Sunday 30th April, 2017 at 11:15am
Kris Doolan added another goal to his ever growing Thistle tally at Tynecastle on Saturday as he played 90 minutes and helped his side clinch a point in an entertaining 2-2 draw. He spoke to ptfc.co.uk shortly after full time to give his views on the game.
“That wasn’t a bad result at all and I think we can come away with our heads held high because we put on a good show there today. A draw is maybe the right result to be fair because, at the end of the day, both teams had chances.
“I think both sides might think they could have nicked it but we feel like we’ve shown that we’re here to compete against these teams. We aren’t here just to lie down. From a neutral’s point of view it was probably a good game because there were lots of chances and it was quite end to end at times.”
Thistle twice took the lead but the major talking point was the second booking for handball inside the box that saw a penalty awarded to the home side and a second yellow for Jags centre back, Daniel Devine.
“We take the lead which was great.but then going down to 10 men is probably a bit harsh. That took the wind out of us a bit but we worked hard and did really well to go back into the lead when we did. It maybe could have been more but in the end it was a good point to take from a tough team.”
Tomas Cerny pulled of a number of top class saves across the 90 minutes and having the Czech stopper between the Thistle posts is certainly a source of comfort for the Maryhill number nine.
“”Tomas is probably one of the best goalies in the league – he’s certainly up there with anyone else. He has made some outstanding save today and kept us in it at times. He’s been like that all season though, keeping us in games at times and even winning points pretty much single handedly – he’s massive for us.”
Although Dools opener wasn’t the most spectacular he’ll ever score it was very typical of many that he has notched during the course of his career and he was just happy to see the ball hit the back of the net.
“I’ve probably not scored many fancy goals and it certainly wasn’t today! It’s a fantastic cross from Lawless and I actually said to him after the game that I don’t even think I shouted for it because I just knew he’d get it to me. As soon as he turned in the box I knew he was going to find me so I just had to find that space in the box and stick it away.”
Dools ended the game playing wide on the right and, although the position is unfamiliar, he insists the flexibility in the side is now one of its greatest strengths.
“When we went a man down we had to shuffle things about a bit and I ended up playing out wide, I’ve played there before though so I knew what was needed. We showed great character and battled right to the end which was brilliant to see.
“We played 25 minutes a man light today and I think that makes it a good point. Flexibility is key sometimes and I don’t think that was something we had when we first came up. We now have the players with the knowledge and ability to play in different areas and that is key at times. We’re able to play a much more fluid system ant that went a long way to earning us a point today.”
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