I ran away from the game I loved but soon realised I needed it again.. I wanted back for rush of adrenalin

SCOTTISH football had been Danny Lennon's home for four decades.

- BY FRASER WILSON

But for the first time, as he hit his mid-50s, he felt like he had to run and leave it all behind.

Quite how far hed go to get away from the noise, stress, frustration and rejection as he tried to get back in the management game might have surprised even Lennon himself.

Yet only a few months after trekking SIX THOUSAND miles to set up a new life with his family in idyllic Malaysia that realisation hammered home for the Raith Rovers legend and St Mirren Hall of Famer.

That what he was running away from was exactly the thing that he needed the most.

Lennon is finally back in the dugout with Airdrieonians after three years of applying, interviewing and ultimately missing out since his exit from Clyde.

His CV stacks up.

He has led all four clubs he’s managed permanently - Cowdenbeath, St Mirren, Alloa and the Bully Wee - to success, most notably the Buddies’ sensational League Cup triumph in 2013.

That's why repeatedly missing out on jobs he knew he was well qualified for stung.

And constantly answering the same kind of questions from well-meaning pals got tiring.

To the point he fled and accepted an academy coaching job and a new life in the stunning Malaysian seaside surrounds of Penang Island.

It was an idyllic lifestyle, waking up every morning on the coast of the Andaman Sea.

It was as far removed as he could imagine from the cold reality of the game that had been Lennon’ career as player and boss in less glamorous resorts of Leith, Kirkcaldy, Maryhill, Ayr, Cowdenbeath and Paisley.

But as much as he loved the culture and scenery in Penang, the 56-year-old still craved the hustle and bustle of what he knew best.