Peterhead forward Russell McLean wants the Blue Toon to be more consistent as they chase League One progress.
One of the trade-offs of Peterhead having such a youthful squad is that consistency becomes harder to come by, but McLean has pointed to one of his former sides as a shining example.
Jim McInally’s side were beaten 3-1 at the weekend by Airdrieonians, bringing to an end their four-game unbeaten run.
For McLean it is about getting back to the form they had showed prior to that, which started with a crushing win against Dumbarton.
“In the first seven or eight games we hadn’t picked up many points but hadn’t been playing badly,” said McLean. “We didn’t deserve to be in the position we were in.
“We were going to give somebody a doing at some point. We know we’re capable of that – it’s just about doing it on a consistent basis, which is a hard thing with such a young team.
“We’ve got a young team for a reason, so we’re not going to use that as an excuse. You’re going to have times in games where guys maybe go into their shell because of a lack of experience.
“Montrose are probably one of the most consistent teams in League One. They never go on a run of four or five games getting beat.
“They use their experience – if they get a lead, they hold on to it. They use the experience of boys like Sean Dillon, Andrew Steeves, Cammy Ballantyne and Terry Masson. We’re maybe not in that position.
“These teams at the top of the table are capable of doing that and it’s something we need to bring into our game.”
Peterhead face derby rivals Cove Rangers this weekend, with eight points separating the two sides. The Blue Toon triumphed 3-1 in the League Cup at the start of the season, with Cove winning the only league encounter 1-0 at Balmoor.
“You look at their players and they’ve got good experienced pros that have played at the top level,” added McLean. “But we gave them as good as we got last time and go into the game with confidence.
“I know Scott Ross, Morgyn Neill and Ryan Strachan. I enjoy playing against Scott.
“It’ll be the same at the other end with Rory (McAllister) and Jason (Brown). We’ll be fighting with each other for 90 minutes.”
