THERE’S NO JEKYLL & HYDING PLACE:
Accies gaffer Canning has some sympathy for Lennon in manic Jekyll & Hyde world of management
MARTIN CANNING admits it’s tough for managers to keep the lid on when they turn into maniacs in the heat of the battle. The Hamilton boss revealed he feels sympathy for Neil Lennon after the Hibs gaffer got caught up in the whitehot atmosphere of Ibrox. Lennon gestured towards the Gers fans who had been taunting him from the stands and Canning can understand how easy it is to react. The Accies gaffer copped it from his own supporters last season and kept his cool but knows it’s not always easy to keep the head in the face of unrelenting abuse. Canning, who takes on Lennon at Easter Road this weekend, said: “There have been times I have been tempted but I’ve managed to control myself. “I know what I am like on the touchline. It’s not a reflection of me from Monday to Friday. “You see me shouting and bawling like a maniac on a Saturday but if you had a coffee with me on a Monday you’d think it was two completely different people. “The guy you are slaughtering on the weekend turns out to be a nice guy during the week. “Football turns us all in to a complete maniac! “There are two sides to it and it’s fine if it’s done in jest, there’s nothing wrong if it’s banter.” Canning reckons it’s natural for bosses to hit back in the heat of the moment. He said: “It’s human nature. Remember, managers are going to have good days and bad days like everyone else. “It might be they’re having a bad week and not feeling fully at it then someone could say something that hits a nerve. “You’re going to react, just like anyone else would in any walk of life. You might look back and think you shouldn’t have done that but it’s just the emotion getting the better of you.
“It doesn’t matter if you are a football manager or work in an office, if someone says something when you are having a bad moment then you might bite back and do something or say something you regret. That’s life.”
Canning takes his side to the capital on Saturday and the former Hibs defender believes his old side are potentially one of the top three teams in the division.
He said: “They will be aiming for that and when you look at the quality and depth of their squad – plus the size of the support they’ve got – there’s no reason why they shouldn’t be challenging at the top end of the league.
“We’re going to one of the biggest clubs and the atmosphere will be good but we believe we can take something.”
Canning is aware of the expectation level at Easter Road but insisted Lennon’s mentality will help his players cope.
He said: “Neil has good belief in there now and a good mindset in the club, they look to be progressing in the right way.
“We spoke about it this morning that there is such an expectation on you at big clubs to go and perform.
“What brought it up was Martyn Waghorn and Joe Garner both scoring for Ipswich last night.
“They are both good players. We played against them last year but sometimes the bigger the club the greater the pressure it puts on you.
“You need to have players who can go and play at that level and deal with that and Hibs have got that now.
“They have big-name players and have guys who have played at a high level. I’m sure they can cope with the added pressure that playing for a big club brings.”
Accies are out to trip Hibs up after a morale-boosting 3-0 win against Dundee last weekend.
Canning said: “It does have an effect on the week and it has been good but we’ve got to try and build on it now, that’s the important thing.
“We’ve got a difficult game against Hibs who are flying, they’ve got a lot of good players and quality all over the pitch. “But we’ve got to go there believing we can get something from the game.”
Managers are going to have good days and bad days like everyone CANNING