Keep the faith, says Ferdinand
Saints star is optimistic
Anton Ferdinand looks at St Mirren’s predicament and admits for some it might not look great for the Paisley side.
But the experienced defender is adamant that when he looks around the dressing room, he has total faith in the men around him to drag the Buddies away from a relegation dogfight.
Saturday’s 4-1 loss to Aberdeen was just the latest in a line of disappointing defeats for the newly-promoted men.
St Mirren remain without a win since the opening day defeat of Dundee. They have only scored two goals since then, one of which was an own goal.
However, Ferdinand insists that this weekend’s international break will provide the perfect opportunity for the players and their new manager Oran Kearney to lay down the groundwork that will see them turn the club’s fortunes around.
The former West Ham and Sunderland centre back said: “We’ve got to keep believing in ourselves. I say it time and time again – I have confidence in the group of lads I’m playing with.
“I can look to my left, right and in front of me, and I’m confident we’ll be fine.
“The good thing is we have the international break to give us time to work on the team with the new players.
“When you don’t win games, your confidence is zapped. But we’re paid professionals and we need to roll our sleeves up and get on with the job.
“One of the reasons I came here was to help the young lads. But it’s the likes of myself who need to step up as well.
“This is my fourth game and I have faith in the squad that we’ll turn the corner and be fine
“We have to work on things and be ready for the next set of games.”
St Mirren got off to a solid start at Pittodrie before three goals in 15 minutes ultimately put the tie out of sight by half-time.
And Ferdinand admits that is the most disappointing thing about the defeats he has suffered so far.
He added: “We need to stop making a habit of conceding a goal and then another straight after.
“We started well but conceded a goal, then conceded another again.
“You need a bit of know-how to win games – a bit of steel. That’s what it takes to win a league and stay in a league.
“It’s still like pre-season for me. I am enjoying playing but finding my feet week-in, week-out.
“We have to be better and have to win games.”
With a weekend off looming, Ferdinand admits there is no time for a break.
And with a crunch clash with Kilmarnock waiting for the Buddies when they return to action, the defender says Saints really need to get three points on the board.
He said: “The next game is at home after the break and we’ve got to win – simple as that.
“We’ve got to put things right and to do that we need to get on the training pitch and graft.”