Stuart Kettlewell will thrive on the challenge of proving Ross County’s doubters wrong as the Staggies’ manager insists he has done throughout his career.
County have been widely tipped to struggle in the Premiership, having been picked as a popular choice by pundits to be relegated.
Those tips have only fuelled Kettlewell’s determination to defy the odds, with the Staggies looking to build on Monday’s opening day victory over Motherwell when they travel to Hamilton Accies tomorrow.
Kettlewell said: “It’s probably just another day for me. If everybody looks back at my journey, as a player and as a coach, that’s just part of the course.
“You get written off constantly – Stuart Kettlewell is not a big name in football which is absolutely fine, I would rather it was that way than all the nonsense with David De Gea.
“I’ve been used to that since I first started kicking a ball 20 years ago with Queen’s Park at senior level. It’s something that I really enjoy.
“The flip side of that, the one year I didn’t experience it was when we were the favourites to win the Championship, and it was a totally different outlook.
“You had to think a different way, you had to respond to questions about different games in a completely different fashion.
“I think the players enjoy that as well, they have a wry smile because they believe in themselves so much that they believe they can prove the doubters wrong.”
While Kettlewell respects the right for analysists to provide their opinion, the County boss insists his attention will not detract from the job at hand.
He added: “This isn’t me on a crusade. If people think we are the weakest team in the league, we do things in the wrong fashion and don’t recruit well, then everyone is entitled to their opinion.
“Going round every media outlet and everyone who has a voice to try and respond to it is impossible.
“I just laugh it off and try and use it as motivation, and that’s certainly something I will be looking to transmit to our players.
“I do think we are a club that does things right, considering what our resources are and where we’re situated on the map.
“I think we’re a club that for a long period of time has punched above our weight, but that doesn’t matter.
“We will still have another 10 pundits saying we’re garbage and are going to get relegated.
“It doesn’t affect my life, I don’t lose any sleep over it, that’s more likely to happen from my fourth kid that’s on the way.”
Kettlewell was the subject of an online post earlier this week from David De Gea in which the Manchester United goalkeeper expressed a striking resemblance in appearance between the two, which gained worldwide attention.
Kettlewell played down the hysteria, adding: “I never have been on social media, and I never will be. Anyone who knows me will tell you that this whole thing is completely lost on me.
“I am captain caveman when it comes to this side of things, and I’m delighted to be that guy as well.
“I’m led to believe through my family that there was mass hysteria with whatever happened after the game, but I think you can tell by my response to the questions I got after the game that I’m pretty flummoxed by the whole thing.”
