Liam Henderson happy to take his medicine for Edinburgh City

Liam Henderson defends against a Cowdenbeath player last season

Defender Liam Henderson believes a recent spell out of the side will stand him in good stead going forward.

The 23-year-old has been restored to the Edinburgh City starting line-up these past few weeks having sat out victories over Queen’s Park, Albion Rovers and Annan during September.

And Henderson revealed a heart to heart with manager James McDonaugh has proved to be the best medicine having rediscovered his form.

Ahead of tomorrow’s visit of fourth-placed Elgin City, Henderson said: “I had a good chat with the gaffer and we agreed it would be best to pull me out for a couple of weeks in order to get the best out of me again.

“I’ve been patient, worked hard in training and have got the jersey back these last few games so I feel it has done me the world of good. It keeps you on your toes and there’s always that edge between players when trying to cement yourself in the team.

“I’m still only 23 so I’ve got a lot to learn. Conrad [Balatoni] and Chris [Kane] are far more experienced but I took it on the chin and got my head down and worked hard.”

Henderson insists his exclusion underlines the strength in depth of the Citizens squad and the options available to McDonaugh.

City are currently second, three points off leaders Cove but ten clear of this weekend’s opposition Elgin.

“We had a lot of players out from last year but most of them are available this season so taking into account the new players that have come in, I think we’re in a far stronger position,” Henderson said. “We’ve got the players who can hurt teams so it’s important, as a defender, we do our job first and foremost and then build from the back.

“We’ve built some momentum in recent weeks so we feel good just now and approach every game thinking we can win.

“I’m glad we’re playing Elgin at home beacause, touch wood, we’ve not really had too many problems at Ainslie Park.

“However, it’s going up to their place that we’ve tended to struggle to get a result. There have been some real good matches against them.

“But they’re on a good run just now, four unbeaten, scoring goals and not giving much away at the back so we’re expecting a tough match.

“There is a bit of a gap developing between the top three and the rest of the teams but I don’t think there is much in it.

“You certainly don’t notice it when you’re playing. We just need to keep pushing Cove and be there to overtake them when we can.”