Kevin Harper's managerial reign at Lochee United has ended only five days after the Hibs favourite was appointed boss at the Dundee-based club.
Harper was previously in charge at Albion Rovers before leaving the Scottish League Two side in 2020. But he was set for a dugout return when he was made manager of the junior side on Tuesday and even took training on Wednesday evening. It has since emerged that the appointment wasn't approved by the club’s committee, who weren't even aware that an interview with Harper had taken place, so a decision was made to terminate his contract.
The 46-year-old scored in a charity match at Easter Road on Sunday that featured the likes of Leigh Griffiths, Gary O’Connor and Derek Riordan. However Harper went from the momentous reunion with former teammates to learning of his Lochee dismissal as a result of a breakdown in communications behind the scenes. A statement said: “Lochee United can today confirm the departure of Kevin Harper as manager. The decision to hire Kevin last week was made without the ratification of the club’s committee and without the robust recruitment process led by the committee that would normally be required.
“We regret the inconvenience caused to Kevin and would like to place on record our gratitude for his dignified and professional approach throughout.”
And a spokesperson for Lochee told Courier Sport that they were "embarrassed" at the way the process has panned out. They said: “It would be unfair to use the word ‘sacked’ or ‘dismissed’ because that wouldn’t be right to Kevin.
“He absolutely has his reputation in tact and we regret the way this has all played out. We spoke to Kevin and made it clear that we felt terrible. However, it wasn’t a decision we have taken lightly; we knew there would be repercussions. But this needed to be sorted out for the good of the club.
“We need to make sure this club remains self-sufficient and lives within its means. That is something Lochee has always prided itself on. This is an embarrassing situation for the club, which is not something we are used to. Lochee United are hugely respected in the community and we always strive to live up to that.”
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