STEVE McClaren, Sam Allardyce, Patrick Vieira, Sean Dyche, Martin Jol... the list of names being linked with the managerial vacancies at Sunderland AFC and Newcastle United grows longer and less thrilling by the day.

Yet again the region’s two Premier League clubs are spending their summer struggling to find new gaffers instead of planning for next season’s battles against relegation.

Recruiting the right boss remains one of the most important challenges that faces any business.

The North East Lep knows that only too well. It is a year since highly regarded Edward Twiddy quit his role at the body responsible for bringing jobs and investment to the north of our region and agreed to help launch digital bank Atom. Like the Magpies and Mackems following the loss of Alan Pardew and Dick Advocaat respectively, the Lep’s subsequent search for a permanent successor dragged on for longer than anyone would have liked.

The appointment of Bob Paton as interim chief executive could, however, prove to be a masterstroke.

It might even turn in to a long term arrangement. These are early days - Mr Paton did his first press interviews at the end of last week – but the signs are that the head of Accenture’s North-East operation relishes the task of making sure Durham, Sunderland, Newcastle and Northumberland are at the heart of the government’s Northern Powerhouse idea.

If the criteria for the Lep vacancy had been ‘find a person with passion for the North-East’ then Ashington-born Mr Paton fits the bill perfectly. He clearly understands what makes the region tick and already has a good grasp of its strengths and shortcomings.

I am not someone who believes that the leaders of the region’s major institutions should always be locals. Niall Quinn and Kevin Keegan showed that adopted sons of the North-East can enjoy huge success. Stephen Catchpole, the Londoner who heads-up Tees Valley Unlimited, has similarly understood what the region needs and proven to be a very skilled operator in bringing jobs and investment to the area he now calls home.

But it is always good to see a local lad who’s done good.

“The North-East is the best region in the country and I have the best job in the North-East,” Mr Paton told me last week.

If Sunderland or Newcastle can find someone with half of his enthusiasm, love for our region and will to win, then they will have done very well indeed.

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