Young guns get pat on back

WELL DONE, MATE... Chris Taylor (near side) and James Tarkowski celebrate victory at the final whistle.

ATHLETIC boss Paul Dickov heaped praise on his young guns after a solid, albeit unspectacular showing in the 1-0 triumph over Tranmere.

Veteran forward Shefki Kuqi finally ended his barren spell in front of goal by converting a 46th-minute penalty at Boundary Park.

And, while Dickov was delighted to see the Finn find the target, he reserved special words of encouragement for those at the other end of the age scale.

“Shefki had not scored for a while, but he kept putting in the hard work week-in, week-out and it shows the character of the man. I am pleased for him," said the Scot.

“I thought we played well without being at our best. But what was particularly pleasing was the fact we managed to keep a clean sheet, having lost 5-0 in the previous game.

"It was a good, professional performance. Tranmere nearly beat Charlton a week ago – they are a good team and very threatening from set-piece situations, so the boys can be pleased with themselves.

"We could have scored more goals and made it more comfortable. Robbie missed a couple of chances, but we defended well.

"We had a young side out there – if you take Shefki out of the equation, the average age of our team was 21, and they all did well.

"Young Tarky (James Tarkowski) was magnificent at the back.

“I have likened him to Richard Dunne in the past and now he is fully match-fit we are seeing the benefit. He has turned from a boy into a man.

"David Mellor and Carl Winchester came in and did great.

“A lot of people have been calling for them to come in, but there are a lot of factors to consider, not always directly related to football.

"We have to look after these boys, but they did well for the reserves during the week and stepped up against Tranmere as well."

Dickov believes the way in which his side saw out the game and defended without any major hitches is evidence of a better mentality this term.

He added: "Gerry (Taggart, assistant manager) said to me in the dressing room after the game that we might have lost this game last season.

"But everyone did their job. We bang on at them about doing the simple things right and it goes to show when they do it, it gives them a foundation on which to build.

"The challenge now is to take this form into the next game, at home to Colchester.

"Too many times we have talked about bouncing back or getting a reaction.

“We want to go on a winning run."