DANNY LENNON admits it has been hard for him to watch St Mirren struggle at the foot of the Premiership table.

 

But he has urged the fans to rally behind their team as they try and claw their way to safety.

The ex-Buddies boss' old No.2 Tommy Craig lasted just seven months in the post before just three wins from 19 games saw him depart earlier this week.

And Lennon said: "It has been hard to watch. I look at where they are at the minute and it's painful to see that.

"I'm genuinely sorry to see things haven't worked out with Tommy the way the club wanted it to. He's certainly a good coach.

"I care a great deal about the football club and it hurts me to see them joint bottom of the league and out of both cups already.

"I think it's time for everyone to rally behind Gary Teale and David Longwell, who are good people that are ambitious in the game. It's about encouraging them and the team to put positive results on the board."

While Lennon is looking for a way back into management after he departed Paisley back in May, many have linked him with a potential move back to Saints after ex-Motherwell boss Terry Butcher was interviewed for the vacant Fir Park post.

There were even chants of 'there's only one Danny Lennon' at the Buddies' recent 3-0 thumping by Hamilton Accies.

But Lennon said: "It's not the right thing for me to look at just now, but it's a club I care a great deal about and wish them every success.

"The board of directors will take their time in appointing a new manager. I know everything that they fling at that club, I know what it's like to be a part of it.

"The fans invest so much of their love, time and finances in it, and they are very, very passionate. There are a lot of people hurting there, but I certainly believe with the right man coming in they can turn it around.

"Apart from the guys who were brought in during the summer, I know the bulk of them and what they can produce. I know the men they are, the character they have and what the club means to them. The next manager just has to get that out of them.

"It's always nice to look back. My only grumble was over the last four years where I feel the support wasn't as it was. The timing of how things were handled didn't allow me to say goodbye to the fans which I wanted to do, but I still hold them and the club in high regard."