Lee Makel?

There have been a few stories in the press claiming Lee Makel will be the next Berwick manager. The Daily Record and Scottish Star have both ran the story, which was picked up by the BBC News website. The Livingston midfielder has been allowed to talk to Berwick chairman Robert Wilson about the possibility of taking over as player-manager.

Makel certainly has the required experience, with stints at Newcastle, Blackburn, Hearts, Bradford and Dunfermline. He has alloted over half a million pounds in transfer fees too.

The two questions that pop in to my head are:
1. Can we afford him?
2. It is worth risking taking on someone with no managerial experience?

For Makel to come to Berwick he would have to take a dramatic pay cut. I'd guess Livi are paying the majority of their players around £1k per week. We on the other hand were probably paying John Coughlin less than half that. Taking on someone with no experience as a manager is a risky business - but from time to time it can really pay off. Cowden's appointment of Craig Levien springs to mind. Another added bonus would be Makel's connections, he'd probably be able to unearth some transfer deals we would otherwise miss out on.

No official word from the club yet, so I suppose we'll just have to wait and see what happens.