Doncaster Rovers: We’ll wait and see if Saunders applies – Ryan

Saunders was sacked by the Molineux outfit yesterday, paying the price for the club’s calamitous drop into League One which saw them become the first side to suffer back-to-back relegations from the top flight since Swindon Town in 1995.

Following news of his axing, bookmakers were quick to install the Welshman as second favourite behind Paul Dickov for the vacant Rovers post.

Dickov is also rumoured to be a possible target for Rovers’ South Yorkshire rivals Sheffield United, should they elect not to hand interim manager Chris Morgan a long-term deal, while Saunders – who spent a playing spell with the Blades in the late Nineties –could also come into contention at Bramall Lane.

Despite enduring a calamitous tenure with Wolves, which saw him oversee just five victories in his 20 matches in charge after taking over on January 7 and needing 10 matches to secure his first win, Saunders’s reputation remains intact with Rovers fans after he laid the groundwork for their recent League One title success.

Ryan and newly-appointed director of football Brian Flynn praised Saunders’s role in helping Rovers return to the Championship at the first time of asking immediately after the dramatic final-day victory at Brentford on April 27.

Should he apply for the post he held for just over 15 months after replacing Sean O’Driscoll in September 2011, he is bound to be a serious contender.

On the prospect of Saunders potentially returning to the club for a second spell, Ryan told the Yorkshire Post: “You never know. Let’s see if he applies.

“We are not ruling anything out at the moment.

“He did a great job for us and we have a lot to be thankful to Dean Saunders for because he got the squad together which won us the league. He also brought Brian Flynn in, by the way (as chief scout in August 2012).”

Asked if he was shocked at Wolves’ decision to sack 48-year-old Saunders – the Midlands club are contemplating life in the third tier for the first time since 1989 – Ryan added: “I am (surprised) really because if ever there was a manager to get Wolves out of League One, it’s Dean Saunders.”

While the name of Saunders, appointed as Rovers manager just under two years ago following the decision to dismiss O’Driscoll, has leapfrogged a number of candidates at the top of the betting to take over at the Keepmoat, Dickov remains a short-priced favourite and odds-on with one leading bookmaker.

The 40-year-old is understood to have been a regular at Rovers’ matches since his Latics exit in February and Ryan confirmed the ex-Oldham chief, someone he knows well, is a candidate.

But the Keepmoat supremo says that talk of a done deal regarding Dickov is off the mark.

He added: “He (Dickov) is a candidate, along with a lot of others.

“But I am surprised he is odds-on as people should know from past experience that we normally pull a rabbit out of the hat and our manager is a name no one has ever heard off.

“I am aware of a lot of managers, but at this stage I am not in a position to make any judgment calls.

“Believe me, myself and my two other major shareholders Terry Bramall and Dick Watson have got a good track record of picking managers and I am sure we will pick another good one.”

Ryan said the club are busy drawing up a shortlist of candidates this week, with Inverness Caledonian manager Terry Butcher, who turned down an approach to become Barnsley boss in January, another name expected to come under consideration by the Rovers’ board.

Following interviews next week, the club are hoping to make a swift decision, Ryan confirmed.

He said: “We will have our shortlist by Monday and the interviews will start later that week and then hopefully, there will be an appointment.

“It’s a case of the sooner the better, really. But it depends who the guy is going to be and if he is in or out of work.

“We have already had some high-quality applicants and we will sift them down and then we will interview the best candidates and make our choice.”

Former Millwall manager Kenny Jackett, who yesterday resigned after five-and-a-half years in charge at the New Den, is being strongly tipped to replace Saunders, with some reports in the Midlands suggesting he has been offered the job.

The 51-year-old’s departure from the Lions was announced little more than an hour after Saunders’s sacking yesterday morning. Saunders’s assistant Brian Carey – his No 2 at Rovers – was also shown the door.

Saunders’s exit was Wolves’ fourth managerial change since parting company with Mick McCarthy 15 months ago.

Former Leeds United and Sheffield United boss Neil Warnock and current Hull City chief Steve Bruce both spoke with Wolves chairman Steve Morgan and chief executive Jez Moxey following McCarthy’s dismissal, with Bruce interviewed twice.

But after speaking to a number of candidates about the position, Wolves promoted Leeds-born Terry Connor to manager until the end of the 2011-12 season, with Stale Solbakken and Saunders having taken charge since.