The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Douglas hails Lichties’ Christmas number one
Rab Douglas admits he’ll have to let Arbroath’s tabletopping position sink in as his side climbed to the summit of the Championship after beating Morton 2-1.
Douglas took charge of the Lichties alongside first team coach John Young in the absence of manager Dick Campbell and his assistant, and brother Ian.
The 49-year-old goalkeeping coach was also an unused substitute for the home side that had six players missing due to Covid. Arbroath still fielded a strong line-up and goals from Colin Hamilton and Anton Dowds either side of a Gary Oliver equaliser ensured the Lichties spend Christmas at the top of the table.
Douglas acknowledged that it wasn’t an eyecatching performance but showed the character of his side.
“We had players down, Dick and Pink (Ian Campbell) down. It wasn’t pretty,” he said.
“We would have been everyone’s favourites to have been relegated at the start of the season so credit to the boys.
“They dug in, it wasn’t a classic and the conditions weren’t great. But the one thing is they give you their all every week.
“The only part-time team in the league and we’re punching above our weight and enjoying it.”
Being top of the table halfway through a league campaign would give any team a massive lift.
But the former Scotland keeper believes that “feelgood factor” has been at the club all along.
“We’re getting boys coming in from full-time teams on loan and loving playing here,” he said.
“The fans are buying into it; the board are buying into it. I’ve played parttime a few years myself and I think if you’re enjoying your football, that’s the biggest thing.
“The boys never gave up today and that’s the one big thing about it. For me, they are a credit.”
Taking stock of what has gone before them so far in the season, topping the table after 18 games, Douglas says he’ll have to let the result sink in.
“I’ll sit down with a beer later and watch Sky Sports News for a bit, pause it and take a picture!” he joked.
“Arbroath are turning into everyone’s second favourite team now. We’re proving people wrong and long may it continue.
“It’s what the gaffer and Pink have created and Youngy and I are happy to back them up. It’s just great for the fans. A week before Christmas and we’re top of the league.”
Lichties forward Joel Nouble admits it was a “strange” dressing room with the absence of
Campbell and six other first team players.
The Lichties gaffer is known for his motivational team talks alongside his brother Ian, but due to Covid, the pair had to miss out the game, which saw their side reach the summit of the Championship.
With a depleted squad, Arbroath were in for a tough afternoon as bottom side Morton scrapped for their lives. But despite a number of men out, Nouble felt there were more than enough players ready to answer the call.
“That’s why we have a good squad”, he said.
“There weren’t a lot of changes from last week (against Partick). But with Michael Mckenna not playing, you can’t really
replace him, Tam O’brien wasn’t here. And Dick and Pink with their personalities and everything. It was a bit strange but you’ve got to give a professional performance.
“These sorts of games, from the outside looking in, we’re expected to win. We just said to stay in the game and the quality will come through and in the end it did.”
As well as the challenge of playing with a lessened squad, the 25-year-old also faced the North Sea haar for the first time as it covered Gayfield like a blanket.
At half-time referee Mike Roncone carried out an inspection with visibility on the far touchline fading. Nouble admits he didn’t know if the game would continue but was glad it did.
“When we went in at half-time, it was like the longest half-time ever,” he said.
“The ref was out trying to check the pitch, but we wanted the game to go on because we felt like it wasn’t a good first half.
“We were average, Morton were probably slightly better than us at keeping the ball.”
Arbroath came out sharper in the second half and won the game with goals from Colin Hamilton and Anton Dowds.
Results elsewhere saw the Lichties jump to the top of the Championship for Christmas, and it’s more than they deserve, according to the big Englishman.
“Based on the games we’d played,” he said, “we felt like we deserved to be in and around that position.”
Nouble looks set to return to parent club Livingston in January having made his mark on the Angus coast.
If he leaves Arbroath when they are still at the top of the table, he feels that would be the best parting gift to a club that has welcomed him with open arms.
“That would be fantastic,” he said.
“I feel confident against any team we go to, we’ll score goals and win games, so hopefully until I go back, we can remain top.
“The fans have taken me in, the players have been outstanding since day one. I feel like I’ve been here a lot longer than I have and I’ve settled in off the pitch.”