IT is good to see the number of young managers being given a chance by clubs in Scotland just now and a lot of them are doing very good jobs.

This weekend we come up against Kilmarnock and Allan Johnston, who has had a terrific start to his managerial career thanks to a great season last year with Queen of the South.

I am sure it would have been hard for him to leave Queens during the summer but he has joined a big club in Kilmarnock and he has gone back to a club that he will have fond memories of.

Whether it is the right move, only time will tell. But I am sure he will do a good job there. He obviously felt it was the right time to move on and look to progress his career.

It is promising to see young managers getting a chance in the game so soon after they hang up their boots. It has happened at Thistle with Jackie McNamara and now Alan Archibald.

Myself and Alan have got a great relationship. We know how we want things done on and off the pitch.

There are a lot of young managers in the game these days and they all have their own ideas. The game has changed and there are different coaching methods coming into the game.

I don't know why clubs have decided to go down that route but it is obviously great for Alan and myself and for the new managers coming into the game that they are getting a chance to show what they can do.

There is a lot of pressure on managers these days and you need to be able to handle that if you are going to succeed.

Killie have lost a lot of players from last season and some good players have moved on.

Allan has got a big job there but I am sure it is one he will relish and do well at. They haven't had the start I am sure he would have wanted but I don't think it will be long before they start stringing results together.

Hopefully that will be after Saturday though.

Killie will be looking at us as one of the teams they need to be beating and it is the same for us with regards to them.

I know we are only a few games into the league but you get a feel for the teams that you need to be beating.

KILMARNOCK will be keen to get their first win of the season and they will think it is a good time to play us after our defeat to Aberdeen last weekend.

The boys are determined to bounce back positively from that game, though, and I am sure we will do that.

It was a disappointing afternoon for us last weekend against Aberdeen but you have got to give credit to Derek McInnes and his side.

They were better than us on the day and we have just got to hold up our hands.

If I was to say that Aberdeen won because we were poor then I think that would take everything away from Aberdeen.

The boys will have learned a lot from the game and they will come back stronger and better individually and collectively.

Gabriel Piccolo made his Premiership debut last weekend and I am sure he will learn from it.

Playing Aberdeen is different from playing against Cowdenbeath and Ayr, and that is not being disrespectful to them.

It was Gabby's first game in the league and he will have seen what is expected of him. He will have learned a lot.

He has got to move on and learn from it.