John will be a cloud pleaser for Hamilton

Jul 6 2008

HAMILTON assistant boss John McCormack hasn't been able to wipe the smile from his face since he joined the SPL new boys.

To say he's on cloud nine would be an understatement.

The former Dundee, Morton, Albion Rovers and Queen's Park gaffer is back in the big time with the Lanarkshire side and determined to make up for lost time.

Billy Reid had only known Cowboy for 15 minutes before appointing him his No.2 last week as he prepares Accies for their first assault on top-flight football for two decades.

McCormack, who quit as boss of Third Division outfit Albion Rovers to take up the job at New Douglas Park, admits he's over the moon at finally being given the chance to work full-time again after his spell at Cliftonhill.

It's an opportunity he thought had passed him by as he grafted in the lower leagues and was overlooked by top clubs time and again. Cowboy come down from at the moment.

"I remember whenwe won the title with Queen's Park we took the lads away to Cyprus.

"We had a brilliant time and topping the league was a fantastic achievement with a group of amateur players. Flying back, the pilot announced he had a relative who was a former player with Queen's so he invited me into the cockpit.

"I loved it and joked with him: 'There's that cloud I've been on for the past two weeks.' "That's the way I feel again now - I'm back on top of the world. The players' attitude and togetherness here at Hamilton is first-class and working with the lads every day is a real joy.

"When you're part-time sometimes that buzz isn't there but I've got it back now."

McCormack can't wait to start working with the talented kids at Accies, including Scotland Under-21 star James McArthur, James McCarthy, Tony Stevenson and Brian Easton. He said: "I worked with great kids at Dundee like Gavin Rae.

"So I'm looking forward to coaching these boys.

I haven't seen much of them as we've only been in a few days. I just know they're good runners!

"Seriously, I've heard good things and if they're hungry for success we can achieve it."