Peterhead boss Jim McInally would happily swap plaudits for points as he looks to guide his side up League One.
The Blue Toon have dropped down to ninth in the division following a run of five games without a win despite receiving praise for their performances.
The positive comments continued following the club’s impressive display against Dundee in the Scottish Cup despite the Premiership side departing Balmoor Stadium with a 3-0 win and a place in the quarter-final.
With promotion challenging Airdrie the visitors to Balmoor tomorrow McInally has urged his side to maintain their standards and the results their recent displays merit will come.
He said: “The players will be fine after Monday. They received a lot of praise for their performance but it doesn’t sit too well with me as we still lost the game. I’d rather they were praised for getting a result.
“We’ve been playing that way for weeks but not getting the results and we all know football is a results business.
“I’ve told the players they need to keep their standards up and the results will come.”
Peterhead need to be more clinical
While pleased with the performances of his players in recent weeks the Blue Toon boss insists there is still room for improvement.
McInally believes being sharper in both boxes is key to an elusive first win since December 18 coming his side’s way.
He said: “Football is about scoring goals and defending, and we need to do better in both sides of the game.
“It’s silly mistakes which have cost us at times but hopefully the players are feeling good about themselves.
“I’m pleased we’re playing Airdrie this weekend. They are another full-time team and they are flying right now so there will be an expectancy on them to get a result at our place.
“We just have to keep our standards up in this games and the others we have coming up.”
Moving up the table the short-term goal for McInally
League One has become congested in the bottom half of the table. Peterhead are ninth, six points ahead of bottom club East Fife and six behind sixth-placed Clyde.
With his side having two games in hand on their rivals the Blue Toon boss knows the next two weeks will be vital for his club.
He said: “I look at League One and we’re in a five-team mini-league of our own in the bottom half of the table.
“The good thing is we’ve got five games in the next fortnight starting with Airdrie on Saturday and our aim is to win games and try to move away from the bottom to the top of it.
“We’ve got a couple of games in hand but they only count if you win them.
“Every game is winnable in this league if you play well but it is a ruthless league to play in and you are punished if you are not on your game.”