Hartley knows how unsettling a managerial circus can be... and hopes his Dens men are able to take full advantage
BEING part of what he calls the sideshow, at the climax of another week of dramas at Rangers, is a role Paul Hartley and Dundee have been pleased to play. For a few too many occasions, being thrust into the thick of the circus as a player make Hartley grateful that it is today’s rivals who are dealing with troubles of a club in managerial limbo.
Hartley can offer an insight into issues potentially besetting the Ibrox dressing room. Caretaker coaches and mid-season disruption became familiar fixtures for he and his Hearts teammates to confront during his spell at Tynecastle. The Rangers players travelling to Tayside have found themselves in the eye of a storm that frequently blew through Gorgie.
Lee Wallace and Kenny Miller may be acquainted with turmoil two years on from Ally McCoist resigning, Kenny McDowall taking over then Stuart McCall being appointed interim manager.
For much of the support cast, however, this is all new. And it is likely to require some veteran guidance for them to be steered through a spell where there remains plenty at stake for Rangers.
Under pressure to scrap for second place and Scottish Cup progression, the Ibrox club are under the caretaker stewardship of head development squad coach Graeme Murty ‘for the foreseeable future’.
The indeterminate state is no friend of any footballer, according to Hartley, and one the Rangers players must overcome if they are to achieve those aims in the wake of Mark Warburton’s rancorous departure.
‘It does become a bit of a burden at times,’ said Hartley. ‘Every day, the focus seems constant and total — there’s scrutiny over the team.
‘That will probably continue until they appoint the new manager. Until then, that’s all the talk. That’s all that you hear. It’s all that everybody wants to talk about and ask questions about.
‘After games it’s never to do with what’s just happened. It’s all about off the pitch and how things have been different with a caretaker coach or manager. It’s all the other stuff away from the pitch. I think it’s something you just don’t really want to deal with.
‘At the bigger clubs, when you’re at the top end, it’s more intense. I’ve had that at Hearts with the owner and the changes of manager.
‘As a player, you always want stability and to know who your manager is going to be. You want someone to come in and you know this is going to be your manager and this is how you’re going to prepare every day.
‘So you need strong characters and people who are going to stand up.
‘I still think, as a player,
you’ve got your duty and responsibility to be a professional. You get paid well. I’m sure Rangers have a squad that will act professionally and do the job to the best of their ability.’
Hartley was on his fifth appointment in 12 months at Hearts when, infamously, Eduard Malofeyev’s first media conference was hijacked by the players.
As one of the ‘Riccarton Three’ (below) standing alongside Steven Pressley and Craig Gordon against Vladimir Romanov’s regime, that statement in October 2006 was followed by his sale three months later to Celtic.
Now, as a manager, he is tasked with figuring out what impact the sudden exit of Warburton will have on the Rangers team. One of the criticisms of Warburton was his commitment to his tactics, ensuring there was never any traps set for his opponent in the dugout.
That didn’t make it any less of a head-scratcher when it came to stopping a Rangers team thrashing Dundee 4-0 in a Scottish Cup quarter-final last March.
The man who struck early that afternoon, Harry Forrester, carried on his work against Dundee this term by scoring in both victories — a 2-1 win at Dens and 1-0 triumph in Glasgow.
‘He seems to enjoy playing against us,’ said Hartley. ‘But we have to remain focused on what we’re doing. We are six games unbeaten here and we need to make sure this is a difficult venue for Rangers.
‘They might change it up. They’ve been 4-3-3 for the last two years, they pass the ball, they build from the back. Does that change? We have to try to outthink that.
‘You always knew the system that you’d play against. That was the style that Mark wanted to play.
‘We knew how they’d play in terms of how they’d build from the back, they’d never really go direct. But they were always a difficult to play against and we found that out in the three games.’
As Rangers figure out their next move in management, Hartley would not be surprised to see them turn to his former Hibernian and Scotland boss Alex McLeish.
‘His record at Rangers speaks for itself,’ said Hartley. ‘He knows the scene — knows the expectations at the club.
‘I’d say man management is his strongest point. He is very good with players and knowing how they feel.
‘If you are looking for someone to come and make an impact, then Alex would be ideal.’