Josh Mullin is adamant Raith Rovers’ confidence has not been dented by a slump that has cost them top spot in the Championship.
The Kirkcaldy men succumbed to a 2-1 defeat to Queen’s Park on Saturday, despite taking the lead after just two minutes with Jack Hamilton’s header.
They failed to capitalise on that early advantage, however, and defensive frailties cost them the chance to leapfrog over Dundee United and back to the summit of the second-tier.
Cameron Bruce’s stunning leveller before half-time and a thumping header from debutant Sean Welsh 10 minutes after the restart left Raith with a record of just one win from their last five matches.
It was also a first defeat at home since April last year – and just a second since Queen’s Park won 5-2 in November 2022.
Now second in the table on goal difference, and with United enjoying a game in hand, the high of the victory at Tannadice in mid-December has quickly disappeared.
However, Mullin insists self-belief remains intact within the Stark’s Park squad as they bid to pull off a shock against Livingston in the Scottish Cup this weekend.
He said: “It’s frustrating. When you don’t take your chances, you always leave yourselves that wee bit vulnerable.
“It’s the best we’ve started in a while. I thought in the first 30 minutes or so we started really well.
Punished
“Even in training you can see the confidence is still there. Sometimes you can see it’s flat.
“But that wasn’t the case. We had a really good week’s training after Airdrie because we knew it wasn’t acceptable – all over the pitch.
“Saturday was just one of those days where we didn’t take our chances and we got punished for it.
“If we had taken our chances it was a whole different story.”
Raith moved five points clear of United with that 1-0 win over the Tangerines on December 16.
But since then Ian Murray’s team have picked up just five points from a possible 15.
Asked if they had struggled with the heightened expectations of going top of the table, Mullin added: “I wouldn’t say so, because everyone is tipping Dundee United [for the title] and there is no pressure on us at all.
“We’ve got experienced boys in the squad, myself included, who have been through it.
“There’s nothing like that creeping in. The boys still believe, but you’re going to hit a blip.
“We’ve been that good that you’re saying the blip is two draws and two defeats. It looks a lot worse than it is.
‘Great group’
“But we have a great group in there, so we’ll get there.”
Raith took the scalp of Motherwell in last season’s Scottish Cup before falling to a 3-0 defeat to Rangers in the quarter-finals.
They also got the better of Aberdeen as recently as August 2021 in the League Cup.
Livingston, six points adrift at the bottom of the Premiership, appear vulnerable with a woeful record of no wins from their last 13 matches.
But Mullin is fully aware Rovers will need a step up in quality to threaten a shock.
He said: “Raith played Motherwell last season and gave a great account of themselves, so everybody will be looking to do the same next weekend.
“Livingston are in a tricky spell as well. We’re going to a team that’s not sitting top of the Premiership and flying.
“But you’ve still got to go there and give them respect. They’re a Premiership team and have been for the last six years.
“We’ll go there and be positive, like we always are, and try to get back on track.
“We would like at this point to win any game. We obviously beat Dunfermline three games ago now but we want to kick on again with another win.”
