Ross County: Jim McIntyre paid for poor home form, says chairman Roy MacGregor

“Out of respect to Jim, I haven’t done anything, but I’ve had a lot of applications today,” he said.

“For Ross County, survival in the Premiership is success. If we get to the top six, it is ultra-success.

“You’ve got to manage expectations at my club because you’re representing a small community and you mustn’t let expectation get beyond reality.

“But we’re a club that’s growing and the criteria that I had three years ago when I appointed Jim will be slightly different today because we’ve moved on, we’ve won a cup, aspirations will be different.”

McIntyre, who started his management career with Dunfermline Athletic, left Queen of the South to take charge of County in September 2014.

“I spent half an hour with Jim yesterday,” added MacGregor. “We talked it through.

“Jim will naturally be very disappointed and felt that he could have got another three or four games and luck may have turned.

“My business employs 5,000 people, so I deal with these situations every day.

“I am not making stupid decisions. Yes, you can make wrong decisions. That’s life and time will tell whether it is the right one.”