Ross Draper seeing benefits of fitness work following Ross County switch
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ROSS Draper is seeing the benefits of improving his fitness levels – but still has work to do.
Previous County manager Jim McIntyre wanted a fitter Draper after his arrival from Caley Thistle and Draper conceded he was nowhere near up to speed.
However, after some intensive work since his move over the Kessock Bridge, Draper is noticing improvements and knows it will have to continue under new manager Owen Coyle.
The Staggies cruised to an away victory at Rugby Park, coming out 2-0 winners against Kilmarnock with Draper playing an hour in an assured display.
There is still work to do for Draper as he adjusts to another change in role under Coyle, playing a more advanced role than under McIntyre.
“I’m the first to admit I was way off it fitness-wise against Aberdeen. I just didn’t feel up with the pace. With all due respect, the drop between the two leagues and the way the old manager played was fitness-based. The gaffer has taken me off to freshen it up and there’s a lot of work in the middle of the park in games like this,” said Draper.
“I’ve still got work to do but I’m a big lump – I’ve got to work on that to get myself up and down the pitch. Under previous managers I’ve sat in front of the back four and not done much. But this manager wants me to get up and down so I’ve still got a lot of work to do.
“It’s important that you’re not just a one-job guy. We’re all in it together – if you’re asked to do a different role go out there and do it to the best of your ability.
“If me improving my fitness helps in some small way towards getting a result, then that’s me playing my part.”
Saturday’s result was Draper’s first win since making the move to County – his last win was away to Forfar in the Betfred Cup – and it was a relief to get a chip off the shoulder.
It has been a strange spell for Draper, who is now working under his fourth manager in four months. He played in the final game of last season at Inverness under Richie Foran, the start of this campaign under John Robertson, before McIntyre brought him to Dingwall.
“What a reputation! Is that what it is, four in four months? It sounds terrible – I was joking with the boys that I’d had about 10 in eight years of professional football,” said Draper. “Hopefully this one sticks around a bit longer! It’s always important for a new manager to come in and get a win straight away.
“The first win for themselves was against Dundee when the deal wasn’t done yet. But it’s not about me. We felt we’d done enough in a lot of the games to get a result but spells have cost the manager his job, because it’s a results business.
“Ketts and Fergie took training on Monday and Tuesday and they were brilliant in trying to lift the boys. The manager has been here with certain players for three years, brought them and myself to the club.
"But we have to get on with it – it’s a strange business where someone can come in and change everything in a couple of days. A performance like that can show what the lads can do on a regular basis.”
County cruised to the three points in Coyle’s first game in charge, with Craig Curran and Kenny van der Weg finding the back of the net in their first win since the opening day of the season.
Curran glanced a header in from Davis Keillor-Dunn’s cross on 34 minutes and 10 minutes later van der Weg combined with Curran, picking up the rebound from Curran’s blocked shot on the slide to lift it over Jamie MacDonald.
