Spartans skipper staying positive

Spartans skipper Wayne Buchanan is taking the positives from his side's Monday night 1-0 FA Cup exit at the hands of Workington, writes Mark Carruthers.

Buchanan believes their battling performance shows the Spartans have the right spirit despite being hit by some bad luck over the last two weeks and can quickly bounce back.

The captain was named Spartans Man of the Match for a solid display in the middle of the defence in the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round Replay and insisted they can take some pride after the poor show at Witton Albion in the FA Trophy 48 hours earlier that saw them dumped out of the competition at the first hurdle.

He said: "Me and Tom [Berj] have been talking and you have to stay positive. We all battled and battled hard tonight with a depleted squad. We all mucked in and pulled together and that's the way you have to do things. If you aren't having a great time personally at the very least you do the job for the team and work hard."

The former Bolton Wanderers man is keen for the Spartans to move on from two cup exits over the weekend and look to the future. He added: "The way we have to think is while we would love to be in both cup competitions we haven't lost any ground in the league. We should take a bit of heart from the game and the fact the boys stuck at it and worked hard for each other.

"Things weren't going well but we kept going to the final whistle and Craig [Farrell] was unlucky to not take it into extra time. The league is the main thing and yes, the FA Cup is important but the main objective is to get this club back into the Blue Square North."

Young winger Jake Turnbull made only his second Spartans appearance when he replaced fellow wideman Lee Mason during the first half. Buchanan praised the former Bedlington Terriers man but also gave the youngster some advice.

"I've just had a word with young Jake as he’s come in and shown flashes of what he can do. He has to believe in himself more though. You see him in training and he can do things that other players can’t. He is a good player and just needs to demand the ball more. Nobody will have a go at him for wanting the ball and demanding it. It shows confidence and it will come with age. I think he has maybe shown Tommy [Cassidy] that he can come in and do a job."