In-form Kelty looking forward to crack at Pars

KELTY HEARTS boss John Potter has described Saturday’s derby with Dunfermline as “brilliant” for the club and has urged his players to enjoy it.

The second meeting of the teams, and the first between them at East End Park, will take place on the back of the tabletopping Pars losing for the first time this season in League One, at Montrose, and Kelty recording their first away win, at Falkirk.

Alfredo Agyeman’s first half double, added to by Darren Lyon in the second half, sent them on their way to a 3-2 success at the Falkirk Stadium, and a third win in a row.

A delighted Potter felt his team deserved their second victory in two games with the Bairns, and is now looking forward to locking horns with the club he has served as a player, coach and head coach.

“It’s a brilliant game again for the club and the area, going to Dunfermline with a big crowd,” he told Press Sport.

“It’s the top of the league team at their place. Obviously it’s a great result today, and we have to enjoy this, and get ready to go again next week.

“It’s a really, really tough league for where we are and where we’ve came from. It was a tough start to the season, but we’re now in a good bit of form. We just need to keep it going; it can change very quickly.

“For the club, and for us as staff and players, it’s a brilliant thing to go there. We’ve got to go and enjoy it. That’s the words I said today; go out and enjoy it, but you enjoy it by winning games and playing well.

“We did that today and hopefully we can do that next week.”

As well as Potter, Joe Cardle, Kallum Higginbotham, Jason Thomson and Lewis Martin, who Potter was hopeful would resume training this week, are all formerly of Athletic.

When it was put to him there would be no shortage of motivation in his side’s ranks, Potter replied: “It’s great, it’s brilliant for us to go to Dunfermline.

“I was there last year when I was at Queen’s Park, and it’s a brilliant place to go and play football.

“It’s grass that we’ve not really played on too much as well.

“It’s one we’re looking forward to, one a lot of the players will be looking forward to. It’s a tough game, against a very good team that don’t give much away.

“They’re top of the league for a reason. It’ll be a tough game but one that we can look forward to.”

Potter, who hopes striker Nathan Austin will soon be able to resume training after an injury picked up at FC Edinburgh earlier this month, felt that registering their first away league win was a weight off his players’ shoulders.

He also reckoned it was a result that was coming, commenting: “A couple of weeks ago at FC Edinburgh, we actually looked at our early season games away from home, and we were actually good, and just missed a lot of chances and gave away sloppy goals.

“We’ve had a couple of performances that have been under-par, Peterhead and Edinburgh. The rest probably haven’t been that bad, but we’ve lost them.

“I think it has been coming.

“First goals are vital, it gives you confidence in the games, and to come to a place like the Falkirk Stadium and score three goals is great.”

Michael Tidser, who was substituted on Saturday after picking up a first half knock, is expected to be fit for the short trip to East End Park.