Martindale hoping for 'reset' after mental health break

David Martindale says he's trying to protect the mental health of his Livingston squad during their gruelling Premiership season.

The West Lothian side must beat 11th-placed Ross County on Saturday to have any realistic chance of being in the top flight next term.

After a weekend with the Scottish Cup semi-finals taking pace, Martindale hopes his squad are returning refreshed following a break to spend time with family.

"It was more about giving the players and staff time off," he said. "We shut the club down basically, giving everyone a reset. It's been a challenging period, it's been tough.

"We try to take a bit of pressure of the players and staff. It's a difficult environment when you're losing games and you're at the bottom of the league.

"You've got to look at the psychology and the mental health of that and give people a wee bit of a break.

"I'm in the changing room quite a bit, and the one thing I'll give you with this squad of players is they've never lost their positivity. After games is normal, but on a Monday morning, we come back ready to go.

"Losing games and being bottom of the league isn't good [mentally] in any sport. Then you throw in social media, which is a cesspit when you're not winning games of football.

"We try and speak about that with the players, try and make then understand social media isn't always the best place to be. It's easy for people to go on and start pointing fingers."