 ROY KEANE has condemned trigger-happy chairmen – claiming their knee-jerk reactions damage their clubs’ chances of success. The Black Cats boss was speaking just days after his friend Bryan Robson was effectively sacked by Sheffield United after a run of poor results – the Blades had won just one of their last 10 games – led to fans protesting against the ex-Manchester United and England captain. Robson refused to step down as manager and “move upstairs” to become director of football, leaving Bramall Lane instead. Keane said: “There are always a few fans who will show their displeasure towards the manager but if you don’t stand up to that, what’s the point of having a chairman or a board? Why not let the fans make all the decisions? “If your boss makes knee-jerk reactions because certain sections of the fans are unhappy then you are probably better off out of the club anyway. “One week the fans love you and after a couple of bad games they think you’re the world’s worst. That’s always been the way for players and managers. “Yes, sometimes appointing a new manager can bring a short-term upturn in results but I think you will find that at these clubs where they keep on sacking their manager, it doesn’t bring long-term success. “They might as well try and stick with a manager because it must cost an awful lot of money to keep changing the manager and his staff all the time.” Keane and Robson’s former manager Sir Alex Ferguson was famously allowed four trophy-less years at Old Trafford before he landed the FA Cup in 1990, which was the catalyst for a decade-and-a-half of success. In comparison, Robson left Sheffield just nine months after arriving at the club. “The average length of time a manager stays at a club is getting less and less,” said Keane. “But I’m sure that the managers of bigger clubs who have had a bit of time to get it right must laugh at the other clubs who keep on having knee-jerk reactions.” Keane himself was an instant hit when he took over at Sunderland, winning promotion to the Premiership in his first season, but life has been tougher in the top flight. Nevertheless, chairman Niall Quinn and his Drumaville backers have stood four-square behind their manager and in recent weeks Keane has led the club out of the bottom three and towards safety. Keane said: “Fortunately for me, I’ve had good support. “Any club – and any business – needs a bit of stability. I feel we have that at this football club.” | 
