BRENDAN Flood said he wanted a young up-and-coming manager, preferably from the north.

Maybe Perth, in the central belt of Scotland, was further north than everyone anticipated, but there's no denying Owen Coyle fits all the credentials demanded by the Clarets operations director.

Coyle is quite rightly regarded as one of the hottest young managerial prospects in Scotland, and has even being hailed as the new "Sir Alex Ferguson".

It is believed he was recommended to Flood and the Clarets board by Bolton chairman Phil Gartside, who gave him a ringing endorsement.

And it is understood current Scotland manager Alex McLeish has also weighed in with his own backing for the 41-year-old with a message of support delivered personally to Flood.

Coyle's short spell in charge of First Division side St Johnstone has already seen the Perth outfit defeat Glasgow giants Rangers for the first time in 35 years to reach the semi-final of the CIS Cup last season.

And they pushed Celtic close in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup five months later.

And, justifiably so, he has been named manager-of-the-month on two separate occasions.

But fighting against the big boys is something he became accustomed to from an early age, having previously admitted being "battered" by his elder brothers Tommy and Joe.

But, growing up in the tough Gorbals area of Glasgow, he is a man who can definitely take the hard knocks.

This weekend, he was due to lead his side out in the final of the League Challenge Cup against Dunfermline, but instead it appears as though he will be reflecting on his first game in charge of Burnley against Stoke on Saturday.

Coyle was a prolific goalscorer north of the border, starting his career with Dumbarton in 1985, before moving on to Clydebank, and then, in March 1990, a £175,000 transfer saw him signed up by the now defunct Airdrieonians, where he finished as the Scottish League's top scorer for 1989/90.

It was at Airdrie that Coyle enjoyed arguably the most successful stints of his career Over the next two seasons his goals helped Airdrie to promotion, a Scottish Cup final and European football.

Coyle's talents were soon recognised by clubs in England, and Bolton paid £250,000 for his signature in the summer of 1993.

He gained promotion with the Trotters and enjoyed a short stint in the Premiership. He played a key role during Bolton's giant-killing FA Cup run in 1993/94 and, although he wasn't a regular, he was a reliable option up front and combined well with Mixu Paatelanan and fellow Scot John McGinley.

However, he returned to his native Scotland to join Dundee United for £400,000 in October 1995.

Becoming very much a journeyman professional, Coyle went on to play for Motherwell, Dunfermline Athletic, Ross County and Airdrie, before becoming co-player-manager alongside John Hughes at Falkirk.

After leaving this post he returned to Dundee United as a player/coach. But he was soon loaned out to Airdrie United, before taking the plunge with the Saints in April 2005.

Despite being born in Renfrewshire, in Scotland, Coyle chose to play his international football for the Republic of Ireland, earning one international cap, against Holland in a friendly in Tilburg in April 1994.

Ask anyone in the Scottish game and they speak highly of Coyle, who is perceived as one of the country's nice guys of football, an intelligent and popular figure.

But that shouldn't be mistaken for any weakness in his character, with old friend and Partick Thistle manager Ian McCall once referring to him as "one of the worst losers" he had ever come across.

And Coyle himself has been quoted as saying: "I really feel you should be trying to win every match you play. I was always frustrated as a player when we went to stadiums where we were expected to get beat, and the manager for whatever reason would decide that we would sit in and try to play for 0-0.

"I genuinely believe that when you go into any game you've got an obligation to try and win it."

With Motherwell and Dunfermline reported to be targeting Coyle as their next boss towards the end of last season, St Johnstone moved quickly to secure his services and he signed a one-year extension to his contract at McDiarmid Park in July 2007, tying him to the club until the end of the 2009/10 campaign.

However, the lure of England and the Championship looks to have proved too strong.