Peterhead joint caretaker manager Ryan Strachan was able to take some positives from his side’s 2-0 defeat against Alloa Athletic.
The Blue Toon have now lost six of their previous seven matches but there was a distinct improvement in performance under caretaker bosses Strachan and Jordon Brown.
The pair were placed in charge following the deprture of David Robertson after little more than three months at the helm.
Following a goalless opening period, the visitors took the lead through Luke Donnelly after 52 minutes before Scott Taggart added a second from the penalty spot with 17 minutes remaining.
Strachan, who watched from the sidelines while Jordon Brown played the full 90 minutes, had nothing but praise for his squad.
He said: “I can’t commend the guys enough, their application from Tuesday when Jordon and myself were given the new roles, then Thursday’s session and then today when we applied ourselves for the 90 minutes but just fell short.
“In the first half, we were visibly the better team and created more chances.
“We could have arguably been a couple of goals up as we had two very good opportunities to score through Jason Brown.
“We can take massive positives from the match, we had more corners in 90 minutes, we’ve had more attempts on goal but ultimately, we’ve succumbed to a defeat which has been the story of the season.
“We really need to regroup and go again.”
Building confidence for run-in
Strachan hopes the Blue Toon support were encouraged by a noticeable reaction from the players following a series of disappointing results.
He said: “We wanted a reaction but on top of that, we wanted it to look better on the eye and to be more cohesive.
“We wanted to be firm but fair, we wanted to create more chances and we did all that, and in theory we achieved all that we wanted from them but the bottom line is it is another defeat.
“There’s only seven matches left and it’s a group that’s low in confidence just now.
“The morale is low and, myself included, as we’ve almost become used to losing this season.
“We have to recover over the next couple of days and be ready to go again.”
Your Peterhead team for today's match with Alloa.
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Strachan admitted it has been a whirlwind few days following the departure of Robertson on the back of a 7-0 defeat against Airdrieonians.
He said: “It’s everything from the phone to the media, organisation, putting on a training session, both of us with the intention of playing and not really having that back up, the third coach to back us up.
“It’s been a challenging time, it’s been sleepless nights but it’s been enjoyable.
“I’ve got two young kids and a full time job to work around but we’ve both enjoyed it and we won’t shirk from the challenge.”
As to how long the former Dons youngsters will be in the role, Strachhan added: “Myself and Jordon havee got the club at heart.
“We want to do what’s right for the club and, with only seven games left, I’m sure the board are working round the clock.
“It would be nice to see what the vision is but we’ll just continue to prepare the team for training on Tuesday.”
Next up for the Blue Toon is trip to Dumfries this weekend for the match away to Queen of the South.
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