The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Smith looks to get back to doing simple things well
Raith Rovers host East Fife at Stark’s Park tomorrow with boss Barry Smith looking for his men to return to doing the simple things well.
A four-game run which has seen two draws followed by defeats to title challengers Ayr United and Forfar has dented their hopes of winning the league. However, Smith believes his side are not far away from turning things around.
He said: “It has been a disappointing few days where we experienced a couple of disappointing results. It is easy to be negative when you have had a couple of setbacks but we have to focus on the positives that we have.
“If we get back to doing what we have been doing well for most of the season then results will come our way again.
“Our defence has been good all season but for some reason we have given away soft goals recently. We need to get back to keeping things simple and, if we do that, then we will be fine.
“We need to mark our men better, particularly at corners and free-kicks.
“We need to stop crosses coming into our box, and if they do get in then we need to clear our lines. It is all parts of the game that we can do and I am sure that we will get back to doing.”
Smith added: “We know what we set out to do at the start of the season and that was to get promoted. We can still do that.
“Every game should be treated the same and the points available are the same. However, if this game being a derby brings a bit of extra motivation then we will take it, especially if it leads to a win.”
Scott Robertson and John Herron are sidelined for Rovers.