St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson is hoping for another Betfred Cup bounce.
Two wins against lower league opposition during the last international break worked wonders for the Perth side, who followed it up with an emphatic victory on the road at Hamilton to kickstart their Premiership campaign.
And, after securing their place in the last 16 of the cup competition by drawing with Dundee United and seeing off Peterhead, Davidson wants to return to league action with a bang again when Motherwell visit McDiarmid Park at the weekend.
“As long as we don’t concede three goals again, I’ll be fine!” he said, reflecting on the 5-3 win against Accies.
“Obviously winning is the most important thing and we did that at Hamilton. It was a big result.
“Playing the Betfred Cup games during the international break has been good for us.
“We’ve got minutes into players who needed them and competitive games into others, which is better than having a two-week break instead.”
He added: “Players want to be in with us just now. There isn’t a lot for them to do at home in the current circumstances.
“They’ve enjoyed training and playing. It keeps their mind off other things.
“I gave them a few days off when we had a free weekend recently and they were all a bit bored!”
My focal point is the attacking side now.
Saints have quietly constructed a seven-game unbeaten run. As well as Betfred Cup progression, the five wins and draws have taken them from bottom of the Premiership table to eighth.
“The run has been important,” said Davidson. “So has the fact that we’ve managed to keep a few clean-sheets.
“That’s a big thing for me. Being defensively good enables you to win games.
“We really want to keep building momentum.
“It helps players to believe in themselves. Hopefully that is happening with the last seven games.
“We were unlucky to lose a lot of games by one goal early in the season.
“My focal point is the attacking side now – converting our chances into goals and hopefully winning games more comfortably.
“Motherwell’s form has been quite good. They’ve changed their style recently and will give us a tough game – which is what you normally expect from them anyway.
“We thought we deserved something down there earlier in the season. They got an early goal that afternoon and that’s what we want to do this time around.”
