Cove Rangers manager Paul Hartley has told his players it is time to stand up and be counted in the race for a play-off spot.
Cove are fifth in League One, one point behind Montrose, who missed the chance to extend their lead to four points when they suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat at relegated Edinburgh City on Tuesday.
With second-placed Alloa – who have come out on top in all three previous meetings between the sides in this campaign – set to visit Balmoral Stadium on Saturday (5.30pm), Hartley insists his side has to change that record.
He said: “Alloa are one of the teams we’ve struggled against.
“Andy Graham has done a good job there and has really good attacking players who have caused us problems this season.
“We’re the later kick-off, which means we’ll know where we’re at before a ball is kicked. But we need to win regardless – there’s no room for error.
“We need to win games and the players know that.
“There are three games left and we know what we need to do.
“It would be nice to rely on someone else to help you, but you can’t.
“This is the game where we need to stand up and be counted.”
‘Defence needs to tighten-up’
Cove manager Hartley is looking for a much-improved defensive display after watching his side ship four goals in their 4-2 defeat at Annan Athletic last weekend.
Hartley’s side have conceded 57 goals in 33 league matches this season, and with three goals separating his team and the Gable Endies, the Cove boss knows every goal counts in the last three matches.
He said: “We need to be tighter defensively as we’ve conceded too many goals.
“The goals against column doesn’t lie, so we need to be better.
“We had a lot of good attacking play last week, and when you score two goals away from home, you expect to get something.
“It’s so nip and tuck between the teams, and I’ve said to the players goal difference might be the difference between being in the play-offs and missing out come the end of the season.”
Fears Fyvie’s season could be over
The Cove boss has had a depleted squad due to a lengthy injury list and midfielder Fraser Fyvie suffered a thigh injury at Annan.
There are fears Fyvie will play no part in the play-offs should Cove secure a place, but Hartley is hopeful he could have some absent players back available this weekend.
Hartley said: “Fyvie will be a few weeks. We’re not sure how long he’ll be out and potentially his season could be over.
“It’s another sore one for us and we’ve had so many injuries to contend with. There’s not much we can do.
“If we could get a couple back this week, it would be nice, but we’re never quite sure.
“We might have Mitch Megginson and Blair Yule back. They’ve potentially got a chance of being involved.
“Nick Suman suffered a knock last week, so we’ll need to see how he is – and the rest are still out.
“It has been hard on everyone, but the players just have to go again.
“It’s not been ideal and we haven’t been able to pick our strongest team for months.
“We’ve had players on the bench who shouldn’t be on the bench because of injuries.
“But we just have to keep our heads down, work away and try to get results.”
Conversation