Robertson calls for Tynecastle investigation

FORMER Hearts head coach John Robertson has called for an investigation into the Tynecastle managerial turmoil by the Scottish Manager and Coaches Association.

Robertson left the Edinburgh club in May 2005 after refusing to accept a lesser position under a new manager being brought in by majority shareholder Vladimir Romanov.

George Burley was appointed in the summer before suddenly leaving with Hearts at the top of the league in October.

Graham Rix followed but, despite taking the team to the Tennent's Scottish Cup semi-finals and maintaining their chase for a Champions League spot, was sacked last week, along with director of football Jim Duffy.

The appointment of Valdas Ivanauskas as interim manager means Hearts will have had five different managers in five successive derbies against Hibs in the semi-final next weekend.

Robertson believes the spate of managers at Hearts must be investigated.

"I have told Hearts fans before that, as much as they are delighted with the way the team is going, you have to treat people properly," said Robertson, now the manager of Livingston. "Again, it has been shown that good guys like Graham Rix and Jim Duffy are not being treated properly. I think it is time our association [managers and coaches] stepped in and had a look.

"When you see coaches and directors of football being treated like that, maybe they should step in to help out because it is a hard enough job as it is without working, sometimes, under really impossible conditions. I would like to think somebody will be questioned somewhere along the line because that is three coaches in a year - four if you include Valdas.

"It may happen more often abroad but we are not used to that.

"Somebody was saying the other day that a normal manager's reign has gone from just over three years to 18 months.

"If you look at the situation Jim and Graham found themselves in, I think they had a lucky escape." Romanov, who ended up sitting adjacent to Robertson in the directors box at Almondvale yesterday, also came under fire from Duffy yesterday.

In his newspaper column, Duffy described Romanov's opinions on coaching as "insulting".

Duffy wrote: "I couldn't stomach the Romanovs questioning tactics. What do they know about tactics? Do they even know what constitutes tactics?

"Vladimir Romanov said he couldn't be a frustrated coach because to be a coach you need 20 years' experience in the job. Between us, Graham and I have much more than that and it is insulting to be lectured on our area of expertise by businessmen who have absolutely no knowledge of football mechanics."

Duffy said he was "angry, absolutely furious" about last week's events, and predicted that the man who replaces Rix at Hearts does not stand a chance of lasting as long as a year at Hearts.

"Although the Hearts director of football post might interest some high-profile figures, I don't see any top-class manager being interested in a head coach position that makes such demands of its occupiers. And I guarantee that whoever does fill the post in the summer, won't still be in it 12 months on."

Taken from the Scotsman