Hartley laments the lack of time Scots bosses are now being given
Paul Hartley was sacked by Falkirk last month after less than one year in charge and he now accepts that football management isn’t the same occupation as the one he signed up for seven years ago. The 41-year-old former Celtic, Aberdeen, Hearts and Scotland midfielder has watched colleagues such as Kenny Miller, Alan Stubbs and Barry Smith all lose their jobs less than a month into the league campaign and it has left a bad taste.
But Hartley reckons there is more madness to come and that there will be at least five more casualties in the SPFL Premiership and Championship in this campaign.
Hartley told The Sunday Post: “It’s never nice for any person, in any walk of life, to lose their job, but it is part and parcel of football. However, that doesn’t make it any easier to take. It hurts.
“We all see what has happened in Scottish football in the past few weeks and we will all have our opinions on that. “Some will think one thing and others will think another.
“Overall, what I’m certain of is that everyone would agree that the management game has changed dramatically in the past two or three years – and it’s not for the better.
“The unfortunate thing is that I believe that there will be, probably, five more managers losing their jobs in our top two divisions. It stands to reason that not every manager will be able to deliver that instant success and it will lead to more changes.
“In Scotland, coaches and managers
used to think that they’d be given a decent amount of time to put things in place.
“It wasn’t like down in England where you could easily lose your job after three months in charge. But the Scottish game now appears to be on that level and it’s very unfortunate.
“There is no longevity and the days of being given three or four transfer windows to really put your stamp on things are now gone.
“We also live in age of social media and that allows fans an instant platform to make their feelings known and a lot of it can be unpleasant. Board members, and other people of influence, at football clubs read these forums and it can sway their opinion.
“All in all, I’ve noticed a huge difference in the management and coaching game from when I first started out at Alloa in 2011. It’s not for the better, that’s for sure.
“I’ve even noticed big changes in the past two or three years. We need to be careful or we are going to scare away potential managers and coaches in this country.”
During the next couple of months, Hartley will take time out and reflect.
He has received calls from colleagues and invitations to visit other clubs to take in new ideas, on and off the coaching field.
The former Dundee boss has a good CV and has plenty to offer but he needs to wait to assess any future opportunities.
He said: “I’ve spoken to Craig Brown, Derek Mcinnes, Billy Brown, Alex Smith and a few others, including Celtic assistant manager, Chris Davies. They’ve all told me to stay positive and keep focused. “Billy is now the chairman of the Scottish Managers and Coaches Association and he is extremely disappointed and concerned about the direction our game is taking, in terms of how people in his profession are being treated.
“Alex Smith is now living in Australia and he was good enough to speak to me. “He spoke about how in his first two jobs in management he was at Stenhousemuir for five or six years and then 12 years at Stirling Albion.
“He was given time to build the football clubs and develop players.
“That gave him the standing to then go on and win Cups with St Mirren and Aberdeen.
“It’s always good to speak to these guys and I was also with Gordon Strachan and Neil Lennon the other night.
“They were both very good to me when I was at Celtic and it’s important for managers in my current situation to have people they can talk to and call on.
”We’ll see what the future holds but, at the moment, I’m in no rush to jump back in. I’ll take my time.”