Arbroath ace Michael McKenna swears by the message etched above the Gayfield tunnel.
‘Respect all, fear none.’
It’s a mantra that has seen Lichties survive in the Championship for four years and come within two points of reaching the Scottish Premiership last term.
McKenna firmly believes Arbroath have rediscovered their ‘DNA.’
A seven-game unbeaten run has seen them take points off the top four.
Lichties have picked up five clean sheets in six games, beaten Queen’s Park and Ayr United and drawn with Dundee and Partick Thistle in that time.
They are, however, still embroiled in a three-game fight with Cove Rangers and Hamilton to stay up.
But as McKenna looked around Gayfield to savour the Angus side’s biggest home attendance in 11 years, he’s dreaming of surviving and thriving.
And McKenna hasn’t given up on his dream of promotion to the Scottish Premiership – if they can stay up.
“The crowd would probably be like that every week in the Premiership,” said McKenna.
“That’s something we should keep in our thoughts as those are the kind of crowds you want to play in front of.
Action ready to kick off at the Costa del Gayfield. pic.twitter.com/T3xnCE10Fl
— Ewan Smith (@ewansmithpr) April 8, 2023
“IÂ still want to do that with Arbroath. I want to be promoted with this club. I’d like to see us play one level higher.
“I’m obviously getting ahead of myself talking like this.
“But, in the back of my mind, it’s an ambition I’m holding onto.
“I look at the teams at the top of this league and I’m gutted at the way this season has turned out.
Michael McKenna vows Arbroath can ‘survive and thrive’
“We are as good as them but because we had such a poor start we’re down near the bottom.
“It’s similar to the Covid season. We started poorly, found our feet to survive and then took that form into last season.
“Hopefully we can do that again this year. Let’s try to get over the line and stay up and learn from what went wrong this year.
“The message above our tunnel is a good mantra for us as a club.
“The gaffer always talks about having respect for opponents. It doesn’t matter if they are above us in this league or in a league below.
“We’ve been underdogs in the past and pulled off results so you can never be complacent.
“But you also have to have confidence in this team. When we fight for each other on the park we are a match for any opponent.
“We now need to show that for our last five games.”
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