Andrew Considine previewed the trip to Fir Park on Saturday. The defender started by speaking about his recent inclusion into the AFC top 20 all-time appearance list.
“I knew I was quite close but I am absolutely delighted to be part of the list and it was nice to read about it in the programme on Saturday.
“If I had not had those two serious injuries I could have racked up a few more appearances but that is football. I am delighted to have played as many games as I have up to now and to be in the top 20. It is a great achievement and an honour.
“There are some cracking names in that top 20, some real legends of the club. So I am in very good company! Russell is in 6th spot with 407 appearances so I will need to play for a few more seasons to reach him! We will wait and see how far up the list I can get.
“I can only thank all the managers who have been here, they have all had trust in me to play. It is a great club. I have loved playing here ever since I was a young boy, I signed here when I was 16. It is a real family club. All the staff are fantastic, it is a great place to work every day.
“I always tell the young boys they have a very good thing here. They get well looked after so it is a cracking club to be a part of.
“We are on a good run again, having won our last three matches after the disappointment of the St Johnstone game so the confidence is high. In those games we have played some decent football in spells and also looked quite solid as a team. Hopefully we can take that form into Saturday.
“We know how important it is for us to be strong at the back.
“Between Mark, Ash and myself, we have all played the past couple of seasons together. Even when I have played at left back, it has allowed me a chance to build up an understanding with them both. I have played with Mark for about five years now and Ash for a couple. We all have a good understanding and it is something we work on in training every day. We all get on well.
“At the other end of the park we also have a part to play.
“Ash has chipped in with some important goals recently, Shay as well. I scored against Partick. I still don’t know what I was doing up there! The gaffer asked me after the game and I had no idea. I think we must have had a corner or a free kick and I stayed up.
“The more players who helped out the teams the better.
“To have qualified for Europe, it is another fantastic achievement. The boys can give themselves a little pat on the back, it has been another good season, minus the cups. It would have been nice to have a run in the cup competitions but league wise we have been strong and the qualifying already highlights the consistency.
“The manager has built a good squad which we have seen recently. Despite missing some key players, others have come in and done a job.
“Although it is a relatively young squad, we still have the experience of Barry and Willo and they have made a difference. It is very important to have players like that in the dressing room at this stage of the season. Barry has been outstanding in the last couple of games.
“We know what we have to do. We know how important wins are at this stage of the season. We have to get results. We know we can’t afford to slip up. The boys all know what is needed from them. There is still a long way to go yet. We have to take each game as it comes. We can’t worry about what other teams are doing. We just have to look after ourselves.”
