Ethan Erhahon hopes the vacant Northern Ireland job doesn’t tempt his ‘best ever teacher’ Stephen Robinson to leave St Mirren.
The Buddies have enjoyed one of their finest starts to a top flight campaign under the former Motherwell manager’s guidance.
After a Premier Sports Cup slip up, the improving Paisley side have gone on to win six of their opening 11 Premiership matches to sit comfortably in fourth in the table.
Erhahon has been a key cog in the Saints midfield machine, starting every single league match under Robinson this season and producing his most consistent form yet in the black-and-white stripes.
The 21-year-old hopes reports linking his boss to the Northern Ireland seat vacated by Ian Baraclough are wide of the mark because he’s desperate to keep developing his game under Robinson’s expert tutelage.
Speaking exclusively to Renfrewshire Live Sport, Erhahon said: “It would be really sad to see him leave the club now.
“Personally, I’d love to see him stay and I’m sure a lot of the boys feel the same.
“The last thing you want when things are going well is to lose your manager. There’s always a period of uncertainty after that and then a bedding in period with the new manager. You have to get used to their style of play.
“You saw it happen before when Jim Goodwin left the club last season. It takes time to adapt.
“Robinson has had a massive impact on me. I’m learning more from him than from anyone else I’ve had before.
“Technically, I’ve always been decent, but tactically he’s pushed me on so much.
“I just want to keep developing as much as I can because I know I’ve got a few gears left to reach yet.”
It isn’t just his own game that Erhahon sees Robinson improving on a daily basis.
The creative midfielder has seen major improvements across the squad – most notably striker Curtis Main who enjoyed a brilliant spell with the Saints boss previously at Motherwell.
Erhahon believes the fact so many of his former players decided to join the Buddies in the summer to work with Robinson again says a lot about the impact he had previously on the likes of Trevor Carson and Mark O’Hara.
Erhahon said: “He’s worked with a lot of the boys here before and they know exactly what he wants from them.
“You can see with Curtis, he’s like a different animal now under Robbo. He’s unstoppable at times.
“The guys that he brought in during the summer as well had worked with him before and were keen to work with him again.
“That says a lot. In any walk of life, if you want to work with a boss again that shows he’s had a positive impact on you.”
Collectively, Erhahon feels Robinson has created a culture of togetherness, backed up by experienced pros, which is helping the Buddies push on at crucial points in matches where they’d previously stuttered.
Two late winners from Alex Greive against Livingston and Dundee United this month alone show the Saints are no longer there for the taking when the clock starts ticking down.
Erhahon added: “These late winners show we’re sticking together.
“This squad is definitely up there in terms of quality as the best I’ve played in here, but it’s also about the togetherness and experience we have.
“Boys like Ryan Flynn, Joe Shaughnessy and Richard Tait are helping to push us over the line when we need them.
“Having that experience to call on is majorly important.”
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