Thrilled Strathspey Thistle boss Charlie Brown praised his side for netting their first win of the season – then urged them to build upon the victory.
First half goals from Aiden Cruickshank and Liam Grant earned the Jags a 2-0 result at Clach on Wednesday, which takes them on to five points in second-bottom spot.
Saturday’s visitors Banks o’ Dee are at the foot of the table following their 24-point punishment due to player registration issues.
Thistle’s advantage over Dee is now six points after Rothes defeated Jamie Watt’s men 2-0 in midweek.
Wednesday also saw Strathspey earn their first clean sheet of the season and Brown said his players have taken advice on board and delivered.
He said: “I’m delighted to get the win. We felt it was coming for a few weeks due to our performances.
“We’ve cut out at silly errors at the start of games to keep ourselves in it, to always give ourselves a chance.
“On Wednesday, I asked the boys to press high and, for the first 30-40 minutes, we did that and put Clach under a lot of pressure.
“Clach came back into it, as we knew they would, but the boys managed to hold on and we got a clean sheet and scored two good goals, so I’m delighted.”
Thistle kept cool as Clach pressed
There was no hint of panic in their play, even when Clach stepped it up after the interval.
And Brown explained that display carried on from their progress on the park at the weekend.
He said: “We said to the boys at half-time, if we did concede a goal it was important we kept our composure and didn’t go chasing at things. But we never conceded a goal – the boys were immense.
“There has been a lot of hard work put in from all the boys. They’ve been finding it hard, turning up for training and games and to walk away with nothing.
“I asked the boys to build on our final half hour from Saturday’s 3-2 defeat against Lossiemouth (in the Highland League Cup) because we put Lossie under a lot of pressure. They carried that on against Clach, which was excellent.”
We now look forward to Saturday's home game against @banksodee_fc for which a special match programme will be available at the gate and also by post (message for details). #STRATHYJAGS https://t.co/BQuwFhGyQJ
— Strathspey Thistle FC (Official) (@JagsStfc) November 2, 2022
Strathspey won’t ‘get carried away’
Many eyes will be on Banks o’ Dee’s trip to Seafield Park at the weekend and the Jags manager said it’s vital they keep their feet on the ground.
He added: “We’re not getting carried away. We’ll take it one game at a time. It was a good win for us against a good, young Clach side, who will take points from a lot of teams this season.
“We’ll go into the Banks o’ Dee game full of confidence and it will be up to myself and (assistant manager) Mark Holmes to ensure the boys don’t get carried away and walk away from the game with egg on our faces.”
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