Ross County manager Tony Docherty says Partick Thistle are next yardstick for Staggies to reach
Tony Docherty believes a win over Partick Thistle this weekend would Ross County’s players a shot in the arm as momentum begins to build in Dingwall.
The Staggies have not lost in their last three matches, claiming five points out of nine.
More results will be needed to rise up the Championship table after a poor start to the campaign for a club expecting to challenge for the title, but it will by no means be a walk in the park on Saturday against Partick Thistle.
The Jags have already travelled north to Dingwall twice this season, winning 3-1 on each occasion against a team led by former manager Don Cowie.
As far as Docherty is concerned though, that only means the potential rewards of victory are even greater, with it being a big psychological boost if County can overcome a side who have already beaten them twice in recent months.
"There are yardsticks for every game and every training session, so it is about having a real focus on what the prize is” Docherty said.
"We have objectives, which we will keep internal at the moment, but it's important we don't look too ahead, and we have to stay in the game.
"We put our full emphasis on trying to execute a game-plan to get the better of Partick Thistle, who are a good team in this Championship.
"If we could do that, it would build more momentum, but in my experience, you have to put the hard yards in and that’s what I see the players doing.
"I can't comment on what happened previously, but it is about taking it game by game and we look at Partick like we would for any opponent.
"Partick Thistle are a good team with good options in wide areas as well as good attacking threats and a good way of playing, but they also have weaknesses and it is important we analyse their whole performances.
"If we can execute our game plan, we can deal with the out of possession actions then look to exploit any weaknesses. We will have to be at our best to pick up the points, but there is a real belief about the squad at the moment.”
Key to County’s chances may be a new-found defensive solidity in the side.
Back-to-back clean sheets in their last two league matches – the first time the Staggies have done that in almost a full year – should give plenty of confidence that they have a strong base to build from in matches.
"A platform to win games is based on clean sheets and based on your defensive work, and I've got to praise the team for being outstanding defensively last Saturday,” Docherty reasoned.
"There was a frustration from all of us, which is good because there has to be standards set, but if I focus on the defensive side of the performance it was outstanding.
"I think the introduction of Trevor Carson has brought a real steeliness and security to the side, as well as a strong mentality about keeping clean sheets.
"St Johnstone are the league leaders for a reason, but having looked back at the game everything we did out of possession was really good which typified the mentality of the squad.
"For example, Ronan Hale never played the type of game you would expect from him. He ran the hardest in terms of distance covered for his teammates, yet he still got an opportunity to win the game.
"It's not just about Trevor Carson and the back four keeping a clean sheet. It's the whole team.
"If we can use that and try to get better going the other way, which we have shown in other performances, then we can then try to get the complete package.”