Battling win gives Cumbernauld a lift

John Queen’s men left Loch Park on Saturday with three points in their back pocket after a hard-earned 2-1 win that leaves them still second bottom, but only four points from a mid-table berth.

Queen said: “It was a good performance in may different ways. At times we had our backs to the wall defending, but we played good football, defended as a unit and just got rid of it when we need to.

“We always want to play football, but we’ve been telling them sometimes you just need to get rid of it, blooter it up the park, junior style.

“They’re young, and maybe a bit naive at times, we’re trying to get them to play with their heads a bit more - when you’ve got the ball late in the game and you’re holding on, when someone kicks you, go down, give your team a bit of a breather, don’t scramble to stay on your feet.

“That’s just part of the game these days.

“I think what we’re now seeing though with the team is a bit of stability with guys coming back from injury and getting fitness levels up.

“Looking at the table, we’re on nine points now. I think it gives the boys a bit of a lift to know we’re going the right way in the table.”

Cumbernauld are away again this weekend, to East Kilbride Thistle.

Queen added: “It’s another difficult game but if we play our way and work hard I’m confident we can get a win. When I look at the table, I don’t think we’ll be down where we are just now for long.

“It’s a tight table, there’s not much between a lot of the places. I think we’re just starting to find our feet and a bit of form now.”