CAPTAIN’S VIEW —

It is hard to believe we only have six games left in the season, and given where we are in the table, it is obviously going to be a tense ending to our first ever campaign in the Championship.

Things have not been going well of late, there’s no point in me trying to deny that, and last week’s trip to Ayr was fairly typical of what’s been happening.

We started well enough, but it all ran away from us, and once again, mistakes cost us dearly. It is not just about the boys at the back, we have to defend better as a team, and we are going to need to create and take more chances if we’re going to turn things around.

There have been a lot of ins and outs at the club this season, starting from the managerial change last summer. For a long time, there was a real continuity at Cove and a group of players that had come through the divisions together. That was always going to come to an end at some point, and when you look at last week, there was only myself and Connor Scully who started the game, but while the upheaval has clearly played a part, we cannot put that out there as an excuse.

The simple truth is that we have to be better at both ends of the pitch. What we have to do is adopt the same approach to games as we did when we were winning titles.

It is going to be about having the right mentality, working hard, and proving to everyone that we deserve to stay in this division.

In a number of matches recently, we have played plenty good football, but have allowed the game to run away from us. We’ve had a bad habit of conceding goals in multiples and not allowing ourselves to get a foothold. At 1-0 down, you’re still in with a chance, but all too often we have given up the second goal too, and that makes it extremely difficult. We need to make sure we’re competitive for the whole ninety minutes.

We have worked hard in training this week – we always do –and despite the recent run, there is still a good, positive feeling among the boys.

Apart from upping the performance levels, we could also do with catching a break! Anyone who has watched us regularly this season will know that luck has not gone our way, and I firmly believe that has got to change at some point, hopefully starting this afternoon!

We’ve done well against Partick Thistle, and we can feed off our last victory down at Firhill, but they’re a good side, and we’re going to have to rediscover the form we all know we’re capable of if we’re to get the right result.

A win today would be massive, and it would boost our confidence ahead of next week’s trip to Hamilton and the away game with Arbroath in three weeks’ time.

Those matches will likely be decisive, but for now our focus is on Partick, and I can promise you we will be giving absolutely everything to secure the three points.

COYCR!

Megginson