ZANDER DIAMOND fears there are players at Aberdeen who daren't tackle in case they miss out on a move. But the defender has called on his side - who have gone 11 games without a win - to start pulling together.
Diamond wants total commitment to the cause today when St Mirren come calling but reckons there could be stars nearing the end of their contract who are pulling out of challenges in case they get crocked.
The 24-year-old said: "We have not been pulling together as a team and don't seem to get a grip of a game at times.
"There could be a number of things to explain that, it might be about individuals or an uncertainty about the club.
"It's a case of having players we know will be here. There are others on loan and another group who are out of contract in the summer.
"You don't know if players who maybe won't be here next season will go through with a tackle because it might jeopardise their move.
"There are inconsistency levels - you can play a couple of good games but then the standard drops again because not everybody is here as a whole.
"If we had everybody signed up and raring to go for the next three years for example then we would be rattling into everything.
"It's not just certain ones, it's how every player takes it and deals with it and the speculation about where some could be playing next season can have an effect. You would need to ask everyone but I just feel we haven't pulled together enough at times.
"How individuals deal with criticism can also be a factor, do they roll their sleeves up and respond or just go under? "It took going a goal down at St Johnstone and the loss of two to Dundee United to get us going in those matches.
"We suddenly thought we were either going under or we were going to battle back and credit to the boys for doing the latter against United.
"You can't give teams in this league a head start so we have to show that spirit right from the start of games from now on. There's no point saying this will be a turning point, we have to prove it during matches."
Diamond knows losing can become a habit because, during the dark days under blundering boss Steve Paterson, players were content to accept their fate.
He added: "I was here under Paterson and we were eventually happy just to get anything from games because we had lost so many of them.
"You did get used to losing but I want to stop this rot as quickly as I can as we have been battered from pillar to post.
"The players who do want success and do feel for the club will come out the other side strongly to get us out of this. I don't like losing at five-a-side never mind being beaten on a Saturday.
"I am sure there are boys in that dressing room who feel the same way but there's no point looking back."
