SOMETIMES in life, you have to take a step back, to take a step forward. That’s the view of Partick Thistle attacker Blair Spittal, who is hoping that the Jags can rediscover their identity following their relegation to the Championship.

Spittal believes that Thistle lost sight of the type of football they set out to play at the start of last season as they became embroiled in the scrap at the bottom of the Premiership table.

But he says that manager Alan Archibald is looking to reset his team’s priorities as they look to assert themselves on their opponents next season.

“The gaffer has come in and said it already, even when we were winning we were doing it in a horrible way and grinding the results out, and he is wanting to get back to playing attractive football,” Spittal said.

“There is a balance to be found of course, because we know that we will have to battle it out at times in this league, but we have to play football as well.

“I think we lost sight of the type of team we wanted to be at times last season, and the gaffer has told us

that he wants to get back to that and try to play that style of football next season.

“We’re going in really confident that we can do well.”

Spittal recognises that the types of games Thistle found themselves being dragged into weren’t particularly suited to his particular talents, but he refused to look for excuses as he assessed his own personal performances over the course of last season.

After a blistering start to life at Firhill, Spittal’s form tailed off in the second half of the campaign, and he is determined to show the Thistle support what he can do on a consistent basis in the Championship.

“I thought my performances were good in the first half of the season by and large, but when we came back from the winter break I thought that my form was off,” he said.

“I’m man enough to admit that I didn’t play as well as I would have liked, and when you are then in and out of the team it is hard to get up and running again.

“I don’t blame the gaffer for that situation, because when you are in the position we were in, you have to try and find the right formula to win games, and when you aren’t, there will be chopping and changing.

“I don’t know what it was, it was maybe that I was trying a bit too hard when I was on the ball because of the situation, but I can’t blame anyone else.”

Relegation hit Spittal hard, with the experience of going through it all before with Dundee United not helping to soften the blow.

But after taking time to process what has happened, he is now looking forward to the challenge that lies ahead.

“I didn’t really speak to anyone for a couple of days after the Livingston game, it took a while for it to sink in,” he said.

“I’ve had time now to reflect though and refresh the mind, and now I am focusing on coming back stronger next season.

“Being relegated before at United didn’t really help me. I’m a little bit older now and more experienced than when it happened there, so I understand the inner workings of a football club a little more and recognised how much it would affect things around the whole club.

“There was a really sour taste in the mouth after the Livingston game, but there’s a real chance to start afresh now.”