Lichties eye good ending, says Gold

David Gold is hoping Arbroath can end a season to forget on a positive note by upsetting the odds and defeating Raith Rovers at Stark’s Park tonight.

The Lichties have endured a torrid campaign, culminating in relegation to the Championship following a five-year stint in the second-tier.

Since their dramatic comeback from 2-0 down to defeat Raith 3-2 in early March, Jim Mcintyre’s side have lost nine successive league outings.

“Everybody associated with the club can see it has been an extremely disappointing year,” Gold said.

“It’s been tough mentally and physically for everybody involved. It’s not been good enough and been pretty embarrassing – so some bit of positivity on the pitch is needed.

“We need to go believe, try and actually enjoy our football, hopefully sign off on a good ending.

“There is a quality within the dressing room but it’s been nowhere near consistent enough and there has been far, far too many mistakes.

“That has let us down sadly. There’s no doubt we’ve got quality that we can hurt Raith Rovers but we’ll need to be at it because they’ve got a great squad with great depth.”

The midfielder signed a one-year extension to his deal at Gayfield earlier in the week, securing his future until 2026.

In recent weeks, Arbroath have announced contract extensions for Ryan Dow, Colin Hamilton and Scott Stewart, as well as the impressive signing of Calum Gallagher on a pre-contract deal from Airdrie.

Gold has been encouraged by the way in which his gaffer has gone about getting deals done early, and the 31-year-old hopes more good news will follow.

“I’m delighted, it’s nice to have that extra year of security, I’ve just moved into a new house – the twoyear deal gives you space to plan, prepare and that safety net,” he added.

“I think the gaffer made it pretty clear there was going to be changes and he’s wanted to do his business pretty early – that’s positive.

“Calum Gallagher is coming in, I’ve played against him for years and know just how good a player he is.

“Hopefully the gaffer’s other targets are of a similar quality because it would be good for the club and the fans.”

Raith will be hoping to sign-off their league campaign with a win as they look forward to the chance to claim promotion to the top-flight via the play-offs.

Ian Murray’s side have enjoyed a tremendous season in which they have come up just short of claiming the league title.

Gold does not anticipate Rovers will take their foot off the gas for what is essentially a dead-rubber encounter, instead warning that the reward of a starting berth in the play-off matches will act as a driving force.

He added: “Raith have had a great season, their best in years – full credit to them they’ve done very well.

“I was in that position a couple of years ago and everybody will be trying as hard as they can to get a game in the play-offs.”

SECURITY: David Gold, pictured with Raith’s Ross Matthews, has extended his contract.