Leighton McIntosh feels like he is becoming a more influential contributor to Cove Rangers after a regular run in the side.
McIntosh has started the last three league games and the Scottish Cup replay win over Queen of the South, giving him his longest run in the team this season.
He has chipped in with goals against East Fife and Falkirk and won a penalty in the victory against Alloa Athletic, underlining his growing influence in the final third.
McIntosh has spent the bulk of his 18 months at Cove playing out wide but the shift to two central strikers has allowed him more game-time through the middle.
As long as he is on the pitch and in a position to contribute, he will be happy.
“We’ve had a couple of tough away games and to come away with victories is really positive,” said McIntosh.
“From a personal standpoint it’s good to be involved in all those games. I just need to keep that going now.
“I’d still like to get more (goals) but I’m contributing to the team, be it with goals, assists or winning penalties. I want to keep doing that and offering something different to the team.
“I’ve always been more comfortable through the middle – that’s where I’ve played most of my career. But since I’ve been at Cove I’ve been playing mostly on the right.
“I do feel a lot more confident on the right but it’s just what the team needs. I’m happy to play wherever.
“Depending on the type of game, you might find it more difficult through the middle or in wider areas, so it’s how you adapt to that.”
The wins have kept on coming for the Aberdeen side, who have been victorious in their last eight league games and are unbeaten in 14 in all competitions.
The last two games have seen them grind out 1-0 triumphs – not necessarily easy on the eye but ultimately helping them move towards their end goal.
“I feel like we’re learning to win ugly,” added McIntosh. “We play good football but sometimes if Plan A wasn’t working last season we might have hit a brick wall.
“This season I feel like we’ve just looked for different options and managed to nick results, where last season we maybe wouldn’t have been able to do.
“We’ve been more street-wise and we’re not really conceding many goals. It’s about learning to grind out results; there’s a lot of tough places to go in this league and to go to those places, not play particularly well but show a moment of quality and grind out a clean sheet is vital.”
A win for Cove against Montrose on Saturday would put them 10 points clear of Stewart Petrie’s side, who are their nearest contenders in League One just now.
McIntosh added: “It would be a great position to be in. Going into that February period 10 points clear would be a massive confidence boost. We want to be in that position but we have to earn that.
“I feel like every team in this league can give you a really tough game. We need to be on it all the time and just not get beat.
“We’re in a good position in the league so if we’re finding a game difficult to win, then just don’t get beat.”