Peterhead face Stranraer on Saturday at Balmoor with a 3pm kick off.
The Blue Toon will look to extend their winning league run to 6 matches whilst the visitors will aim to replicate their performance last week against Elgin, where Stranraer ran out 3-1 winners after a 5 match losing streak in League 2. This is the 2nd time the two teams have come together this season with the reverse fixture resulting in a 2-1 victory for Stranraer; Peterhead’s last league loss.
Ryan Strachan reflects on the East Fife win and looks ahead to the Stranraer clash:
“Upon reflection of last week as a team, we have done well to maintain our momentum in a game that presented a lot of challenges. I didn’t feel we were ever fully at it last week in terms of the quality we want to impose on teams but we did enough to maximise points against a team who have really improved; not only performances but results recently. That for us is a positive that we can take into the remainder of the season – that if we are having an off day or our quality isn’t there, we can still grind out results and keep ticking away. We have said it since day 1; good teams find a way to overcome hurdles and I certainly felt we did that last week.
On to this weekend and we have another stiff opponent that we need to look to avenge an early season disappointment over. Stranraer haven’t been on the best of runs since that result but have recently picked up a victory so will head North with renewed confidence. We want to start with purpose and show our fans that coming to Balmoor isn’t an easy task. Hopefully we show the energy bravery and quality the fans want to see and get a really positive atmosphere going which will help us create momentum.
Team news – not much changes, Andy McCarthy will be missing but is pushing a return. Hamish Ritchie is growing ever closer to a full return, Kieran Gibbons and Conner Duthie are due operations in the coming weeks.”
A victory over Stranraer will ensure The Blue Toon remain top of the League 2 standings with Dumbarton, Spartans and Stenhousemuir all capable of clinching the top spot.
