Saints keep cool and rally the fans

Mar 17 2009 by Gordon Bannerman, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

SAINTS fans might be feeling the pressure but skipper Kevin Rutkiewicz and manager Derek McInnes won’t be losing their cool with eight games left in the sprint to the line.

An impressive 22-game unbeaten run might have ended against Livingston but the Perth side are still in front by a point, with a game in hand.

Team captain Rutkiewicz admitted several teams would fancy their chances of bagging the title but he stressed: “I’m confident we have the bottle for it and we’ll be really positive going into our next game against Airdrie United this weekend.

“The Almondvale result was disappointing but it’s been put to bed.

“We always knew the last quarter would be like a series of cup finals for us. And we know that if we win seven out of eight no one can touch us.”

While fans are already anticipating the visit of second placed Partick Thistle on April 4, the Perth management and players would relish a large and vocal support behind them on Saturday against Airdrie United.

That’s the fixture which warrants priority status as Saints begin a three game home run, with the Jags facing Dundee 24 hours later in a televised clash.

“We have to show the same focus we had going into cup games in recent seasons,” said Rutkiewicz. “Everything is geared towards the next match. We have to be tuned to reach a peak on Saturday. Airdrie are first up and I’m not looking at the other fixtures.

“Our fans will have a big part to play. Sometimes I think they underestimate how important they can be. They can help us through.

“Fans are generally a bit more uptight than players. They are feeling the pressure as the line approaches and after going so long unbeaten they’re wondering why the title isn’t in the bag.

“But everyone here is fine with it. We have played every team in the league and while we respect them we don’t have anything to fear.

“I love playing with that sort of pressure. It’s a lot better than when we were struggling to keep clear of the relegation zone a few seasons back.

“It was never going to be easy and a few teams will still fancy their chances. But we are top of the pile and it’s fantastic. We have given ourselves a real fighting chance of the title and nothing has changed now..

“We are relaxed – without being over-relaxed or over-confident.

“We have to take care of our results and we don’t have to look elsewhere.”

Manager Derek McInnes added: “We were all proud of the record run and wanted to keep it going. But we move on and remain very positive with three home games now. We want to make them count and we have a better chance of doing that with everyone pulling together.

“There’s a two-week break after Airdrie and all our energy goes into preparing for this one. We’d love to see the supporters getting behind the team again on Saturday. They were terrific at Livingston.

“The fans and players will be in the right frame of mind to get three points against Airdrie.”

McInnes knows what it takes to win a title, having skippered West Brom to a championship, and he said: “We need look no further than the next game.

“We are in a strong position and this group of players are determined to make the most of it. I’d have loved to have been in this position over the last few seasons. Now we have to make it count.

“There’s work to be done but no one wins a title without working really hard for it.

“Hamilton bounced back after defeats last season and we have to do the same. It’s important how you react to a setback. It’s been a long time since we lost but now we have to go on another run.”

Collin Samuel is expected to be available for the clash with Airdrie after recovering from a thigh injury. Martin Hardie will be back in contention. He had an overnight stay in Leicester and gets more injections today. That should set him up for playing a key role in the run-in. Jody Morris is still three weeks away.

Full-back Richie Byrne is available this weekend before his loan deal from Inverness ends. Midfielder Chris Millar will miss the Partick game after picking-up a one game ban.

SAINTS reserves draw 3-3 yesterday with a strong Ross County side. Steven Doris, Peter MacDonald and Liam Craig scored for the Perth team, who conceded a late equaliser. Graham Gartland, Steven Anderson and Euan McLean also featured.