KALLUM Higginbotham is determined to finish the season in style after a frustrating campaign at Firhill.

The winger has been unable to hit the heights of last term in recent months as injuries and a drop in form have blighted him, but he has still been an integral part of manager Alan Archibald's plans.

Higginbotham played his part as the Jags beat Motherwell on Saturday to move a step closer to securing their Premiership place for a third straight season.

The 25-year-old is out of contract in the summer, but is only focusing on success on the park as he looks to fire the Jags over the line this term.

Higgy said: "It has been a frustrating season for me due to injury and some of my performances. I thought I did well against Dundee United away and then stupidly got sent off at Ross County.

"It is good to be back to full fitness, I am not feeling any niggles in my knee or ankle, and I was able to contribute on Saturday.

"The main objective is to keep the team in the league, and I am confident we will do that.

"But, personally, I want to repay the gaffer, my team-mates and the fans who have stood by me during the season I have had. Hopefully I can get a few more goals and assists and play my part.

"There is nothing about my contract as yet. I will wait until the end of the season and take it from there. It is not the ideal time to sit down and talk about it. We will see where we finish in the league and then the time will come and we will take it from there."

Thistle will head into the post-split fixture schedule with a seven-point cushion in the battle to avoid the relegation play-off spot after ending Well's recent good form.

The Jags are just one point ahead of Ross County after they continued their superb run with victory at St Mirren on Monday to all but condemn the Buddies to the drop.

And Higginbotham was delighted Archibald's side delivered when it mattered most as a Lyle Taylor double clinched a crucial three points.

He said: "It was a fantastic result on Saturday. There was a lot of pressure on us, but I thought the boys handled it really well. It was a great win and fully deserved. We got the win we wanted and it gives us a bit of breathing space going into the split.

"Ross County are on a fantastic run and Motherwell had dragged us a bit closer, so everyone was concentrating on those two. It has been good for us and we have gone under the radar a bit.

"On Saturday, we showed we were a good side and, as long as we keep doing that and keep winning games, we are not bothered if nobody is talking about us."

Having taken 10 points from their last five Premiership outings, Thistle are now within touching distance of Hamilton as they set their sights on seventh this season.

The Jags have put together a fine run of form in recent weeks and Higginbotham is pleased they are finally showing what they are capable of.

He said: "We have stated all season that we were only ever looking up the table, we weren't worried about what was going on below us.

"I have always said I knew what quality we had in the dressing room, it was just a matter of showing it on a regular basis. Over the last few weeks, we have started to do that.

"If this run had come five or six weeks before, you never know what could have happened. It shows that we can push on, though. We have a strong enough squad to be challenging higher up the table, but we need to have this kind of run on a more regular basis."