Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Diamonds need to hit the ground running on return
Airdrie boss Ian Murray has warned that his side must hit the ground running on their return to league action, if they are to win promotion.
Murray takes his side north to face Peterhead in a clash that he feels could be crucial to their chances.
Airdrie sit fourth in the table, three points behind second-placed Cove, but with a game in hand over them, third-placed Montrose and leaders Falkirk.
The Scottish FA last week gave the tentative go-ahead to resume lower league football, with only their first two fixtures announced, and clubs will now vote this week to approve a shortened 22-game season with play-offs.
The Diamonds claimed big wins over Falkirk and Clyde in their last league outings before the shutdown and Murray believes that has put them right back in contention.
He said:“we’re five points off the top with a game in hand but that doesn’t count because we don’t have points yet, so we take care of business and then see where we are.
“We’re absolutely bang in this title race, and teams are going to fall away.
“It is a sprint now, but within that sprint there is the need for longitude now and calmness within that.
“[Having the season halted] hasn’t been ideal; we had two good wins in the league and a poor result in the cup, but the league form is still there.
“We need to make sure we start well.” Murray says he doesn’t know or care how many games they will have left, but knows they need to use Saturday’s trip north and next week’s home clash with Partick Thistle to their advantage.
He added:“it feels great to be back, though of course we’ve only got two fixtures in there.
“They are huge games and the league is that tight, regardless of how many games we’re going to play.
“It’s not going to define the season, but it will shape us a little bit. It will certainly push us in the right direction .
“We understand the magnitude of the task ahead of us, but we also understand the magnitude of the opportunity ahead.”