The good ship Aberdeen has come through stormy waters in the last week.
When their backs have been to the wall and serious questions have been asked of their manager, the Dons players have delivered for Stephen Glass in his time of need.
Seven points from a possible nine – with two hugely contentious decisions at Ibrox denying the Dons a maximum return – has given everyone down at Pittodrie a spring in their step.
Glass has earned himself some breathing space thanks to a committed showing from his side in the last three games. Actually, that statement is unfair as it implies the previous results came from a side giving less, which is simply untrue.
What has changed is the Dons, in the matches against Hibernian, Rangers and Hearts at least, have stopped being a side bearing gifts every week.
For context, the Aberdeen backline has given the opposition just five shots on goal in the last three matches. That’s not per game, it is the combined tally.
Hibernian managed none, Hearts’ penalty in Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Pittodrie was their only effort on target, while Rangers had four in the 2-2 draw at Ibrox last midweek.
The supporters have certainly been appreciative of the team’s efforts judging by the goodwill shown towards the team during a difficult period.
Defender Ross McCrorie, in his post-match interview at Ibrox last week, stated his belief the Dons had turned a corner following the clean sheet against the Hibees and the draw in Glasgow.
Saturday’s come-from-behind win against the Jambos seems to suggest the team has regained the confidence and belief required after ending Hearts’ unbeaten start to the Premiership.
Glass’ side recovered from the loss of the first goal in three of their opening four league games to get points on the board, but had not done so since until Saturday.
Again, it gives cause for optimism, but there is one other issue which needs to be addressed in the weeks ahead.
Dons have struggled against the lower-placed sides
Let’s start with the good news.
A deeper delve into the results so far shows Aberdeen have had no issue holding their own against their opponents in the top half of the table.
The record against the rest of the top six shows a return of 11 points from the six matches to date. Three wins, two draws and just the one defeat to Celtic is a decent return for any side.
But the results against the sides in the bottom half of the table make for less enjoyable viewing for those with an interest in Aberdeen.
Just four points have been amassed from the six games against the bottom six, with the Dons having taken just one point from their five matches since beating Livingston 2-1 in their first away trip of the campaign at the Tony Macaroni Arena back in August.
That was the 1-1 draw against Ross County at Pittodrie, where Christian Ramirez struck late to deny the Staggies their first win of the season.
It does not take a genius to see where Aberdeen have clear and obvious room for improvement in the second round of fixtures.
A shell-shocked Motherwell, who beat the Dons 2-0 at Fir Park, will make the trip to Pittodrie on Saturday looking to bounce back from their 6-1 mauling from Rangers in front of their own support on Sunday.
Aberdeen would love nothing more than to keep their momentum going – as they head into the international break this weekend – by adding another three points to extend the feelgood factor around Pittodrie again.
Clearly, improving the return against the teams below them in the table will be crucial to Aberdeen’s hopes of closing the gap on their rivals above them in the weeks ahead.