Dougie MacDuff played down Irvine Victoria’s surge for the title and insists his players will stay humble in the pursuit of success.
The Westenders thumped second-placed Lanark United 4-0 on Saturday to move five points behind leaders Ardrossan Winton Rovers with four games in hand.
Vics will continue their push for promotion from the West of Scotland League Third Division at home to Port Glasgow this weekend.
And gaffer MacDuff is guarding against any complacency creeping in.
He said: “The first thing I said to the boys at the beginning of the season was let’s make sure we don’t get relegated.
“We’re in a great position and we’ve got to continue that but we’re not getting carried away. One loss can change everything.
“We’re only as good as our last game and I tell the players that every week. There will be no complacency here.”
Two goals in each half earned the Westenders another three points and ensured leaders Winton can see them in their rear-view mirror.
MacDuff’s men are five points behind Winton but have the luxury of four games in hand as the season builds to an exciting finale.
Backed by a big, noisy travelling support, Vics passed this particular test in South Lanarkshire with second-placed Lanark no match for MacDuff’s attack-hungry team.
Indeed, such was the dramatic pyrotechnics welcome from the Vics fans, Lanark looked like they were a goal down before the game even kicked off.
Alessandro Savarese and Chris Jackson netted in the first half for Vics with Shane Jackson and big Kevin Adam on target in the second period.
Lanark weren’t without their chances – Vics keeper Owen McCallum tipped Deryn Lang’s overhead kick onto the bar moments after his side had gone 2-0 up – but there was no doubting who deserved to win the contest.
“We had a great result last week [against Ardrossan] and we had to carry that forward to this week,” said boss MacDuff as dance music blared out of the Vics dressing room.
“We’ve got to beat the teams around us to climb up this league.
“We’ve not been in the top two all season – and we’re still not there yet!
“But the players were absolutely amazing. They worked their socks off from the first whistle and I couldn’t ask any more from them.
“I thought we thoroughly deserved our win.
“The thing about us is that we are an attacking side. We love to get on the front foot, get forward and try and create things.
“There are so many games still left to play and we’ve got to show this attitude in every match, not just for the games against the top teams.”
Savarese’s shot-on-the-turn opened the scoring in the 24th minute and the lead was doubled six minutes later when James Maxwell’s cross was headed home by Chris Jackson.
McCallum’s save then proved crucial with Vics three up inside a minute of the restart when Adam’s lay-off for Shane Jackson saw him cut inside and find the bottom corner of the net.
In the 72nd minute, Maxwell crossed for Adam to nod in. Jordan Conlon and Jack Hamilton came close for Lanark in their quest for a consolation but it was too little and far too late.
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