Ross Wilson reckons that – with the right guidance – Bonnyton Thistle can become a “monster” club.
The Kilmarnock side are preparing for a season in the West of Scotland League First Division following their relegation from the Premiership last term.
And new gaffer Wilson – who replaced Killie legend Alan Robertson in the hot seat – reckons there’s untapped potential at Harriet Road.
Ahead of Saturday’s opener at home to Johnstone Burgh, he told the Kilmarnock Standard: “In terms of where this challenge ranks in my managerial career, it’s very different.
“At Maryhill we didn’t have a lot of resources, for example. But here if we get this right it could be a monster.
“If the club continues to progress the way it is off the park, and it gets matched on the park, it’s got the potential to be very special.
“Because a lot of people don’t know much about Bonnyton, there’s maybe an opinion that we shouldn’t be here, but I think everyone always finds their level.
“We want the club to progress whether it’s the in the pyramid system or in this league.”
The ex-Irvine Meadow boss continued: “I am settling in well. It’s obviously been a change.
“We came into this open-minded, the club played 42 games last season winning four, that’s a nine per cent win ratio.
“That’s why we wanted to take the job, we felt we could come in and make our mark.
“The facilities speak for themselves, the changes have been remarkable off the park, so hopefully we can replicate that on the park.
“Everyone will look at Bonnyton and say, ‘that’s where we will get six points’.
“It’s up to us to rise to that challenge, we are working with the boys to get them sorted, they are doing really well.
“It has been good in pre-season, we won’t get carried away with that but you never want to lose.
“For us we’re not going in to focus on the first six games, we are going to go in and work over the course of 30 games and hopefully make an impact.”
Wilson insists he’s “not here to mess about” when it comes to his management style.
He said: “It’s a 24-hour job, there’s rarely a day that goes by that I’m not speaking to someone.
“I speak to my assistant most days, other managers, it’s very involved. My style is very simple, I am not here to mess about.”
And the new manager says everything will revolve round the group of players he has recruited for the campaign.
He added: “I have been places before that you don’t get afforded the time to change things. I have been places that the committee has been golden and we’ve been very successful.
“I don’t have a particular style, we work around the players we have and go from there. My door is always open, I want the players to come and talk to me.”
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