THE GHOST BUSTERS
Lawless: Jags desperate to banish the play-off demons after that Dingwall disaster
THE hangover from last term’s play-off final at Ross County still affects every one involved in the Dingwall disaster.
Kris Doolan’s Partick Thistle side were 3-0 up with 19 minutes of the second leg left but a late collapse saw them miss out on a return to the top tier.
But midfielder Steven Lawless says the memory of that Highland clearance is driving them on to go one better this time around.
They’d dropped 19 points in an eight-game winless run before knocking promotion rivals Morton out of the play-off places.
On Saturday they’re away to basement club Arbroath and then second-bottom Inverness come to Firhill the following week, which should help their promotion hopes.
“After what happened to us in the play-offs last year we 100 per cent want to put that right,” claimed 32-year-old Lawless.
“We know we have the ability to compete with Premiership teams but if we qualify for the play-offs we know those games will be tough. We’re under no illusions – we know we need to start building some momentum.
“It’s wide open, it’s up to us to put a positive run together now and finish as high as possible.
“It was good to get the job done against Morton and, hopefully, this will be the turning point.”
Two fine finishes – a first-time Scott Robinson shot from six yards to convert Jack McMillan’s cross and a 25-yarder from 21-goal Brian Graham – put the Jags in the driving seat.
But their defensive worries haven’t gone away. The Jags have kept just one clean sheet in the last 20 league matches, Cameron Blues missed a sitter and they were ball-watching when Robbie Muirhead scored with a diving header in stoppage time.
Despite that, Lawless argues that was an improvement on recent outings.
“We’re back on track now but I’m still not happy that Morton scored because we’d looked a lot more solid and compact as a team against them,” he said.
“That gives us forward players the base to go and create chances, knowing we have that behind us.”
Lawless also singled out former Hearts hitman Robinson – making just his tenth start of an injuryplagued campaign – for a man of the match display.
“I’ve known Robbo since he was 10, when he was with Hearts and I was at Motherwell,” he revealed. “So I know what he brings to the table. Robbo can be massive for us between now and the end of the season.
“He’s had injuries since he’s been here but that was possibly his best display since he came here.”
This was Morton’s first away defeat since they lost at Firhill in November but midfielder Grant Gillespie believes the drive which saw them go unbeaten in 16 between November and February can put them back in contention.
“We had a sticky patch but ended up on a run that saw us sitting just three points off third in the league,” he pointed out.
“We’ve just got to keep believing in each other.”