Ray’s ears are ringing – but he can’t wait to start answering the call at Cappielow
His phone hasn’t stopped ringing all week.
But new Morton boss Ray McKinnon insists he wouldn’t have it any other way.
McKinnon took charge of the Ton on Wednesday, seven months after his departure from Dundee United.
He has since been inundated with calls from agents, offering their players’ services for the season ahead.
The sudden demands on his time have made relaxation impossible.
But Morton’s new gaffer is loving life back at the sharp end of football – and he’s already desperate for pre-season training to start.
“The phone has been going constantly – I kid you not,” he said. “It has been ridiculous!
“Thursday night into Friday, it was constant, I was answering calls every five minutes.
“It’s amazing how that switch flips as soon as you get back into work.
“But it feels good. I’m glad to be back.
“I’m really energised and motivated.”
McKinnon is based in his
home city of Dundee, where he made his breakthrough as a player under Jim McLean at Dundee United going on to play for Nottingham Forest and Aberdeen, before returning to United.
McLean demanded his players live within a small radius of Tannadice.
McKinnon says he will apply that same “stay local” policy to himself as Morton manager.
But he recognises that modern players don’t necessarily have the same ability to uproot their lives.
“I’m getting a flat down in the Greenock area,” he said.
“I’m going to show the commitment to Morton that they’ve shown to me.
“In an ideal world, you’d like everybody living in the area.
“But some of the players’ wives will have better paid jobs than they do, and more settled careers, and that’s the determining factor in lots of cases.
“So it’s difficult. That balance has to be struck and we have to be flexible.
“It’s different for me – I’ll be there because, as I said, it’s a 24/7 job, and that’s the commitment I need to make.”
As it stands, those long hours are very much required.
McKinnon’s side play their first pre-season game early next month.
Between now and then, he has an entire team to build and only has four signed players on the books right now.
But he is relishing the challenge ahead – and is ready to field even more phone calls.