THE season may have ended last Saturday ...

but the hard work is continuing for myself and Alan Archibald.

We had a couple of days to relax after the Ross County game, but there is a lot to be done for next year and that work is well underway now.

The big thing for us is that we are preparing for a Premiership campaign and we know how tough it will be again next season.

It was a great achievement for the club to stay up this year and now we really want to build and keep improving, not just for next season but for years to come.

We are looking at what we will do for pre-season and, of course, what players we can bring in to the club.

Everyone connected with the Jags has gained a lot of experience from the season we have just finished.

The players are better for it and myself and Alan are better for it. We want to strengthen the squad and bring more players in to the club and I think we will be a more attractive proposition this summer.

We have shown that we play the game in the right way and can survive in this league and hopefully that will pay off when we look to sign players.

It is hard for the team that just comes up to the Premiership; nine times out of 10 you are the odds-on favourite to go straight back down.

But it has been a really good season for us and hopefully players will like what we are doing here and feel this is the place for them.

One area we will need to strengthen is left-back, with Aaron Taylor-Sinclair set to leave us this summer.

It is a massive blow to lose him. He has been outstanding for us and I wish him all the best for the future.

He will go on to bigger things and do really well for himself and everyone here is delighted for him.

Aaron is a great pro, a really nice guy and you are always happy when you see players progress and going on to improve themselves further.

We have had a great service out of him and, wherever he ends up this summer, I hope he does really well.

The other area we will need to strengthen is centre-back after we decided not to offer Lee Mair another contract.

He joined us in January and did very well, and he brought that bit of experience we lacked in a vital area.

Lee scored a couple of important goals for us and did well but we have decided not to keep him on again. It is never a nice situation to be in or thing to do.

As well as bringing in players for those positions, we will be looking to strengthen the whole squad and improve the great group we have here.

It is an exciting time for Thistle and, with preparations for next season well under way, hopefully it will prove to be another big summer for the club as we gear up for the next Premiership campaign.