Neilston manager Andy Whiteford has urged his players to bounce back from defeat in the Strathclyde Demolition Cup final by securing their First Division status.

The Farmer’s Boys were on the wrong end of a 3-0 scoreline against Drumchapel United in their last competitive match as they missed out on the chance to lift silverware.

However, there were a number of positives for Neilston, as they had the better opportunities until a contentious penalty award that went against them in the early stages of the second half sent Drumchapel on the way to victory.

Full attention is now on the battle to beat the drop, with Whiteford looking for his players to produce a positive response to their cup final heartbreak.

He told Barrhead Sport: “Of course we were disappointed after the cup final but we’ve got to build from it.

“We’ve got a good group of boys that were very disappointed but we’ll be looking for a reaction.

“We’ve got half a season left, so we have brought the guys back down after the cup final and we’ve started working on what we are looking for going forward.

“I always want the guys to get the ball on the deck and play football but I don’t feel we did that enough for large spells of the cup final, so that’s one thing we will be working on.

“Every game is difficult in this league but you’ve got a chance in every game and we need to roll the sleeves up, work hard and don’t let the cup final affect us negatively.”

Whiteford’s team didn't have a competitive fixture on Saturday but are back in league action this weekend as they face St Roch’s in what can be seen as a ‘six-pointer.’ Neilston are currently six points behind the Candy Rock in the First Division table but do have up to six games in hand over teams above them.

The Farmer’s Boys warmed up for the relegation battle with a 3-2 friendly win over Muirkirk at Brig O’Lea at the weekend.

An early brace from Del McNab had the home side in a comfortable position, only for the visitors to get back on level terms before the break.

David Collins then popped up with a second-half winner for Neilston.

Kick-off for Saturday's match at home to St Roch's is at 2pm.