STUART BANNIGAN has seen the darker days at Firhill and emerged as the silver lining for Partick Thistle.

Now the Jags star is confident the future is bright on and off the park for Alan Archibald's side as they look forward to their third successive season in the Premiership.

After finishing tenth on their return to the top flight last term, Thistle are guaranteed to be no lower than eighth this time out after an impressive campaign.

Bannigan has risen through the ranks to become a key part of the Jags' success and the 22-year-old is pleased to see the Thistle on the right track across the board.

He said: "The club and the team is going in the right direction and I feel I am improving as a player as well.

"I have proven that I can handle the league. We have done better than last year and the club is progressing from bottom to top.

"For that to continue, we need to be in the top league. We have done that again this year so that is great.

"It is night and day from when I first came here. There were times there was only five or six youth players, sometimes we didn't get to train and we didn't have any facilities.

"There is a real change at the club and what the ThistleWeir Academy are doing will only benefit the club in years to come.

"Hopefully we can keep getting players through and into the first team.

"The club has come on leaps and bounds but we need to keep getting better, that progress can't just stop."

After seeing their hopes of a seventh place finish dented last weekend as they were held by Hamilton, Thistle head into their final two fixtures with six points in their sights.

The clash with Kilmarnock on Saturday could be the final Firhill fixture for some members of the Jags squad, with a host of players out of contract this month.

But Bannigan insists there can be progression once again next term as boss Archibald gets set to shape his squad for another Premiership campaign.

He said: "You want to keep getting better every year but that won't mean that we will set ourselves unrealistic aims. We will take each year as it comes and remain steady.

"We will see how we are looking at the start of the year, what players are coming in and what players leave. We will look at that and see what we feel we can achieve next season.

"You don't want to lose too many players at the one time, especially boys that know what it is like to play here and fit in well with the squad.

"Hopefully the boys stay but it is down to them and how they feel their careers are going.

"If they get offers elsewhere or a chance to go higher, you can't fault them for taking that."

If Thistle are to take another step in the right direction next season, Bannigan is likely to be central to any success they have.

The midfielder has been nominated for the McCrea Financial Services Player of the Year award and is pleased with another impressive campaign.

Bannigan said: "It has been a good season for me. I was a bit up and down at the start but I have come onto a game towards the end of the season so I am pleased.

"It is good to help the team to safety again and finish higher than last season.

"It is about the team and not what you do individually. As a group, we have done well this season and I am pleased I have been able to contribute to that."