Manage ’Well at Dougie’s big night

Aug 14 2008 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

SUPPORTERS are being encouraged to play a major role in Motherwell hero Dougie Arnott’s Testimonial next month.

Motherwell Legends will take on an Old Firm Legends XI at Fir Park on Thursday, September 11, and fans can get in on the action by either playing in the game – or taking charge.

One lucky fan will get the chance to be Motherwell manager on the night, while places are up for grabs on the playing field.

Plans for the match are going well, with Motherwell’s 1991 Scottish Cup-winning captain Tom Boyd confirmed as skipper of an Old Firm XI, which will feature stars such as Ally McCoist, Gordon Durie and Arthur Numan.

The Motherwell line up includes Sieb Dijkstra, Colin O’Neill, Craig Paterson, Fraser Wishart and Chris McCart.

The lucky winner who gets the chance to become Motherwell boss will be helped out in the dug-out by celebrity fan Tam Cowan and Motherwell heroes Tam Forsyth and Cammy Murray.

Richard Swan, of the Testimonial Committee, said: “We’ve had a great response to the prize draws that will allow some ordinary fans to actually play in the Motherwell and Old Firm teams, and we’re sure this manager prize draw will be even more popular.”

Tom Forsyth, who once starred for Rangers, said: “Some players get really nervous and can be physically sick before a game, while others can go really quiet.

“I remember guys like Colin O’Neill, who would arrive hours in advance of a game and end up frantically walking the corridors with loads of energy and anticipation.

“It’s a manager’s job to keep an eye on all those different kinds of players and talk to them in just the right way.”

Tam Cowan said: “I had the honour of being the manager a few years back for a game and it was a great experience that went very quickly.

“Whoever wins certainly won’t have a better sheepskin manager’s coat than the one I had that night!”

Meanwhile Tom Boyd, who captained Celtic, says it has been easy to get former Old Firm heroes to sign up for the testimonial match.

He said: “Anybody we contacted said ‘yes’ without any hesitation, which shows the respect for Dougie and the level of professionalism he brought to the game as a player, and he’s well remembered for that.

“We have managed to line up people like Ally McCoist, Arthur Numan, Gordon Durie and Derek McInnes.”

As a youngster going through the ranks at Motherwell, Boyd saw first hand how hard Arnott worked to forge a career, after starting late.

But he said that most defenders from that era will recall the striker as an absolute pest.

He said: “Dougie came in to the club and showed a great determination to succeed after coming into the game in his mid-20s. He probably thought it was his last chance to make it in the game.

“Dougie was the type of player you wanted to have in your side rather than having to come up against him.

“You only have to ask any tall, dominant centre-half who their hardest opponent was, and many would say Dougie was one of them.

“In fact, he’s very similar in stature and skill to one of the guys who followed him into the Motherwell side, Scott McDonald.”

Fans who want a chance to line up alongside the Old Firm Legends in the match should visit www.dougie-arnott.com/oldfirmfan/ at Dougie’s website at www.dougie-arnott.com