Sanchez gets Northern Ireland post after Nicholl hitch

JIMMY NICHOLL missed out on the Northern Ireland manager’s job because he could not agree terms, it was revealed yesterday.

Instead, former Wycombe boss Lawrie Sanchez will lead the North into a new era.

It is the second time Dunfermline assistant manager Nicholl has missed out at the final hurdle for financial reasons.

He was due to succeed Billy Bingham in 1994 only for Bryan Hamilton to agree a salary package and take the role. Nicholl was clear favourite to replace Sammy McIlroy this time, but Dunfermline chairman John Yorkston said: “They haven’t been able to agree terms.”

The former Millwall manager is contracted up until the end of next season at East End Park.

Yorkston insists the Pars did not place any barriers in front of Nicholl.

Yorkston said: “We never got down to negotiating the compensation. We told them what was in his contract and that we were prepared to be flexible.

“They offered us a game as part of the payment, which if we had a crowd of 5,000 at £10 a head would make us a profit of between £30,000 and £40,000.”

Nicholl will now remain as Jimmy Calderwood’s assistant at East End Park.

Yorkston said: “We are delighted he is staying. But I feel sorry for Jimmy, because every manager worth his salt wants to manage his country.”

Sanchez will be employed on a full-time basis and intends to bring in former Northern Ireland star Gerry Armstrong as his right-hand man.

He will be introduced to the media in Belfast today. Before joining Wycombe, Sanchez was coach at Wimbledon. He also had a spell in charge of Sligo Rovers

As manager of Wycombe, Sanchez took the Second Division side to the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

As a player, he scored the winner for Wimbledon in the 1988 Wembley victory against Liverpool.

Speaking after his interview on Monday, he felt he had the right credentials even though his tenure at Wycombe came to a depressing end after four-and-a-half years last September.

“In my career as a player and a manager, I have caused one or two upsets in my time. They have been mostly associated with the FA Cup, but it has happened in the league as well,” he said.

Sanchez’s first match in charge will be against Norway in a friendly at Windsor Park on February 18.