League 2 leaders Arbroath face a tough test this weekend when third-placed Queen’s Park visit Gayfield and striker Paul McManus would not have it any other way.
The Red Lichties sit seven points clear of second-placed Albion Rovers and eight ahead of the Spiders and McManus said: “We have made a good start but that is all it is. We are not getting carried away as the lead is only a few points from Albion Rovers and Queen’s Park.
“If it gets to 15 or 20 points later in the season then we might view things differently but at the moment we are not talking about anything other than the next game. The manager is insistent on that and we are sticking to it.
“This is the best start to a season I have had. At East Fife we had a huge squad made up of players recruited from higher divisions so we were always looking to lead from the start. However, I don’t think the start to that season was as good as nine wins from 10 games.”
Arbroath’s opening run is all the more remarkable when you consider that player/manager Paul Sheerin left in June to become the U20 coach of Aberdeen and new gaffer Allan Moore inherited a far from full squad.
McManus said: “It was a blow losing Paul in the summer as he was a top manager and a top bloke on and off the pitch. It was a bit unsettling when Paul left so soon before the start of the season however you could tell from the first training session that the new boss and his assistant Todd Lumsden were quality. They work you hard but they instil a lot of confidence in you.
“We have scored five goals against Clyde and Montrose and four against East Stirling and I am delighted to have played my part by hitting 10 so far.
“Throughout my career I have been able to make space for my attacking colleagues and I am doing that here as well. If I am doing that then Bobby Linn, Simon Murray and Kevin Buchan will hurt teams and Dylan Carreiro, who we have in from Dundee, is great at finding space as well.”
As for facing Gus MacPherson’s team, McManus said: “Queen’s Park have done very well in the league. It was a tough game when we played them early in the season and even though we won 2-0 the game could have gone either way. It was 0-0 at half-time and they had a goal disallowed.”
McManus also called the news that goalkeeper David Crawford has been ruled out for the rest of the season due to a knee injury a ‘real blow’.
The 29-year-old shot-stopper, who made headlines recently when he scored for the Gayfield men against Montrose, was injured against Nairn County in the Scottish Cup on Saturday and he now faces a long spell on the sidelines.
McManus said: “We are having a good start to the season but this news has put a bit of a dampener on things. David is a big figure on and off the park and he will be missed.
“We have had a few injuries recently and the players that have come in have done well and I sure it will be the same with Scott Morrison who looks set to replace David.”
Craig Stewart
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