangers, Coyle at St Johnstone - all wanted to take their talents to a bigger stage, with McLeish arriving at St Andrews after a spell in charge of Scotland.

Another reason is the tendency to equate "foreign" with "exciting" and "good", as typified by the appointment of Berti Vogts as manager of the national team in 2002.

As Radio Scotland's Off the Ball presenter Tam Cowan put it, Motherwell fans were always more forgiving of a bad pass by an exotic-sounding player like Roberto Martinez, as opposed to one by "Rab Martin".

And, of course, not all Scottish managers deliver trophies or promotion. Sturrock had a torrid time at Southampton, as did Craig Levein at Leicester, for example.

It is strange that at a time when Scottish players are failing to feature for the major teams south of the border, the country's managers should be doing relatively well.

Perhaps if Scotland could retain some of that talent to coach the country's own young players, we may once again see the likes of Kenny Dalglish and Steve Archibald come through to thrill fans in the Scottish Premier League before commanding a big-money move to England's top clubs.