DAVIE HAY: Celtic boss Ronny Deila is top boss for me...

and the four men in the running are all worthy candidates.

But that probably won't stop the result kick-starting conspiracy theories and calls of foul play - that's just the football world we live in.

The fact this prize is voted for by the managers themselves should mean no-one can complain about the result.

Robbie Neilson is many people's idea of the winner, and I reckon they will be right because the job he has done at Hearts in his first season in management has been phenomenal.

My only reservation is that I always think the award should go to someone in the top division, because that is the pinnacle of our game.

But Robbie's work as he helped bring Hearts back from the low point they had hit will appeal to many of his fellow-managers.

The Championship was supposed to be the best league in Scotland this season, certainly the most competitive, but Hearts blew everyone else away.

In truth, that was because the challenge didn't really materialise because no-one else could find any consistency.

Hearts did, from start to finish, with the structure of Robbie, Craig Levein and Ann Budge proving to be successful at every level.

It has got them back to the top division at the first time of asking, and I am confident it will sustain them well into a bright future.

Craig had confidence in Robbie and gave him his big chance ... he has not let him down.

I don't know Ann from Adam - or should that be Eve? But I have been equally impressed by the way she has brought Hearts back to where they should be.

She has also moved to make them a Living Wage paying club, and I applaud that, too.

Like Robbie, Ann has made a lot of people sit up and take notice of her, and there is speculation she might now be invited to take a position among those running the game.

I would not discount that because this lady is not a talker, she is a doer.

John Hughes is another who has many supporters as Manager of the Year. He certainly took on a tough task in replacing Terry Butcher at Inverness.

After a short time to get things the way he wanted, he is now making his mark, particularly in the cup competitions.

More impressive is the fact they are sitting third in the Premiership and heading into Europe, which, on the budget Inverness have, is terrific.

The only nagging worry is, what if Falkirk beat them in the cup final at the end of this month. Would that make Peter Houston a better candidate?

However, what is not in doubt is that John has Inverness playing winning football which is pleasing on the eye.

Derek McInnes already knows he will not be lifting any trophies this season, but that does not prevent him making this shortlist for the campaign he has overseen.

Derek has brought a consistency to the Dons, and this has resulted in them securing a top-two place in the title race for the first time in 21 years.

You could argue that, with the second-highest budget, that's where they should be.

But, as history shows, it has proved beyond Aberdeen for too long.

The question mark against Derek is that, while he has kept the title race alive, his side have lost on all three occasions they have played Celtic this season.

I'd qualify this by admitting I don't believe they deserved to lose all nine points, but the facts are the facts.

This brings us neatly to Ronny Deila's claims to be voted Manager of the Year.

If it was up to me, he would win it. And, if he was still on course to clinch the Treble, I am sure he would get it.

That cup final defeat, controversial though it was, has damaged his prospects of lifting another trophy on Sunday.

But I am confident Ronny is going to make it a League and League Cup double, which is a good haul, given the horrendous start he made to his time as Celtic boss.

He overcame that, and coped with the extreme pressure which was heaped on him.

A number of big players played a major part in turning things around with their input in the dressing room and on the pitch, guys like skipper Scott Brown, Craig Gordon, Stefan Johansen and Virgil van Dijk.

But Ronny was the man in the eye of the storm, and had to stand up to all that was raining down on him in this first few months when, he admits, he was questioning not if he could do this job, but if he wanted to do it.

The experience gained will stand him in good stead, and he will have learned a lot from mistakes made. His team has had good patches, but there remains a need for more consistency.

They are not playing any worse than they did last season, but neither do I think they are playing any better.

I know the unique challenges which come with sitting in the Celtic manager's chair, and I am pleased Ronny has not had to wait as long as I did to start collecting trophies.

Whether he adds the Manager of the Year award, we will soon discover.

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