Peterhead goalkeeper Brett Long says players could be playing for their futures in the Blue Toon’s remaining games.
Jim McInally’s side have four games left this season and are four points clear of the relegation play-off place.
That spot is currently occupied by Dumbarton, who welcome Peterhead on Saturday.
The club has perhaps underachieved for what their players expected at the start of the season, however, for management and the Blue Toon hierarchy survival has been the main goal.
Numerous players find themselves out of contract at the end of the season and may well be looking to keep themselves in McInally’s thoughts for next year.
“We want to finish the season as strong as possible,” said Peterhead stopper Long. “Nobody knows what’s going to happen next season – with contract talks, they’re waiting to see what league we’re going to be in.
“The manager will be wanting a sore head with what players to pick. Everyone needs to perform to keep in his thoughts and other people will be fighting for contracts.
“I’ve loved it here. The fans have been great with me and I’ve really enjoyed it. I’d been at East Fife the last few years and they are struggling this year.
“We’d missed out on the play-offs in the last three seasons. Last season was the toughest one to take as we missed out on goal-difference.
“It was my time to move on and Peterhead has proven to be a great choice.”
After a run of one win in 12 games, the Buchan outfit have recorded back-to-back wins against Clyde and Falkirk to boost their survival hopes.
In the process they have kept two shutouts and turned their impressive recent performances into concrete results.
“I can’t complain with two clean sheets,” added Long. “The boys have been doing fine and we’ve been gelling more as the weeks go on.
“When we played Falkirk, we were the much better team. They only had one or two shots on target and I did my job to keep the ball out of the net.
“When you’re going into these games not conceding many goals, you’re going to have a chance.”
The relegation battle at the foot of League One has become a three-horse race in recent weeks, but East Fife are now looking destined for the fourth tier, being seven points adrift.
But Dumbarton will still be scrapping for points to get to safety, with a win against Peterhead on home soil vital to their chances of avoiding the relegation play-offs.
“They are fighting for their lives and we just need to keep them at bay, making sure we get the win,” said Long.
“It’s a massive game, probably the biggest one of the seasons for us. We prepare for each game the same, but this one means so much to both teams.”
