Elgin City's new player manager Ross Draper feels "blessed" about his Borough Briggs appointment and is planning a patient approach to bring progress to the Black and Whites and steer them up the SPFL 2 rankings
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Ross Draper says he feels "blessed" and fortunate to land his his first managerial job in football at Elgin City.
The former Caley Thistle Scottish Cup winner said it was an easy decision to accept the job as Gavin Price's successor in the Borough Briggs hot seat.
Draper (34) penned a three-year managerial deal on Thursday, and said he felt privileged to take on the position.
" I feel blessed and lucky enough that the club have wanted me to do the job," he said. "I don’t see it as a stepping stone for future employment.
"It is a great little club that people speak about and I have enjoyed my time here over the last two years as a player.
"You get to form relationships with players and staff and for me it is a good job and one that was far too good to turn down.
"It maybe came a little bit sooner than I would have thought but in football sometimes, opportunities come about and you have to take them with both hands and don’t let go.
"It was too good an opportunity for me to turn down. The club is well-run by good people and we’ve got the nucleus of a good squad so once everything was sorted it was a no brainer for me.
Draper has outlined his initial plans to strengthen City's challenge in the SPFL.
The new boss is wary that his club have finished second bottom in each of their last two seasons, and realises it will take patience to improve their fortunes.
"I just know that for the core we already have in the squad, as long as we recruit well and get the right people in, I am confident that we can climb the table from where we have been in the last couple of years," he said,.
"It’s been a frustrating couple of years in terms of results so we need to get it right moving forward.
"For me it is just about progression and the (length of) contract in terms of myself suggests that there is a plan, a project and we stick to that and move forward.
"As long as we are not making any steps back it is a plan that I want to be a part of."
Draper was keen to bring in an assistant on accepting the job, but said he is searching for the right individual to support him in his first maangerial role.
He will continue to work with first team coach Charlie Charlesworth and goalkeeping coach Stevie Dunn, who helped him steer City away from relegation worries following the departure of previous manager Price in April.
He will also continue to play and emphasised how important his backroom staff will be to him while he tries to combine both roles.
"I want to keep on playing and I will. That is why there were long conversations between myself and the board.
"Who was going to be with me? The role of Charlie and Stevie was pivotal in the last five games (of last season).
"We are potentially looking at other people to bring in, and it is about getting the right people in and looking to move forward and do it right. If it is not quite right then we won’t do it but if someone becomes available then we will get it done.
"I will possibly be looking at this over the coming weeks but it needs to be the right person, the right personality and maybe someone that I know and trust.
"It is a big decision for the club but it was more important to get this done first and then we can move forward from there.
"While I am playing, communication needs to be key and that was hard to do in the last five games so it is something that we need to look at.
"In terms of myself on the training pitch, I will be there coaching and training and I’m sure we have a good team between myself, Charlie and Stevie at the minute and we will see what happens in the near future."
