Raith Rovers manager Grant Murray says his side are determined to reignite their promotion challenge at Dumbarton tomorrow in the wake of their crushing defeat to Livingston.
The Kirkcaldy club dropped to sixth spot in the Championship after their 5-1 drubbing at home on Saturday, the sixth time this season they have conceded four or more in a competitive game, and the latest setback prompted criticism of Murray and the players from some quarters.
Although Rovers are four points off fourth spot and still in the Scottish Cup, fans frustrated at seeing just one win in nine league games have been quick to vent their anger in the past week and it’s something Murray is well aware of.
But the Rovers boss insists that he and the players are fully focused on getting last week’s loss out of their system at Dumbarton tomorrow.
“The fans pay their money and want to see their team winning, like any other set of fans who go and watch their team,” he said.
“There’s one thing for sure, you wouldn’t question the effort the boys had to put in going down to 10 men because we were still going at it.
“But the fourth goal killed the game completely because if we got that second goal and got back to 3-2 you’ve nothing to lose then you just throw everything at them.
“We were trying to throw things at them but you do leave yourself open at the back and that’s where it became four and Grant Anderson’s mistake made it five.
“That’s what the fans ultimately see, that scoreline, but for us it’s about getting the boys back out there battling and performing.
“One, winning games, and two, putting on performances that show that we’re capable of winning games, because that’s what the fans want to see.
“Obviously in a game like Saturday’s your players are going to be down after it, so it’s been up to us to get them picked up.”
A loss at Dumbarton would see tomorrow’s hosts leapfrog Murray’s men in the table, but that’s something Murray is looking to avoid at all costs.
“When you look at the points difference in the table you can see how massive a game it is,” he continued.
“After a defeat you want to bounce back and get back on the pitch as quickly as you can.
“When you come off after Saturday against Livingston, you look at the results and realise it would have been a great one to come away with the three points at home.
“We’ve not done that. We’ve now got to turn attention to this weekend at Dumbarton, and we know it’s a difficult place to go.
“We’ve got to be ready for it and although we’ve had a good result against them earlier on in the season it will count for nothing.
“We need to be totally focused and giving it everything to have any chance of getting the three points.”