‘They needed a boot up the bum’: Martindale defends X-rated team talk

Livingston manager David Martindale admitted he was disappointed his expletive-laden team talk made its way online, but insisted he stood by what he said.

With his side losing 1-0 to League Two Stenhousemuir at half-time of last weekend’s Scottish Cup tie, Martindale left his players with no doubt about his feelings and what he expected in the second half.

Livingston went on to score three times and progress to the last 16 but later a recording of Martindale’s rant was shared on social media.

Martindale made no apology for how he had motivated his players on the day, saying that he had to find a way to get his team playing.

 “I manage in all different ways,” he said. “I am not averse to giving the boys a boot up the bum when I think they need a boot up the bum.

“On Saturday, I felt they needed a boot up the bum as a kick start, a jolt and that was it. I felt we were very passive.

“There are other times when you need to motivate the player in a different way and other times you need to pick the players up and give them a cuddle. I am not averse to doing all styles of management.

“It is disappointing that it has come out. It has obviously been a private conversation between me and the players and someone at Stenhousemuir has chosen to record a half-time team talk which I find very disappointing if I am honest.

“But am I bothered about the content of it? Not at all.

“I am not going to stick people in it. I have had stuff happen within Livingston over the years, when we were a smaller club, which I wasn’t happy about. It is just disappointing.

“It is the modern age with social media.

“A private conversation, a private meeting because that’s basically what it was, has been recorded and put on social media without my consent and without the club’s consent so that’s really disappointing.

“Am I bothered that it’s put there in terms of the content? Not really.

“If Netflix or Amazon were in the changing room at half-time on Saturday that wouldn’t have changed my team talk, I wouldn’t have changed a single thing.

“I don’t play up to the public. I do what I feel is right. I use my intuition to coach my players at half-time.”

Though adamant he wouldn’t change his style, Martindale was at pains to point out that nobody should mistake him for a manager who didn’t have an up-to-date view on developing the team and the game.

“What I will say is that’s not just the way I coach,” he explained.

“I hear people say ‘old school’. Believe it or not I am very modern in the way we approach the game. We go into a lot of detail.

“A publication done an article on us at the start of the season on how we go about our daily business.

“We have a very modern approach to football but, again, sometimes harsh realities need to be told at half-time, full-time and before the game and I am not averse to doing that.”