Raith Rovers' Lewis Gibson reveals reasons for his extra confidence since joining Kirkcaldy club

Gibson, 19, the son of Annan Athletic player/manager Wullie Gibson, joined Raith on a three-year contract this summer after leaving League One outfit Queen of the South and has made four substitute league cup appearances for Rovers.

The teenager told Raith TV: "I like to show that I’m quite direct, I’ll put crosses in the box and have shots.

"I like to try and express myself as much as I can going forward.

"The gaffer says to me all the time that losing the ball going forward doesn’t matter. If you lose it going backwards or sideways, that’s when we’ve got a problem.

"That gives me a lot of confidence to go and express myself and play the game that I like to play.

"It’s been brilliant (at Raith) so far. Living up here it’s a lot easier to get to training rather than travelling.

"The boys have been brilliant with me.

"Dad’s played with a few of them which has helped as I knew them before I came in.

"Even the older boys have welcomed me and made me feel like I’m part of the first team and experienced like they are which gives me a lot of confidence and motivation to express myself every day in training.

"I feel like it is the right choice coming here. It’s a step up and I’ve been given opportunities so far, even coming off the bench it’s a higher level and more demanding.

"Even with the training I feel as if I’ve got better and progressed as a player through the short time I’ve been in as well.”

On last Saturday’s league cup exit after he’d scored a penalty in the 5-3 home shootout win over Hamilton Accies following a 1-1 draw, Gibson added: “It was a slow start but I felt throughout the game we grew into it and created a lot of chances.

"On our second half performance we probably deserved the win which is what the gaffer said when he came in after the game.

"In the second half I think we were more direct and quicker with the tempo of the play. We put them on the back foot and defended the box well.”