Survived but is refusing to count his chickens

defender, has also twice stood in as caretaker manager.

And the respected United No. 2 reckons the key to his survival has been an ability to roll with the punches.

“I didn’t envisage it this way,” Ellis admits.

“But football always surprises you.

“You’ve got to be adaptable and ready to step into different situations.

“It’s nice to know that you’re valued.

“Every time there’s a change at the top, you’ve got to prove yourself again.

“You’ve got to work hard, and you’ve got to earn the new person’s trust.

“That’s difficult, and you have to make sure you’re ready for that challenge. But I was always confident that I could adapt to any situation.

“I’m honestly delighted to be part of the club because I think there are good times ahead.” United’s recent form would suggest as much.

Since Robbie Neilson came in, United have won five times in six matches to put themselves right in the promotion mix in the Championship.

But United haven’t just been in turmoil on the park in recent years.

The boardroom is also a muchchanged place since the Tangerines’ relegation in 2016.

Ellis has been one of few publicfacing constants at the club. But he knows that even as results improve under Neilson, the nature of his job means he is far from bulletproof.

“In coaching, the minute you feel comfortable, you get your backside bitten,” Ellis says.

“That’s why you’ve always got to be ready to adapt, ready to change – at the last minute sometimes.

“You’ve always got to have tricks up your sleeve to make sure that things are smooth.

“I think that’s what managers look for in their coaching staff – adaptability, and also enjoying challenges.

“It’s not for people with a fixed mind-set because it’s not about seeing things as major problems.

“It’s about seeing little hurdles and looking for ways to get round them.”

One such hurdle has been United’s failure to win promotion back to the Premiership. Their new manager knows that is his task. In Ellis, Neilson has an assistant for whom the experience of play-off heartbreak in each of the last two seasons is a driving factor.

He said: “While I’ve really enjoyed my time at the club, not achieving promotion is a real bugbear of mine.

“When I arrived, we wanted promotion in that first season – but here we are, still in the Championship.

“We respect the reasons why we’re still here and we respect the challenge that we’ve got to get out of the Championship.

“But that gives us a steeliness to get the promotion that we really, really crave.”