Stranraer v Airdrieonians preview
28th March 2014
Manager Gary Bollan says it smells like team spirit at Airdrieonians after an excellent run of just one defeat in 10 games.
The Diamonds are seven points clear of rock-bottom Arbroath and three ahead of ninth-placed East Fife in the League One table ahead of Saturday's trip to Stranraer.
A 5-1 thumping of Forfar Athletic last weekend has only increased expectation among the fans that Airdrie's survival bid will end in a positive outcome.
And Bollan believes a happy dressing-room unit is the main building block for any successful team.
He said: "When you're down at the bottom and things aren't falling for you then you can lose your confidence. But we've regained it over the last eight or nine weeks. We're a match for anyone.
"We're playing as a tight unit and we're defending better. We aren't conceding as many goals as we were earlier in the season.
"It is credit to the players for the hard work they've put in at training but we're still in a difficult position. We're not out of it yet.
"There is a great atmosphere about the dressing room. There is a good team spirit and at a football club that is massive.
"I think the players are looking forward to their football every Saturday on the back of these results and long may that continue.
"We've got to maintain this momentum until it is mathematically impossible for us to be relegated."
The Diamonds lost 3-1 at Stranraer in November but held Stevie Aitken's men to a 1-1 draw at New Broomfield in January – a measure of the improvement the team has showed.
"The teams directly above us will be looking over their shoulder but our focus is on the next game," Bollan added. "It's not about looking any further forward.
"Stranraer is a difficult place to go but we will go there with confidence and will be in a totally different frame of mind compared to last time."
Airdrie are without on-loan Partick Thistle winger Caolan McAleer who will serve the second game of a two-match suspension.