Premier Sports Cup - Manager’s Thoughts

Thoughts on the win against Brora Rangers on Saturday

Gary Irvine: “We were pleased to go up there and get the three points which has put us in a good position going into the match against Dundee. It’s all credit to the lads because it was a tricky fixture and Brora have shown in other cup matches how well they can play. It was even more challenging with the travel, the long day and all the preparations which go into such a trip. We also have the various covid protocols to follow such as taking two buses which splits the lads up which is not ideal. All in all, to go up there and put on a decent performance and the get the three points was very pleasing.

But there was a wee bit of frustration with us not taking some of our chances especially when we were on top for spells in the game. We were knocking some great balls into the box and putting pressure on Brora especially in the early stages and so it was frustrating we didn’t manage to find the net. That was the main thing I put to the players at half-time and after the game - we need to keep working hard to take these chances and kill off games. That will make games such as this a lot more comfortable for ourselves. But in the main I was happy with the energy levels and the attitude shown by the lads especially as I say after such an early start and long bus journey.

One of the loan players, Mark Gallagher, scored the winning goal – what part do you see the three loan signings playing this season?

GI: “We looked into Mark before we brought him in and there were a lot of experienced football people supportive of him coming to us. They thought a loan spell would be good for Mark and importantly good for Forfar.   He is a young and exciting player and Aberdeen have high hopes for him for the future.  It was great to see him take his chance from the bench and get the goal which was even more special as it was his first senior goal. It was also good work by Matty (Aitken), who also came on in the second half, to set Mark up for the goal.

The plan for Mark, Sam (Fisher) and Luke (Strachan) is to help them with their development and obviously for them to help Forfar get results this year.  Sam and Luke have performed well so far and are contributing to the team. I thought that some of Sam’s recovery tackles on Saturday were out of this world – the pace that he showed and the understanding to get back into position was excellent. He could even have scored a couple of goals for us at the other end!  He’s certainly added to his game – you can see he’s been working on improving in possession of the ball and his distribution since he was with us last season. Luke’s also had great games so far and we are pleased with how he has fitted in with the squad. 

It’s still early stages for all three of them - they are going through the development stage and as I say, I hope that it is a positive season for them as individual players and also positive for the Club.

How do you feel the squad has shaped up?

GI: “Like every manager pre-season, I sat down and thought about the structure of the squad and how I wanted to put it together and then recruited the right type of players to add to the lads already here. There were a few other changes to players on contracts. I’m now happy with the pool of lads in terms of their drive and determination. Also, very importantly I believe that we have strong competition in every position.  That competition is important in pushing the standards up higher. I want the players to be working hard in training and to go into every match looking to give their very best for themselves and for the Club.  I’ve told the lads that it is going to take everyone playing their part this season for us to be successful.  I expect them all to contribute and have the right attitude whether they are starting or not. We are all one team, and every player will have a vital role. The lads have been great on that front and showing the right attitude whether on the bench or starting which is what we need to build a strong team spirit.  

Unfortunately, it is going to be a challenging season ahead with the covid situation and I knew with that disruption we needed to have cover in all positions. We have suffered a bit from absences in our earlier games with a few players self-isolating and a few teams have been affected to the point of not being able to play games. So, it’s not going to be an easy season for any team with the ongoing testing and other procedures, but we just have to deal with it along with the other clubs.

Longer term injury situation – how are Steven Anderson and Darren Whyte progressing?

GI: “Steven is doing really well and has been joining in with all of the fitness training from the start of pre-season training. We are now upping his rehab and he’ll soon be joining in with contact parts of training sessions as well as the fitness elements. He’s maybe looking at being full fit and in the squad by middle of August if not a bit earlier all going well.    

Darren is a bit behind in terms of timescales. He’s also been working really hard and building up his strength. The last few weeks he’s been out on the pitch improving his fitness levels which is good to see. It’s difficult to put an exact date on his return to playing but he is making good progress.

It’s a cliché but it will be like have signed two new players when they both come back in which will be great.

Thoughts looking ahead to the final Premier Sports Cup match against Dundee on Saturday

GI: “I said to the players before the match on Saturday that a win would put us in a great position in the competition going into our last match. Now that we have completed that job, we can look forward to the match although we know it will be very tough to play Dundee, a Premiership club, at their own ground. But depending on how the matches go during the week we will go into Saturday knowing we have a chance of progressing no matter how difficult our opponents will be. We obviously saw how they performed in the friendly fixture so all we can do is work hard and take any chances we create. The lads are looking forward to showing what they are capable of and there is a brilliant spirit in the group. It is matches like this Saturday, with everything to play for, that we all want to play in. We will be working hard during the season to keep putting ourselves in these positive situations.”