ALL IN THE SAME BOAT
Canning says unity will help Accies to a good season
Hamilton boss Martin Canning says everybody has a part to play in their campaign this season – whether it’s players, staff or fans.
Canning says if everybody pulls together they can pick up results like Saturday’s 1-0 derby win at Motherwell.
The gaffer also knows Accies will go through spells where they won’t pick up points – and says that’s when the unity will matter most.
He said: “It’s great win for the fans. But I’ve always said the same thing, that it’s important we all stick together as much as we can.
“There are going to be times in a season when we’re going to have dry spells, when we don’t pick up as many points as we would all like.
“And there are going to be times when we have great days like that, when you go to your local rivals and win, there’s no better feeling.
“Whether it’s players, staff, management team, fans, it’s important that we all work in one direction, we all work hard together, and results like this hopefully help that.”
Hamilton’s winner came courtesy of substitute Steven Boyd’s sensational volley, and Canning said his whole squad has a part to play.
“It was fantastic,” he said. “It has been a tough spell, but everybody has kept their head down, kept working hard. We spoke through the week about defending your box; Motherwell put a lot of balls in the box, a lot of balls forward, and you have to defend that well.
“We did that, and then Steven Boyd popped up with something a bit special to win the game, which is fantastic for him.
“It’s about the squad, it’s about the team, and the importance of guys coming onto the pitch and having an impact.
“Last week against Hearts Ross Cunningham came on and had an impact, he had an impact on Saturday and was unfortunate not to get himself on the score-sheet as well.
“It’s important that we’re one squad, that we work together, and results like that hopefully give the boys belief that they can compete at this level.
“It’s a huge win. Obviously you want to get off the mark in the league, and we go to Parkhead next, which will be a difficult match against the champions, so on the back of that, it was important to get points on Saturday.
“It was a good day for everybody – fans, players, staff, it’s just a good one to win.”
Hamilton are idle this weekend due to Betfred Cup second round games, and then visit Celtic on August 26.
Canning hopes the Fir Park triumph will give his side a boost, and said: “We know that it will be a difficult game, but we’ve gone there before and competed well. We need to go there and compete and see if we can take something from the game.”