Trouble with script object creation and function calling

Okay, so to me the following two snippets are identical but in practice they are not.

function GameConnection::onClientEnterGame(%this)
{
   [b]...[/b]

   // Start the AIManager
   new ScriptObject(AIManager) {
      totalAIPlayers = 0;
      firstThought = true;
   };

   MissionCleanup.add(AIManager);
   AIManager.think();
}

and...

function GameConnection::onClientEnterGame(%this)
{
   [b]...[/b]

   // Start the AIManager
   AIManager::create();
   AIManager.think();
}

function AIManager::create()
{
   new ScriptObject(AIManager) {
      totalAIPlayers = 0;
      firstThought = true;
   };

   MissionCleanup.add(AIManager);
}

AIManager.think() is the stock version.

Using the second script when AIManager.think() calls %this.schedule I get:
server/scripts/aiManager.cs (104): Unknown command schedule.
Object AIManager(1513) AIManager -> ScriptObject -> SimObject


I'm not even sure where to begin with this. Is it related to the known 'new object' bugs (cannot create new objects within a new block)? Or is it a scoping issue (since AIManager is being created within a static method of AIManager instead of inside the GameConnection)?

This even works:

function GameConnection::onClientEnterGame(%this)
{
   [b]...[/b]

   // Start the AIManager
   AIManager_create();
   AIManager.think();
}

function AIManager_create()
{
   new ScriptObject(AIManager) {
      totalAIPlayers = 0;
      firstThought = true;
   };

   MissionCleanup.add(AIManager);
}

It has to be a scoping issue right?