Following a pair of exasperating defeats, Livingston boss David Martindale said he had to make changes.
Ultimately, he didn’t stir the pot too much and the Lions got back to winning ways at the weekend as they defeated St Johnstone 1-0.
Stephen Kelly was the only change to the starting line-up and the midfielder turned in a brilliant performance on his full Lions debut.
That meant Bruce Anderson had to settle for a place on the bench again, while Sean Kelly kept his place in the heart of the defence despite a tough couple of weeks.
Kelly missed a penalty in the defeat to St Mirren before making a crucial error that led to the only goal in their loss to Ross County.
Martindale, though, explained his thought process and said he was ‘delighted’ with the centre-back’s display against their Perth visitors.
Speaking to the Courier, he commented: “It’s easy to react with emotion on the day. We all do it. But for me, I have to take the game right down to every detail.
“Did we play badly against Ross County? No. I thought we were brilliant between the two boxes and it’s been one mistake that led to the only goal and we’ve been beaten.
“But players all over the park made mistakes in that game because ultimately we didn’t score and we got beat.
“I’ve always said there’s a way in the team and there’s a way out the team and overall the performance was very good. I think the players had credit in the bank to go out there and correct it and that’s what they did. I didn’t think there was a need for any drastic changes.
“I was really delighted especially for Sean because of the last couple of games but he’s a brilliant player and when he’s in the team, he’s that link between the defence and the rest of the team. He lets us play.
“His use of the ball is fantastic and that gives the rest of the team a platform, whether he plays at centre-half or whether he’s in the midfield.”
Despite being last season’s top scorer, Anderson has yet to start a league game this term and Martindale says he wants to see more from the striker when handed chances in the reserves as he looks to force his way back into the team.
He said: “I had a word with Brucey and told him I need more from him in the reserve games. Kurtis has the jersey just now and although he’s not scoring the goals that we’d like him to, his general overall play has been very good.
“The reserve games are there for people to stand out and stake a claim for a place in the team. I thought Stephen Kelly did that and that’s why he was starting against St Johnstone but I don’t think anyone else stood out, although there were plenty of good performances.
“I see all the comments online about Bruce and I get it. He will get his chance and he needs to be ready to take it. He has to keep his head down and work hard and his time will come.
“The benefit of having reserve team football back this season is that you can get guys playing and earning a place in the first-team.”
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