Montrose chairman Derek Sim is “open minded” about the club’s next manager.
Sim, who has already received two applications to replace Stuart Garden, believes that by parting company with Garden at this stage of the season the Links Park club has given itself plenty of time to make the right appointment.
Sim told Courier Sport: “We’re looking for either a manager who has been in the game a long time or a young player/manager with the right coaching qualifications who is looking to make a name for himself. We’re very open minded.
“Some people think that we’ll have a name in the back of our minds, but in this instance that is definitely not the case.
“We’ve got a bit of breathing space to wait and see who applies before we make an appointment in time to let the new manager prepare for next season.”
Reflecting on Garden’s two years in charge, Sim said: “It’s always a very difficult decision to take to change manager, but it wasn’t taken lightly.
“Last year we just missed out on the play-offs after a poor run in the last five games and it’s been disappointing to miss out again this season.
“Our aim is to get into them next season or get promoted automatically and hopefully the new manager can achieve that.”
Meanwhile, Garden defended his record as Montrose manager.
He said: “Results this season have been viewed as an underperformance by the board, but I do not see it that say.
“We reached our highest points total in four seasons last year and could beat that this year on the same budget, so I am not sure how that is under-performing.
“Losing at Peterhead on Saturday is no disgrace as they will win the league. It was a must-win game for us in terms of looking to stay in the promotion hunt.
“When we went 1-0 down with half an hour to go we had to go for it and we paid the price.
Garden continued: “We lost Jamie Winter early into the season when he decided to retire from the senior game, Lloyd Young dropped out of things in the autumn due to work commitments and then Stephen McNally did the same.”
He added: “We brought in Gareth Rodger from St Johnstone, and he is a terrific young talent. However, after five games he was injured and had to go back to Perth for an operation.
“Luke Johnston came in from Dundee United to replace him, and he hardly kicked a ball before being injured, and Callum Ferguson from Inverness Caley is the same.
“If we had most of these guys available throughout the season we would have put in a stronger push,” he said.
“We have been unfortunate, but I have been in football long enough to know that it is a results driven business.
“It is disappointing to leave Montrose in this way, but I would thank them for the opportunity and I will always say they are a good club.”
Garden is in no mood to take a break from the game, saying, “I would like to get back in as soon as possible.
“I have been out of football before and time drags by there is nothing worse than going shopping with the wife on a Saturday afternoon.”