Ross County midfielder Jordan Tillson believes the Staggies have shown the qualities they are going to need for the Premiership run-in.
County battled back from a goal down twice to secure a draw against Kilmarnock at the weekend and are still in the thick of the battle to survive in the top-flight.
However, Tillson reckons their display against one of the teams fighting alongside them at the bottom of the table should provide encouragement.
The Dingwall outfit are without a game this weekend due to the Scottish Cup and return against St Mirren next Wednesday. Their remaining games after that include trips to Dundee United and Motherwell, either side of a home game against Hamilton Accies.
Tillson said: “We’ve set a bit of a precedent of how we have to play. We have to play a competitive style and be really physically and strong. Every one to a man stood up and showed what we’re about.
“We have to do that every game now. We’ve got four more cup finals to work hard and make sure we’re in a good position come the end of the season.
“We’ve got a bit of momentum now and we’ll be ready for St Mirren. Hopefully we can replicate what we did on Saturday.
“We’re going to need a real steel and hard graft. Everyone is going to have to make sure we out-work teams. It’s going to be a fight and we know that.
“Coming back twice (against Kilmarnock) shows a real psychology in our favour and how strong a character we’ve got. It shows if it happens again we can come back and come back strong from it.
“It’s definitely something we’re going to have to spin in our favour and show how mentally strong we are.”
Three points separate the bottom three, with County holding the marginal high ground in 10th. The two bottom sides Hamilton and Killie face each other on the final day of the season.
Tillson concedes it has now become a mini-league between the teams fighting it out to avoid the drop.
He added: “I think so. We just need to beat what’s put in front of us and look at each game individually. There’s not a lot we can do about the teams around us – we can just focus on ourselves and make sure we’re ready for the next game.
“Everyone knows the styles of teams now. It’s a different format because teams are fighting for relegation now and it’s going to be about who comes out the strongest.”
