FIRED-up Irvine Meadow boss Brian McGinty firmly believes his team can achieve promotion and has hailed the players for turning the team around since he took charge.

Formerly a Premier Division title winner at Meadow Park, McGinty, who arrived in the hotseat last October, is hoping to help the team hit the heights again as a manager.

But he is warning that a lot of hard work still must be done if Meadow are to stand a chance of landing a berth in the revamped 16-team Premier Division next season.

The Irvine team are undefeated in their last seven games and just eight points behind Cambuslang Rangers with two games in hand - in a league in which the top four clubs are promoted to the top flight. The fifth and sixth-placed clubs go into a playoff with the bottom and second bottom teams in the Premier Division.

When he returned to the club as boss, they were well down the second half of the table but a string of great results have put them in the mix.

Meadow on Wednesday drew 1-1 at home to fifth-placed Troon and on Saturday they enjoyed a 2-1 victory away to Larkhall Thistle.

McGinty told Sportscene this week: "We showed some great character again on Saturday, coming from behind against Larkhall in what was not an easy game. The pitches are really bobbly at this time of the season. Eddie McTernan scored another good goal on Saturday and Graham Boyd also played well. It was an important win. It was important to also take something from the Troon game last Wednesday and we are on a good run."

Asked how the team had improved, McGinty said: "We have added in three or four players since I came in but the guys who were already here have done very well. We like to keep it simple for players. We don't say for instance they have to beat five men but that they do things they are good and they have bought into that. We have a good squad and this means if someone drops out another player has an opportunity to claim a regular starting place, that's how it works."

McGinty is encouraged with how things are going but remains cautious and said: "Nothing has been achieved yet, I have to say. There is still a lot of work to be done but we have given ourselves a chance.

"Petershill are promoted and deservedly so and our target is promotion - whether that is automatically, or through the playoffs. I believe we can achieve that and must keep working towards it. Irvine Meadow want to be competing at the highest level."