Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
CRUNCH TIME Trouten says Queen’s match is key to Rovers’ survival
Alan Trouten admits Albion Rovers haven’t been good enough this season.
Now, the midfielder has called for the Coatbridge side to put down a marker for the relegation run-in.
Rovers face a pressure game on Saturday as they welcome bottom side Queen’s Park, with both sides desperately in need of a win.
Brutally honest Trouten said he has been disappointed by the recent poor run of form, but dubbed the Cliftonhill crunch tie a mustwin game as they look to secure their League One status.
He reckons that Rovers had a lucky escape on Saturday as Forfar drew with Queen’s Park – a game which almost saw Rovers slip into the automatic relegation spot for the first time this season.
“Queen’s Park is definitely a must-win game for us,” he told the Advertiser.
“It was lucky for us that they only got a point against Forfar – that’s the only positive we can really take from the weekend.
“It’s a bit of a blessing for us in the position we find ourselves in now. It is a massive game; we need to pick ourselves up and absolutely need to win this game.”
Top scorer Trouten has been the star performer for the Coatbridge strugglers this season and had some tough words for the side.
Despite having games in hand on their rivals, the 32-year-old feels they can no longer use that as an excuse. “It’s a disappointing run that we are on. “In amongst that there has been a couple of good results, but overall it just hasn’t been good enough.
“To draw in the last minute with the league leaders (Raith) it can make the game feel like a bit more - it feels like a win.
“All week we had been confident; but go and put in a performance like that against East Fife.
“We were second best and made far too many mistakes. We have been on a bad run for a while now; we need to start getting a couple of results and can’t keep letting ourselves down with mistakes.”
He added: “We have the games in hand but they don’t mean anything. The teams around us have went out there and got the points and we need to start doing the same.”