Wednesday 9th July, 2014 at 6:33pm
Following Thistle’s victory over FC Pinatar Arena last night, Alan Archibald reflected on the benefits of the game as well as the impact his younger players had on proceedings.
Alan said: “It has been a hard week of training and today was always going to be more about fitness than the result. The score really didn’t matter, obviously it’s good to get a win but the workout was more important.
“We’ve been working the boys hard this week and that certainly showed in the first half, I think we looked a bit leggy to be honest but things really picked up after the break and we played some good stuff at times.”
The temperature soared during the day on Wednesday and it wasn’t really until the second half that it began to cool down. The heat wasn’t a major issue for Archie though, even if the opposition were more adjusted to the conditions.
He said: “I think the other team were obviously more used to the conditions out there and perhaps that had something to do with our improvement in the second half when the temperature dropped. I don’t know though, it wasn’t a massive issue for us as we’ve trained in the heat all week.”
A series of substitutions in the second half brought new life to the game and a number of Thistle’s younger players really shone through.
“The young lads have trained ever so well, we brought them along with us and they’ve settled in brilliantly. Most of them have been training just as well as the regulars. I think that showed when we gave them a chance in the second half and they really did very well.”
Despite the result Archie knows there is more to come from his team but is confident that, by the time the season starts, they will be more than ready for the challenge.
“If I’m honest I think the guys have looked sharper but a lot of that is down to the dry surface we were playing on and also the temperature, both of which had a big impact on the game. Having said that the sharpness is coming, it will take a bit of time – there’s no doubt about that – but we still have a lot of time to work with them before the season starts. It’s looking good at this stage.”
