Manager post Forfar

28/06/22: Link to audio of James McPake`s post match comments

Manager James McPake gave his thoughts to the website:-

“It has been yet another really good work out with Kyle Benedictus getting 90 minutes. The pleasing thing for me, touch wood, is that it looks like we have come through it with no injuries- there are a couple of knocks but that is pre season. They have got blisters, they have wee knocks on their heels and their toes.

“That’s what happens in pre season but we got through that tonight looking really energetic after working very hard after a tough game on Saturday. Recovery Sunday, followed by a really hard session yesterday coming into tonight’s game.

“The players got their rewards for their efforts. The basis of tonight was really hard work. We have quality players in that team but when we get them working hard, going after teams then if they can get the ball back that quick we have players at the top end of the pitch who can hurt teams.”

That showed when Rhys Breen set up the second goal for Kevin O’Hara?

“There are no fancy ideas being implemented, it is not going back over last season because I never saw enough of it, albeit I have watched a lot of it on video. We have just come in and stuck to our belief to first and foremost work really really hard and get the ball back. When you do that you have got to believe in yourself.

“They worked really hard in a training session yesterday where we picked the bones out of the Cove game. We were a bit wasteful at times at Cove, we were a wee bit tonight, not as much, but we had chances where you are thinking be more ruthless. We will keep asking that because we want be ruthless in our own half like Rhys there winning the ball back and going on and playing. Or at the top end of the pitch we are greedy to get goals.

“It has been very pleasing but we are only two and a half weeks in to the job. It is still pre season and we still have to work hard. I am pleased for them because they put the work and the effort in. As I say yesterday’s session was tough on them and to come here tonight and work really hard, it was good.”

Six goals spread around?

“I was delighted for Miller Fenton to score with his first touch on the pitch. I’m saying great goal but I will need to see it back. I am maybe exaggerating because I’m a wee bit excited for the boy. It was a good piece of play to get it down and it was a composed finish.

“The academy kids who came on were fantastic and that is credit to the academy as well. We want that, we want that at the football club. It is really important and we are looking to build on the great work that is getting done. To see them out there was great. Seamlessly they fit in. Why? Because they are working hard every day alongside senior players. Senior players like Kyle Benedictus, Craig Wighton and Chris Hamilton although he is still young but he plays like a senior player and talks to the younger ones like a senior player.

“It is fantastic to see that and I like it when the younger ones are on. They are energetic and enthusiastic. They deserve that and it is good to see that but it is early and we are back tomorrow again.”

Another clean sheet?

“You can never get enough of them. Deniz did not have too much to do but what he had to do he did very well. He was very comfortable in what he had to do and I’m pleased for him and the back four. The clean sheet comes from the front and we nicked the ball at the top end of the pitch a number of times.

“It was like that on Saturday as well. There was plenty of energy in the team, plenty legs and plenty enthusiasm to go and get after the ball and again, I will strip it back to basics - why were we so comfortable tonight? Because we worked really really hard to go and get the ball back. That is what we pride ourselves on. By doing that we believe that we will be a success.”

Another two pre season friendlies to build on?

“We will see how they are tomorrow. We have Stenhousemuir on Saturday and the ones who need minutes will get minutes. Training for the rest of the week will be tough but the pleasing thing as well is that we have not seen them fresh yet in a game.

“For them to realise that they can work really hard for the two days before a game, play on a Saturday, work hard another two days and then go and play like that in a game - that gives them confidence and a real work ethic that we want to carry with us every time that we turn up. It will not be like that every day, we know that we will hit bumps in the road. There will be bad days but if we can keep the work ethic really high then I think we will minimise those bad days.”

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