Saturday 19th September, 2015 at 3:09pm
Frustration was the main emotion being felt by Alan Archibaldshortly after the full time whistle when he spoke to ptfc.co.uk.
‘That was extremely frustrating to watch. We started poorly, conceded an entirely avoidable goal, and struggled to match their workrate during the first half. We came into the game more as it wore on but the damage was already done.
‘We had told the lads that they would need to work hard and match the energy of Ross County. They were battling for every ball, and at times in the first half they were picking up every second ball too’
Liam Boyce’s goal seperated the sides and Archie was disappointed at the manner of conceding it.
‘It’s come from a free kick which we dealt with decently. They pressured us and we gift the ball right back to him[Jamie Reckord] and he has delivered a good cross into the box. Boyce has stolen a march on one of our defenders and headed home under very little pressure.
‘The game didn’t have many chances in it and we knew they would defend their lead with everything they had. We had a lotof the ball but we didn’t look like carving them open until the late stages of the game.’
Robbie Muirhead was brought on as a substitute and he injected some creativity into Thistle’s attacking play.
‘We put him on and told him to be direct and force them onto the back foot. All of our subs were intended to attack, which left us a little bit vulnerable at the back at times.
‘We’ve had a couple of good chances with Welshy in the first half before Muirhead and Lawless had the best chances in the latterstages.’Thistle take on Motherwell next week and Archie is keen tomake amends for a poor performance.
‘We’ll go in and pick the bones out of it on Monday, which we always do regardless of result. We know Motherwell is a massive game and we’ll work hard to formulate a plan which can see us emerge victorious from a very tough game at Fir Park.”
Finally, the manager had a special mention for Thistle’s debutant, Kevin Nisbet.
‘Kevin did well when he came on, he showed no fear and presented them with problems and he showed good awareness to create chances for others. Hopefully he’ll take confidence from today to continue his good start to the season in the Development League.’
