ALAN ARCHIBALD, the Partick Thistle manager, is adamant that his players cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves as they seek an end to their frustrating form.
The Firhill side have taken just seven points from seven league matches this season and are ninth in the SPFL Premiership table, ahead of the visit of Motherwell tomorrow afternoon.
Archibald was disappointed with a shoddy showing from his side as they suffered a 3-0 defeat by Kilmarnock last weekend. Archibald is now eager for his side to display much greater resolve in matches.
"You can either fight to get it back or you can feel sorry for yourselves. Unfortunately we went the latter way and I said that to them," said Archibald. "You've got to take responsibility, especially when some guys go off - important players who make things happen like Kallum Higginbotham. It's down to someone else to then take responsibility.
"I don't think it was a lack of spirit. It went 3-0 and we just thought we weren't getting back in the game. That's when all the other things kick in like an astroturf pitch and the extra-time in the previous game.
"I think players always look for excuses - you never hear them when you are winning. That's what happens in football but, I have to say, the performance isn't like them. Hopefully it's just a blip and we get back to normal this week."
Defeat last weekend was Thistle's fourth in this campaign, with the players failing to build on the League Cup win over St Mirren.
A lack of consistency cost Archibald's side dear last season, too, as they narrowly missed out on a seventh-place finish. However, the manager is determined to keep looking at the positives to help spark a sustained run of form.
"You have to get the spirits up and you can't dwell on it for too long, you've got to move on," said Archibald. "You don't want to drag video analysis on for too long and keep bringing up how terrible they were as that will then be the first thing they think of when they cross the line.
"You want to be positive. It's not just the results that are inconsistent. We're only doing it for spells in games, 40 or 60 minutes at times. Last year we were dominating matches and we want to get back to that. To do that you need to be brave on the ball and if you do that the consistency and the results should follow."
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