Pompey must avoid a popularity contest as the hunt for their new boss continues.

Following Andy Awford's departure, fans have commented in their droves over who should succeed the Pompey legend and guide the Blues next season.

Harry Redknapp, Ian Holloway, Darren Ferguson, Karl Robinson and Phil Brown have all been linked with the Fratton Park hotseat, along with current caretaker manager Gary Waddock.

But it's important that the club's next appointment is based on football merit rather than who wins the Mr Popular category.

Awford's appointment — much like the addition of Guy Whittingham and, to a lesser extent Richie Barker, were the choice of a majority of supporters who believed a young, keen manager with a zest for the club were the way to go. That didn't work.

So, who for Pompey? Well, as you would've seen on The News' website, Redknapp has all-but ruled himself out of the running (but this is Harry, so he'll probably apply by the morning) and Holloway has refused to comment on the role so soon to Awford's exit — and while he gets himself together following his Millwall axe.

Brown has pledged his commitment to Southend, while Robinson's League One club MK Dons chase promotion to the Championship, rendering him somewhat of an unrealistic target for a League Two club.

But what of Ferguson? Well, he's a young, feisty manager who has ruffled a few feathers in his career so far. He left Peterborough by mutual consent in February and boasts three promotions after finishing as runner-up in League Two in 2008 and runner-up in League One in 2009, as well as winning the League One play-offs in 2011.

He also led Peterborough to win the Football League Trophy in 2014. Not bad for a manager who first took the reins at London Road just eight years ago.

And, of course, there's no forgetting who his dad is.

My main gripe with the Barker situation was that it was a sugar-coated bullet. We had a young, hungry manager at the helm with the backing of the experienced Steve Coppell. Although it was accepted at the time, I'm sure many fans (or maybe just me...) would have rather seen Coppell take the job rather than the two-for-the-price-of-one job Pompey manufactured.

Straight-talking and no-nonsense sum up Ferguson as a young boss — is that what Pompey need? How well he'd fit in to the community club could be questioned but it's time for the club to appoint an experienced head who won't take prisoners.

Mr Nice Guy can only get you so far and when you're trying to get out of the Football League's lowest tier, there's no room for sentimentality and we can't afford to tarnish the good names of any more Blues legends.

Chairman Iain McInnes suggested that he wouldn't want to see any incoming boss with a past link to Pompey which, you would think, rules out any moves for Redknapp, Martin Allen, Richard Money or Justin Edinburgh.

That still leaves a high number of capable managers for the manager's office, including Micky Mellon at Shrewsbury, Paul Tisdale of Exeter (despite failing in a previous application) and Paul Cook at Chesterfield (yes, the football manager and not the drummer of the Sex Pistols).

Gary Johnson — who currently manages Cheltenham until the end of the season — has been another name on many fans' lips, as well as Mark Warburton, who won't be staying on at Brentford after May.

As we've seen in the past couple of years, it is not easy to get into the play-off spots of League Two, let alone win the league. Pompey need a manager who'll ruffle a few feathers and make tough calls to steer the club back into the third tier. Cruel to be kind? Maybe. Pretty football? Maybe not. Results? Needed.

by Dan Brett

@DanBrett90 on Twitter

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