OUR SQUAD IS STILL BUZZING Ralston says players determined to bag that first win
The St Johnstone dressing room remains full of positive vibes despite their winless start to the season.
That was the message from defender Anthony Ralston as the Perth men prepare for this weekend’s Highland test at Ross County.
There is a realisation that a first victory of the campaign needs to come sooner rather than later to avoid a potentially painful battle at the bottom.
Saints now head north to take on a Staggies side who already sit eight points better off in the Premiership standings.
But belief remains in the McDiarmid camp, with Ralston saying: “The dressing room is still very much a positive place.
“We just need to get that first win to get some momentum going.
“Hopefully when we get that, we can continue getting results for a number of weeks ahead.
“A win would build confidence and ease the pressure. But, as I said, it’s still a positive vibe and it’s important it stays like that.
“Dingwall is a tough place to go, but we’re hoping we can put the Motherwell defeat behind us and move into the game fresh. “We’ll be ready to go. “Away from home it’s more about the togetherness, especially defensively.
“If we take care of that aspect then hopefully we’ll create chances like we did last Saturday. This time around we’ll need to take them.
“It’s certainly an easier journey back down the road if you pick up three points.” Ralston, on loan from Celtic, was lured to the club by boss Tommy Wright to plug the defensive gap left by the departed Richard Foster. Foster’s departure was the result of a falling out with Perth management – and he then signed for this weekend’s opponents County. But Ralston is just focused on producing a solid performance and knows Saints have the attacking prowess to hurt the Highlanders. “I’ve enjoyed playing again on a Saturday afternoon and it’s the game-time that is important,” Ralston explained to the Perthshire Advertiser.
“The Motherwell game last week was a frustrating one and it’s a setpiece that has cost us in the end.
“What is also frustrating is that we created chances and were, for the majority of the game, the better team. We need to put it behind us quickly, learn from it and move on to Saturday.
“We’ve had chances and it’s not as if we’ve been battered throughout a game. At times we’ve been the more dominant team and just not taken our chances.
“We’ve got a great attacking force with the likes of Mikey O’Halloran, Stevie May, Drey Wright and Matty Kennedy. They can hurt teams. “I’ll be looking to help take care of the game defensively then players like that can cause some trouble up the other end.”