David Martindale believes keeping Livingston in the Scottish Premiership this season would be the “biggest achievement” of his career.
The West Lothian club are currently three points adrift at the bottom of the table but have the chance to move level with Ross County if they win in Dingwall this weekend.
They are looking to secure back-to-back league wins for the first time this season in their bid to secure their top-flight status.
County are without a league victory since December 5 but also have a game in hand.
Games against Motherwell and St Johnstone follow Saturday’s trip to the Highlands and Martindale believes it is the most “significant period” of his time at the club as he insists he is not ready to settle for even second-bottom.
“It’s probably the most significant period in my coaching career, if we keep Livingston in the Premiership this season then it will be my biggest achievement at the club,” he said.
“That includes winning League One, getting promoted from the Championship and getting to a cup final.
“That’s how relevant I find it, and again I’ll go back to it, I think I was very vocal at the start of the season, speaking about how big a season I felt it was going to be. Granted I didn’t think it would be that difficult, but we are where we are so I think it would be a monumental achievement from the players and the staff at the club.
“No (I wouldn’t take 11th), I want 10th, I want ninth, I want to try and get as high as we can, so if you said to me we’d be bang on 11th right now then I wouldn’t be happy with that. I think we want to try and achieve 10th or better.
Don Cowie will be in charge of Ross County again on Saturday after the former player was placed in interim charge following Derek Adams’ departure.
It is a move that Martindale thinks has had a positive impact on the Staggies.
He said: “Don was a top player in his day, he knows the club inside out, he’s probably giving them a wee bit of stability.
“Would I rather my direct rivals were in a wee bit of turmoil? Of course I would. With Don taking over and Derek deciding to leave, has that probably helped the environment? I’d imagine it has, it’s only natural that that would happen.
“It doesn’t really change my approach whether it was Derek or Don in charge, if I’m being honest, because I genuinely believe Derek’s CV is very good and he is a good manager. But I just think with Don coming in it’s probably helped that environment.”
Scottish Premiership and SWPL on Sky Sports
Sky Sports – This season up to 48 cinch Premiership games will be available across Sky Sports’ flagship channels, including Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event, plus at least five SWPL matches. From 2024/25, up to 60 cinch Premiership will be live on Sky Sports, in addition to the SWPL.
Sky Sports News – Running 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Scottish football fans can enjoy Sky Sports News’ (channel 409) rolling editorial coverage of the cinch Premiership and SWPL throughout the season.
Sky Sports Digital – Follow all the latest from Scottish football across SkySports.com and app, including exclusive features and interviews, plus dedicated live blog coverage, in-game clips from matches live on Sky Sports and free highlights.
Sky Sports Social – Alongside coverage and visibility for the league across all Sky Sports’ main social media channels, the bespoke X page @ScotlandSky (formerly known as Twitter) will continue to be the home of all Scottish football content on Sky Sports.
Highlights show – Tune in for a dedicated round-up from the cinch Premiership every week on Sky Sports Football.
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