PETER HOUSTON acknowledged the size of the task facing Falkirk in their bid to secure promotion to the SPFL Premiership as he committed to the club for a further two years, claiming that in any other season his side would be well clear in the SPFL Championship title race.

The former Dundee United manager and Scotland assistant yesterday agreed a new contract until the end of 2017-18 season along with his backroom team of Alan Maybury and James McDonaugh. Their decision to sign the extended deals adds to the general sense of wellbeing at the club despite the prospect of chairman Doug Henderson’s proposal for a 16-team restructure of the top flight being doomed to failure when all 42 teams meet at Hampden on Tuesday. Certainly, with his side three points behind Rangers and ahead of Hibernian on goal difference albeit with a game more played, Houston’s enthusiasm for the task at hand remains undiminished.

“I think it’s been the most difficult two years to get this team up,” he said. “In another season, we would be leading the league, comfortably, with the run of form we have been on but we’ve had to face two of Scotland’s biggest clubs in Rangers and Hibs with huge resources, bigger budgets, bigger amount of players, bigger crowds. Everything.”

“It has been a very enjoyable experience so far,” said Houston, the manager of the month for December. “I’m pleased that the directors think the club is going in the right direction. We have got to a cup final and we’ve kicked off this season exceptionally well but we’ve not done anything yet. One of the aims when I came in here was to try to get this football club back into the top league.”

One former Falkirk manager believes Houston is the perfect man to achieve that aim, citing his wealth of experience and his ability to keep a calm head as crucial traits that will benefit the team in the months ahead.

Alex Totten guided St Johnstone from the old Second Division to the Premier League in the space of three seasons, steered Alloa Athletic to the First Division in the 80s and took Falkirk to the 1997 Scottish Cup final.

Now commercial manager at the Stirlingshire club he watches them home and away every week and is ideally placed to assess the impact made by Houston since his appointment in 2014, even if he confesses that he just happens to be one of his best friends in the game. He notes the stance taken by him during the stand-off between Rangers manager Mark Warburton and his Hibs counterpart Alan Stubbs as evidence of why he has been such a success at Falkirk.

Totten said: “Peter was happy enough for them to slug it out. He’s only concerned with one team and that’s Falkirk. It’s nothing to do with Peter. He’s sensible about it and at the end of the day you have enough problems with your own club without getting involved with other clubs. It’s as simple as that. If they went to chuck abuse at each other that’s up to them. Peter prefers to keep his own counsel.

“He’s got a wealth of experience as a manager in his own right but also with the likes of Craig Levein at Dundee United, at Leicester, at Hearts and with Scotland. He’s the right age and he loves Falkirk. I play golf with him every Sunday with my son and my mate. After the cup final last year, we went to Vilamoura with Peter and two of my mates. I’m delighted he’s doing really well and I’m delighted that he’s signed a new contract because you want a bit of continuity at the club rather than chopping and changing all the time.”

Continuity has been the watchword around Falkirk this week: Danny Rogers, the on-loan Aberdeen goalkeeper, is likely to remain until the end of the season as is Conor McGrandles, who was sold to Norwich City for £500,000 in August 2014, but returned on a temporary deal this week.

“When he walked into the dressing room, the boys were delighted to see him,” he added. “You need competition and he gives us that. It helps that he grew up with young boys like Craig Sibbald and Blair Alston. Peter has got a good blend of youth and experience. The spirit is very good.”

One thing Totten is certain of is that Falkirk do not want to achieve promotion by the back door. Nevertheless, he still believes the league structure requires a serious rethink.

“Falkirk would prefer to go up automatically so that people couldn’t say it was done because of a reshuffle but for the whole of Scottish football, it is better for the game. Celtic won the European Cup in an 18-team league. In Germany, Spain and Italy, there are 20 teams in the league – they play a lot of meaningless games there. In the old days whenever Rangers or Celtic came to Brockville it was brilliant, everybody was geed up for it. Now it’s four times a season. It’s boring at times."