Livingston boss David Martindale has heaped praise on Nicky Devlin’s leadership skills and admits he felt sorry for the skipper during the Lions’ poor start to the season.
Full-back Devlin took over from Marvin Bartley in the summer after the former Hibs man became the club’s assistant manager and Martindale says it was evident from his first training session at the club that he was a leader.
Livi opened their season picking up just four points from their first eight games and the manager believes that hit Devlin hard but says he’s proved worthy of the armband as they look to strengthen their charge for a top-six berth when they visit Dundee tomorrow.
Martindale said: “Nicky’s a leader on and off the park. I’ve been really impressed with Nicky.
"I felt really sorry for him at the start of the season when we were struggling because he’d just taken over and I think he felt a huge sense of responsibility on his shoulders. When we beat Celtic, I remember going over to him and giving him a big hug because I was so happy for him. I knew he’d taken a lot on his own shoulders.”
He added: “Nicky came in the same year as Marv (summer of 2019) and the plan had always been that Marv would be the captain.
"We had the first pre-season run which is around Almondell and then back to the stadium. It's on the first day and it’s a really difficult run. Nicky was first back and stood outside for the next 15-20 minutes driving every single person on. I knew that’s the type of person I want at the football club.
"Some folk were showered, had their lunch and were away home and he was still outside the stadium waiting for Stretch (Gary Maley) to finish and cheer him on.
"He’s a leader. You can say someone’s a natural leader, but until they’re actually in the position to lead, you don’t actually know. Nicky has really come into his own over the last six months and it’s great to have him about the place.”
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