Jags aim to sign off on a high note
IT IS hugely important for Partick Thistle to round off a fine overall season on a high, according to assistant manager Scott Paterson.
The Jags bring down the curtain on a successful campaign when they host Aberdeen at Firhill tomorrow, and Paterson has called upon his players to put on a show for their supporters.
He, like everyone else at the club, has been disappointed with results since making the top six, and he wants to make sure that a memorable season doesn’t end on a forgettable note.
“Sunday is a big game,” Paterson said. “We have had a great season and we don’t want it to end all doom and gloom. We want to give the fans something to shout about.
“There is no denying we are disappointed with the results after the split. We played well against Hearts and for 80 minutes against Rangers, but we only have one point.
“Maybe it’s been a step too far mentally but we’ve said to the players that we need to keep going. The season isn’t finished.
“We are a good team, but we need to show a bit more than we did against Celtic on Sunday. This is a chance to finish on a high and say thanks to the fans.”
The 5-0 mauling to Celtic on Thursday night was hard for Paterson to take, but he concedes that the champions are simply on a different level this season.
“Celtic are a different beast this year, if you consider it’s pretty much the same team, barring a couple of top players,” he said.
“We all know how good they are on the ball but the impressive thing is the way they work so hard to win it back when you have it. They put you under so much pressure.
Paterson will look back fondly on the achievements of this season, but once batteries are recharged, the players will be challenged with a new set of targets.
“When we started this season, the first aim was to survive,” he said. “But we felt we were good enough to be in the top six. We came close last year and we did it this year.
“The players deserve a lot of credit considering where we were in December. The squad is settled. We will add three or four but it won’t be an awkward situation with a lot of players coming or going.”