Gus MacPherson has no desire to return to a dugout.
Dealing with audits and agents rather than players and points is the day job for St Johnstone’s head of football operations these days.
And coaching a team holds no appeal anymore.
“Being a manager is not something I miss,” said MacPherson, who was in charge at St Mirren for seven years, then had shorter spells with Queen of the South, Queen’s Park and Morton.
“We had a meeting upstairs the other day and we were looking out over the training pitch.
“Somebody said: ‘Do you not miss that?’ I was like ‘no, it couldn’t be further from the truth’.
“You have your time and you have your shelf life. You move on.
“I don’t look back. I’ve got a positive mindset about what my role is here.
“This is a good, good club and I don’t think there are many people who speak badly about it within the game.”
‘Everybody has an opinion’
MacPherson believes the role of an SPFL head coach has never been tougher than it is in the present day.
“It’s even harder now to get a period of time to put your mark on a club as a manager,” he said.
“That’s because of the social media and the intrusion that comes from it. Everybody has an opinion.
“Back in the day, and it wasn’t that long ago, you could get on with it. You would have two or three windows to put your mark on a team.
“You don’t get that now. It’s instant. You need to get results to buy yourself that time, to put your mark on it.
“It’s precarious how clubs operate.”
Outlining his duties at McDiarmid Park, MacPherson said: “A lot is administration and a lot is bringing everyone together, whether that be academy, medical, sport science side and the footballing department.
“You’re in the middle of everything. Recruitment is done by the football department.
“They’ve then got to bring them ‘up the stairs’ to get a deal done and that’s where I find myself.
“I’m a sounding board for Callum (Davidson) and the football guys if they need me – players I’ve seen over recent years.
“You’re there for as much as they want to use you, it’s as simple as that.
“Every day I am learning, no two days are the same. It’s challenging at times but I am enjoying it.”
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