County's search for a successor to Gary Ablett has been dealt a blow following the news that the apparent favourite for the job has allegedly turned down the chance to return to Edgeley Park. Fans and the new owners of the club had been pinning their hopes on Jim Gannon returning back to the club he managed for three and a half years.
Gannon had been touted as being one of the favourites for the job although the 2015 Consortium must now look elsewhere as Jim has rejected the opportunity to take on the daunting job of trying to rebuild the club from scratch following our spell in administration. The clubs new owners had been looking to appoint a new manager by the weekend although that deadline may be extended following Jim's decision not to accept their offer of a job.
Gannon is currently out of work after leaving Peterborough in March following a two-month stint at London Road. Since being fired by administrators Leonard Curtis in June 2009 as part of a cost cutting exercise, Gannon managed Motherwell in the Scottish Premier League for six months before his more recent spell at Peterborough United.
Jim enjoyed relative success at Motherwell before parting company on 28th December 2009 due to a supposed lack of commitment although his time at Peterborough was pretty much ill fated from the start, as the Posh were as good as relegated from the Championship before he took over following the dismissal of Mark Cooper. Gannon parted company with the London Road outfit after again failing to commit his long-term future to the job.
Internet sources suggest that Gannon's former assistant Peter Ward is a front runner for the position along with former Shrewsbury Town manager Paul Simpson. Former New Mills manager Tony Hancock and Northwich manager Andy Preece have also been linked with the vacant managers job at County.