Lee Johnson spent time shadowing the SAS in a bid to harden his character for the rigours of football management.
There were lessons learned from those commandos which have proven invaluable particularly on weeks like this as the Hibs boss prepares for another ‘who dares wins’ Edinburgh derby. Not that he will be wanting to call on them should the 90 minutes go his side's way.
Former team mate turned footballing arch enemy Robbie Neilson getting the bullet at Hearts in the week leading up to the latest Auld Reekie shoot-out is a sharp reminder that modern day football managers are never far from the firing line. Johnson reckons the pressure means dealing with defeats has an element of post traumatic stress. That’s where the special services insight came in handy. The 41-year-old is preparing to go into the trenches with his troops once again at Easter Road on Saturday knowing a run of four straight top flight defeats needs to end against their capital rivals.
And he said: “I’ve worked with the SAS in the past. A bad loss almost becomes like a post-traumatic stress that you need to go through.
“It’s not life or death, obviously, like it would be in the military, but you feel it to that level.
“It is the same chemical reaction. You just come out of it quicker.
“So a lot of my work in the past was about getting through that process quicker because you almost need to go into a dark place to find out and reinvent yourself in a week moving forward. And feel what everyone else is feeling.
“I think that is one of the things that the great managers can do really well.
“They manage to take a breath, they step out every week and do their best, but are also humble enough to take it for everyone else and let them flourish.”
It’s no surprise to hear Johnson doesn’t believe in the short-termism of football management these days. Five Premiership clubs have now sacked managers this season - and two of those twice.
He said: “Managers need time; there are bad runs, swings of confidence. What’s enough - 100 games? 150 games? - to really judge a tenure, depending on circumstances and expectation and financial outlay and clarity from the board to the fans.
“It’s something I’m really conscious of here. From board to staff to press I want to make sure we have that consistent narrative all the way through.
“We’re a very open and honest club and I’ve been at clubs that aren’t like that, but Hibs is happy to be honest right from the top down with the supporters. All of us have a bit of a responsibility to let the fans in on as much as we can here.”
Johnson had a head start in preparing for the demands of management thanks to years of growing up watching his dad Gary boss Cambridge, Yeovil, Bristol City, Peterborough and Northampton to name just a few.
He says Johnson senior, now in charge at Torquay United, remains his “backstop” as he looks to make a success of his time in Leith. The Englishman has a long-term vision for Hibs. He just hopes he gets the chance to see it through.
He said: “Very early on in my dad’s career, I think his contract was £50 a week as commercial manager at Cambridge United. And reserve team manager as well. So we were not a family blessed with sort of a big history of finances.
“When he then got the manager’s job at Cambridge and he used to come back after a loss, you felt it in the family because you didn’t know. There was no one-year pay-offs. It was a week. Then you are gone, so that’s how important it was.
“I could feel that as a kid, but, obviously, I love football, so that gives you the drive to be better and understand how important it is.
“So there are certainly elements to taking it home. It’s really important as my daughter is growing up. There are times when I haven’t got that balance right.
“I’m passionate about a lot of things, but I do work hard and do wear my heart on my sleeve and sometimes that does naturally overflow. But in a good way as well.
“You have to experience pain and bad times to be able to learn your lessons and reinvent your philosophy, or the way you want to play, or just something new.
“But, at the same time, it’s in my blood. You should have seen me when I wasn’t working. I feel like I’ve been ingrained in football since my dad was a manager, coaching, soccers chools.
“It’s a blessing and a curse if you like all in one, but I love it, I love the project. Hopefully, I’m here many years.”
