MANAGER of the month one minute,  and the next you’re sacked.

This was the story of Paul Hartley’s season at Dundee. It didn’t seem fair or right then and it doesn’t now given what he did for that club. But that is modern football. One wobble, panic races through the boardroom and there is only one man who is to blame.

True, Dundee were going through a bad patch when Hartley was given his jotters but he was and is a fine football man who really should have been given a chance to get things right.

Once out of a job, Hartley found out who his friends were. Not long after the sacking, he received an invitation to Lennoxtown, a place he used to train, from Brendan Rodgers and it was this sort of backing which kept him going through a tricky time.

“It was brilliant, a great experience just to see how Brendan works as a manager and listen to his own experiences of losing his job,” said Hartley. 

“I spent the whole day up there and it was incredible.

“Brendan and Derek McInnes were the first people to contact me when I left Dundee and that shows the respect they have for other managers.

“Brendan is just one of those guys you can pick the phone up and call. He’s got time for everyone – not just other managers but players and the media. You can sense that in the atmosphere at the training ground.

“Just looking at the changes he’s already made to the place and the changes he’s going to make lets you know that he’s a real class act. 

“He told me to come up any time I wanted so I did and I picked his brains about absolutely everything – how he manages, what he does, the things he’s good at.

“What was particularly interesting for me was when he spoke about being sacked after only 20 games at Reading, what he did when that happened and how he bounced back from it. I think it will be helpful for me when I go into my next job”

Hartley is keen to get back into football but will pick carefully his next move.

“I do want to get back into management, but I need to pick the right club,” he said. 

“I have seen other managers jump into things and it hasn’t been the right fit for him. The next job is important to me and I’m looking forward to the next challenge.

“I am open minded. I look forward to what comes up but there are a lot of managers out of a job, so we will wait and see.”

Paul Hartley was speaking at a William Hill media event. William Hill is the proud sponsor of the Scottish Cup.