NOW is not the right time to leave Caley Thistle for assistant manager Russell Latapy, in spite of an opening at Championship side Raith Rovers.
Latapy has made no secret of his desire to be a manager one day and spoke to Alloa Athletic about their recent opening, which was filled by former St Mirren boss Danny Lennon.
Experience gained as manager of his national side, Trinidad and Tobago, has Latapy hankering for the chance to be his own man but that will not be at Stark’s Park.
“Once the right club comes then it’s something I would definitely think about. The Raith Rovers situation is a surprise to me. I didn’t know anything about it until it was in the papers, so I haven’t given it any thought,” he said. “I am very happy at Caley Thistle and that’s all I’m concentrating on.”
His manager, John Hughes, has previously said he would not stand in Latapy’s way when the right time came to leave the Highland Capital club. It was Hughes who gave the 46-year-old his first coaching opportunity at Falkirk, in a dual role combined with his duties as a player.
When former Ross County under-20s coach Barry Smith resigned from his post as Alloa manager in March, the chance came for Latapy to discuss a step up in job titles. However, things just did not click into place.
“I spoke to the chairman of Alloa and had a really good conversation, but I thought the time wasn’t right,” he said. “It’s just waiting for the right opportunity. Being in the game for some time, you get a feeling for these things, but I’m not in a position to make those decisions, so I’m just focused on Caley Thistle and Saturday’s game.”
A win on Saturday at Dens Park, against a Dundee side who have lost their last four games, will seal Caley Thistle’s maiden trip into Europe and allow preparations to begin in earnest for the Scottish Cup final at the end of the month.
Inverness’ preparations were disrupted somewhat by a mid-week fixture against Dundee’s rivals United, although a morale-boosting 2-1 win, which snapped a nine-game streak without a win, coupled with a clean bill of health means the squad is in good shape.
Richie Foran and Dean Brill continue to be the only injury absentees for the Caley Jags, while David Raven is free from suspension and will need to dislodge Danny Devine from the starting line-up.
With all that is in front of Caley Thistle in terms of achievements, you would expect the place to be buzzing. But according to Latapy, it has been like that for a long time.
“The boys have done extremely well this season and made us proud as coaches. They’ve done themselves and the fans proud and there has been a buzz around the place,” he added.