PAUL STURROCK has blamed "player power" for helping to bring about his quickfire departure from St Mary's.

But the man who was only handed 15 Premiership matches in which to prove himself has also confessed: I made mistakes myself.

Sturrock was speaking almost a month after he left Saints "by mutual consent" following just two games of the 2004/05 campaign.

The former Scottish international blamed some of Saints' players for contributing to his downfall, and said some of their egos were larger than he was expecting when he arrived in March from Plymouth.

But Luggy also admitted the Premiership goldfish bowl was a culture shock for him after three years in the English lower divisions.

"The standard of Premiership players is higher than those in the Football League, but they can be very strong-minded - they have to be to deal with the pressures at this level - and you have to take more care in how you deal with some of them," he told a Sunday newspaper.

"During my own playing career, the top managers like Jim McLean and Alex Ferguson didn't worry too much about that. It's different now.

"The ego factor with top-flight players today is more pronounced.

"They have greater power and generally you can't afford to be as rough-handed with them as you can with the pros in the Football League.

"At Southampton, there was a suggestion that I was trying to turn them into a hit-and-hope long-ball team, especially when I signed Peter Crouch from Aston Villa. That was a myth.

"A lot of teams pass the ball from the back to the front, straight up to their main striker - Manchester United do it. You have to retain possession in the Premiership, I appreciate that, but I felt that once we got within 25 yards of the goal, we needed to be more positive and produce a greater number of crosses and forward passes.

"Early on, I possibly didn't get this across to the players as well as I could have done. One of the things I learned at Southampton, and I learned it very quickly, was Premiership players expect more individual attention. You have to have more one-on-ones with them."

Sturrock declined to comment on his relationship with chairman Rupert Lowe but he did say he faced a credibility problem - despite his achievements both during a great playing career with Dundee United and in guiding Plymouth to two championships in three seasons.

"I was tarred with a certain brush," he remarked. "When I landed the job, I'm sure some people looked upon me as a virtual nobody just up from the sticks.

"I think it started with one or two dissatisfied players making critical comments to their agents and these being leaked to the media.

"The whole thing just mushroomed and got out of control."

Sturrock is convinced he still has what it takes to succeed in management - and at a higher level than he did it with Argyle.

"I am probably a better manager now than I was when I joined Southampton," he said. "No matter how experienced you might be, there is always something to learn.

"Being with Southampton was a tremendous learning curve for me.

"People say 'haven't you lost a bit of confidence in your ability?' The answer is no - quite the reverse."

Sturrock is keen to get back into management outside the Premiership.

Yesterday he was linked with the managerial vacancy at Sheffield Wednesday, who sacked Chris Turner after losing 1-0 at home to Bournemouth on Saturday.