Manager previews Falkirk match
Thursday, 6th Apr 202306/04/23: JM - “A good game to play in if you are a player, a good game to manage in and a good game to watch if you are a fan
Ahead of the League One leaders’ trip to play second placed Falkirk James McPake told the media that his team trained at the Oriam on Thursday and will be back there on Friday. He said:- “We are indoors on the Astro so it is what we need for this week - trying to replicate Falkirk’s pitch - so that’s fine.”
The visit to the Falkirk Stadium this Saturday is likely to be it’s usual highly charged game which fully contrasts with last Saturday’s match at home to Kelty which James admitted had turned out to be a bit of a bore:-
“We’ll see how it plays out. I stand by Saturday’s game as that, although watching it back we did create a wee bit more than when I thought when I first came out to speak to the press. I have been wrong before right after a game but I’m still disappointed in terms of it only being one point. I think we have to give credit to the opposition as well.”
Falkirk - game on
“It will be another tough game. We are away from home and they will have a decent enough crowd I’d imagine, we will have a fantastic away backing and it should be a good atmosphere. A good game to play in if you are a player, a good game to manage in and a good game to watch if you are a fan with the atmosphere. All that and only the game can ruin it!”
Injuries
“We will wait and see I’m hopeful. Matty has done a wee bit more on the grass this week than he did the week before so it will be one of those ones that we will give until Friday night/ Saturday morning anyway like the last couple of weeks.
“Hopefully I will find out this afternoon how Rhys Breen’s scan went yesterday. At this time we are fully fit other than Matty and Breeny. Hopefully nothing gets picked up tomorrow in training and we go there with as strong a squad as possible.”
Special plan
“No. We have been working on stuff all week like we do with any team. Defensively we need to be at it, like we do most weeks. We were very good defensively on Saturday as a team and that’s one of the things that I probably didn’t give the players enough credit for when I came out after the game. They were really good in terms of that and we will need that against this Saturday.”
Contract negotiations and targets
“There`s a few going on in the background. That has been ongoing. I don`t know how close we`ve been to getting that over the line. We`re hoping to find that out this afternoon.”
James said that he has been working on identifying targets since last summer.
“That`s working away in the background as well. The plan always is to have people in place to come and make our squad better. Those people are at other clubs, so we`ll be respectful of them then we just do whatever work we need to do through agents and representatives.
"It`s ongoing, it never stops. It`s constant all the way through, from when you get a job until you leave a job because you`re always looking to strengthen the squad. You`re always looking at what you`re going to lose, with players either leaving through their choice or you just need other players in."
The manager agreed that knowing which division they will be playing in could help some with decisions:-
"It might help in terms of players we`re trying to bring in, we have found that a wee bit difficult. Certain players that we had identified maybe wouldn`t want to come to this league. Then we`ve got to look and say `Are those players for us?` because the way we work doesn`t change, whatever league we are in.
“The way we try and do things won’t change, whatever league we are in either. That gives us the decision, but you can understand from a player`s career perspective as well when they`re looking. As a player, coach or manager, you want to play or coach at as high a level as possible. We`re respectful of that and we`ll not get to drawn in on where we`re going to be - the types of player we`ve identified is pretty similar, whatever league we`re in."
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