Saturday 14th May, 2016 at 3:30pm
The curtain came down on the 2015/16 season with an entertaining 2-2 draw with Hamilton Accies. It was a content Alan Archibald who chatted with ptfc.co.uk shortly after the fulltime whistle.
“It was a good game for an end of season one. I think both teams had first team regulars missing and they just decided to go for it. After the initial 20 minutes of goals it settled down a little bit in terms of tempo, both sides struck the woodwork and we were unlucky not to see more goals.”
Thistle started brightly and scored two set piece goals.
“Set pieces haven’t been our strongest threat this season and we’ve had that with the last couple of games. The players did well to keep the ball alive and Dools and David have managed to nod them over the line.
“I thought we did well for a team that is missing so many regular players. We created a number of opportunities and were unlucky when Aidan Nesbitt hit the bar late on.”
Thistle finish on the same points tally as last season but the gaffer thinks we’ve progressed from last year.
“We’re in a much stronger position than we were this time last season. We’ve got players tied down on long term contracts and we’re just looking to add to the group rather than rebuild. We’ve got contract offers out to some of the guys and we’re hopeful that a few will sign them in the next few days.”
With the season concluded, the countdown resets for next season with 63 days until more competitive action.
“It’s always a quick turn around but even more so with the League Cup starting earlier. We’re going to go away and let the players enjoy their rest. For me the work doesn’t really stop as I look to bring in the best players I can for next season. We’re back in mid-June for Pre-season and that is where the hard work begins once again.”
Finally the gaffer had a word of thanks for the magnificent Thistle support. “I’m glad the fans got to finish the season on a high because they didn’t deserve for their season to finish on a loss. We’ve had a couple of sticky spells this season and they have stuck with us throughout the whole campaign. Without their support we couldn’t do anything on the pitch. I hope to see them all back in the stands again next season.”
