Time out of hot seat not a problem – Robbo

Caley Thistle manager John Robertson feels Ayr United counterpart Ian McCall has shown a lengthy absence from management is no barrier to success.

McCall ended nearly four years out of work when he took over at Somerset Park in 2015 and has gone on to steer the Honest Men to within three points of the Championship summit in their first season after promotion.

Robertson, who himself had a five-year spell out of management before returning for a second spell with Caley Jags in 2017, insists managers can only thrive if given an opportunity.

He said: “People have this stigma – and it was the same with myself when I first came back – where they think once you’re out of management, you’re suddenly a bad manager.

“Ian has previously managed at the highest level and done well in the Premiership.

“Just because you’re out of the game for a year or two, or aren’t given the opportunity, it doesn’t mean you’re bad at your job.”

Robertson insists managers with a blemish on their CV should not be discounted from the running for jobs, adding: “As managers, we know what we sign up for. I suppose we’re like cars. If we’re working, everyone loves us. But the moment you break down or are not running so well, you get traded in for a younger model.

“There is not a manager out there, unless you’re a top manager in England, who doesn’t have some kind of baggage or failure behind them.

“As a manager, from my personal experience, you do learn more about the game and more about yourself when things aren’t going well.” Ross County co-manager Steven Ferguson believes the Staggies must thwart Queen of the South’s attacking threat if they are to make their first breakthrough against the Doonhamers this season.

Queens are the only side County have failed to defeat in the Championship so far this term, with a 0-0 stalemate between the sides at Palmerston in September followed by a